Best Practives in Leadership Development & Organization Change 32

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Figure 11.8 Comments from Platypi.
ENDNOTES
1. Sartre, John Paul. Sartre on Theater. New York: Pantheon Books, 1976.
2. Greenleaf, Robert K. Servant Leadership: A Journey into the Nature of Legitimate
Power and Greatness. New York: Paulist Press, 1977, p. 38.
3. Spolin, Viola. Improvisation for the Theater. Evanston, Ill.: Northwestern Univer-
sity Press, 1963, p. 10.
4. Spolin, Viola. Improvisation for the Theater. Evanston, Ill.: Northwestern Univer-
sity Press, 1963, p. 10.
5. Sam Hamill, editor of Copper Mountain Press. (Radio interview). NPR/KCRW,
Los Angeles, Calif.
6. Van Eenwyk, John R. Archetypes and Strange Attractors. Toronto: Inner City
Books, 1997. p. 43.
7. Capra, Fritjof. The Hidden Connections. New York: Doubleday, 2002, p. 123.
8. Meredith, Mukara. (Interview). MatrixWorks Inc., November 22, 2002.
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTORS
Ivy Ross is currently the senior vice president of design and development in the
Girls Division of Mattel, Inc. She oversees the design and development of all
products and packaging for girls, including Barbie dolls, accessories, Diva Stars,
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What’s Her Face, Ello, Polly Pocket and six other unique brands, with total sales
of approximately $2 billion. In addition, Ross is in charge of the model shop,
sound lab, chemistry lab, and sculpting functions for all Mattel products. Ross’s
education was in design and psychology and included time at the Harvard Busi-
ness School. Her high-level background in fashion and design spans more than
two decades. She came to Mattel from Calvin Klein, where she led a turnaround
in men’s accessories. Prior to Calvin Klein, Ross served as vice president of
product design and development for Coach, the maker of high-end leather
goods and accessories. She also held positions at Liz Claiborne, Bausch & Lomb,

and Swatch Watch. In addition, Ross was a founding partner of two indepen-
dent design firms and a retail store. She has a proven ability as a design leader
and also possesses a strong sense of business management. A world-renowned
artist, Ross’s innovative metal work in jewelry is in the permanent collection of
twelve international museums, including the Smithsonian in Washington D.C.,
the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, and the Cooper Hewitt Museum in
New York City, among others. A winner of the prestigious National Endowment
for the Arts grant, Ross has also received the Women in Design Award and
Diamond International award for her creative designs. She has served as a juror,
teacher, and critic in a wide range of product categories.
David Kuehler is the director of Project Platypus, an innovative product devel-
opment initiative within the Girls Division of Mattel, Inc. Kuehler’s background
encompasses over fifteen years in the design and entertainment fields. His edu-
cation is in design, engineering, and theater. Before joining Mattel, Kuehler was
director, creative development and programming for Robert Redford’s Sundance
Film Centers. At the Walt Disney Company, Kuehler was instrumental in the
design development and rollout of Club Disney, a location-based entertainment
concept. He produced initiatives for Walt Disney Imagineering, R&D, Disney
Online, and ESPN Zone. As an instructor and speaker at Art Center College of
Design, he taught spatial graphics and successfully led students in a project
sponsored by Intel Corporation, creating user interfaces and products for the
next generation of wireless, personal computers. A versatile thinker with a
unique ability to both conceive and implement innovative ideas, Kuehler
cofounded an entertainment design and production company. He has developed
shows for Nelvana Communications and the Sundance Channel. He is currently
cocreating children’s programming with Britt Allcroft, best known for her
popular Thomas the Tank Engine series.
MATTEL
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CHAPTER TWELVE
McDonald’s Corporation
A leadership development program designed specifically to help participants
prepare for success in meeting the increased challenges and demands of one
of the roles most critical to success of the business.
OVERVIEW 283
Business Context and Need for the Leadership Program 283
Objectives of the Leadership Development Experience 285
ASSESSMENT OF PARTICIPANTS 285
The Role of Assessment 285
Process and Approach 286
Insights Emerging from the Assessment Results 287
Initial Feedback and Coaching 287
THE PROGRAM 288
Designing the Leadership Development Experience 288
Content of the Program 289
Tools, Instruments, and Training Materials 290
Reinforcing and Building on Learning 291
EVALUATION 291
Methods and Measure 291
Program Outcomes 292
Critical Success Factors 293
Lessons Learned and Opportunities for Improvement 293
Additional Benefits and Impacts Realized After Initial
Program Completion 294
ENHANCED PROGRAM LAUNCH 295
SUMMARY 296
EXHIBITS
Exhibit 12.1: Regional Manager Success Profile 297

Exhibit 12.2: Team Charter—Sample Format 298
S
S
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Exhibit 12.3: Team Metrics 299
Exhibit 12.4: Team Process Check 300
Exhibit 12.5: Pros and Cons of Data Collection Methods 301
Exhibit 12.6: Force-Field Analysis 303
Exhibit 12.7: Project Review Checklist 304
Exhibit 12.8: Business Improvement Recommendation Process 306
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTORS 308
OVERVIEW
Business Context and Need for the Leadership Program
In early 2001, the HR Design Center for McDonald’s Corporation initiated the
development of a special leadership development program for a select number
of high-potential managers identified as candidates for possible promotion into
a key role in its system, that of regional manager (RM). The program devel-
oped was entitled the McDonald’s Leadership Development Experience. This
chapter will describe what differentiated this program from other leadership
development activities that had previously been offered within the company,
what program elements worked particularly well (and which didn’t), and how
this program has helped influence both the training methodology and sub-
stantive content of current and future planned leadership training initiatives at
McDonald’s.
There were a number of factors that led the company to support this initia-
tive. First, the regional manager role was a very significant one within the over-
all operations structure of the business. At the time of this initiative, individuals
in the regional manager positions were responsible for managing regions that
comprised 300 to 400 stores that generated $480—$640 million in revenue. The
regional manager position was not only considered a significant business respon-

sibility but also a key stepping stone for many individuals who were thought to
be capable of advancing to the senior executive level of the company. Another
factor that helped create a felt need for developing a special leadership devel-
opment program focusing on future candidates for the regional manager role
was the fact that the expectations and challenges for this position had shifted
significantly over the previous five to ten years as a result of both changes in the
marketplace and within McDonald’s. These changes included heightened com-
petition, the increased challenge of growing market share, RMs being given more
autonomy as the organization became more decentralized and moved decision
making closer to the market and customer, and the growing expectation for RMs
to act strategically as well as tactically. Given this evolution in the role, it was
decided to develop an accelerated leadership development experience that could
M
C
DONALD’S CORPORATION
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assist potential future RMs to be better prepared to meet these new expectations
and challenges.
A final factor that helped lead to and influence the development of this pro-
gram was a study that had been conducted during the year 2000 that was
designed to develop a Regional Manager Success Profile. The intent in devel-
oping this profile was to provide a sharp picture of what superior performance
in the regional manager role looked like in order to guide both the future selec-
tion of individuals for and the development of individuals already in this
position. The development of this profile involved interviews with the presi-
dent of the North American business, all five division presidents reporting to
him, key senior human resource executives, selected others who had a clear
perspective on the role and demands of the RM position, and selected “star”
performers in the RM position. The content of the interviews focused on

identifying
1. How the business had changed in the past five to ten years
2. How these changes had affected “the recipe for success” in the RM role
3. The critical results and competencies that differentiated the “star” per-
formers from the average ones
4. What experiences were felt to be key to the preparation of someone to
step successfully into the role and the kinds of problems that had
derailed some individuals who had been put into the position
The Regional Manager Success Profile that emerged from this work (and was
finalized in early 2001) identified both the key results that the top RMs needed
to produce and the critical competencies that they needed to be able to demon-
strate in order to excel in the position (see Exhibit 12.1). The availability of this
success profile made the design of a customized leadership experience for devel-
oping future RMs easier and more effective.
In addition to the success profile that emerged from this process, a variety of
other useful information was gathered in the course of this preliminary work
that has proved valuable in guiding the ongoing efforts to design training and
development initiatives for regional manager leadership. Key elements of this
additional information include
• Specific examples of ten critical but common practical leadership chal-
lenges that individuals stepping into the RM role might expect to face
and that they must be prepared to handle if they are to be effective (for
example, inheriting a region that has been steadily losing market share,
needing to significantly upgrade the talent or morale level of the
regional staff team, needing to strengthen or rebuild trust and credibility
with the owner-operators)
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