Not only are they gearing up to layoff an unknown number of corporate staff, but they're also looking to make some big changes to the menu.
As Eat This, Not That reported, CEO Chris Kempczinski discussed his concerns with the company's current model. Specifically, he took issue with what he views as the needless duplication of certain menu items at McDonald's locations throughout the world.
"We had across the globe 70 different, distinct versions of what a crispy chicken sandwich would look like," Kempczinski said in the note, according to the Financial Times. "I don't need 70 different permutations of a chicken sandwich."
While global McDonald's locations carry core items like the Big Mac and french fries, many cater to their local populations with exclusive products that can't be found elsewhere. For example, McDonald's customers in the United States can get their hands on chicken sandwiches like the McChicken and recently renamed McCrispy, but they can't purchase items like the McArabia Chicken available in the UAE or the Chicken Big Tasty available in France.
McDonald's hasn't publicly confirmed that any items are indeed on the chopping block, but Kempczinski's comments still raise questions on whether major changes are in store for menus as the company restructures. McDonald's reportedly shut down its headquarters from Monday through Wednesday this week to virtually deliver layoff notices to an unknown number of corporate staff.
While McDonald's hasn't provided an official reason for the purported layoffs, the chain's Accelerating the Arches growth initiative included a pillar called "Accelerating the Organization." Kempczinski wrote in a January memo to employees that the company wanted to use this pillar—which is aimed at making McDonald's "faster, more innovative, and more efficient"—to improve how the company worked internally.
It's clear McDonald's is going through some big changes, which is most likely due to some kind of financial issues.
If it's not broken don't fix it, and something is obviously broken at McDonalds.
