Infuse an industry with competition and you’ll quickly find that businesses have to improve their game. McDonald’s is having trouble — big trouble — with sales. So what has the CEO done? He’s working his you-know-what off to find innovative products that appeal to more people and to compete with companies like Panera and Chipotle, which are snagging his customers. Enter a pilot program for build-your-own burgers and chicken sandwiches.
For decades, fast food’s central success has been built around serving customers their orders within a few minutes. That’s impossible when customers — particularly those in the 14 to 24-year-old range — demand customized meals that are served fresh, appear healthy and don’t cost too much. The wait-time for a burger from the new platform at McDonald’s is about seven minutes — an eternity in fast-food land.
But the chain needs to take risks. It recently reported its worst same-store sales decline in more than a decade. McDonald’s stock has lagged its peers. CEO Don Thompson knows that if results don’t improve sooner rather than later, his job could be on the line. In the third quarter, when McDonald’s earnings plunged 30%, Thompson conceded that the company had lost relevance for key young consumers like Slade.
The same dynamics apply to education. Infuse the traditional public system with competition — public charters and Opportunity Scholarships for example — and you’ll get improvement all around. Sadly, defenders of the Big Education monopoly continue to oppose wide-scale competition — even suing over a scholarship program that gives vouchers to low-income kids whose parents believe the traditional classroom isn’t meeting their needs.
What’s so threatening about helping a child succeed?