Ray Kroc
Leadership Case Study

Ray Kroc Leadership
Who was He?

---

Ray Kroc is the man behind the multimillion dollar fast food empire, MacDonald’s. In his life, he has built the fast food chain from a simple hamburger restaurant to a multi-billion dollar franchise that has reached almost every part of the world today.

A Quick History

---

Ray Kroc was born in 1902 in the city of Illinois. He had grown up to be a brash, enthusiastic young man who was a visionary and a salesman.

During World War I, although he was underage, he still signed up to be trained as a ambulance driver, but he never made to the front lines as the war ended before his training did.

After the war, he worked in many professions as a paper cup salesman, a pianist, a musician as well as at the Chicago Radio Station.

His breakthrough came with his fascination with the multi-mixers. He saw the potential in the McDonald’s brothers’ hamburger restaurant in churning out burgers after burgers like clockwork.

He suggested expansion to the brothers and volunteered to be the person to expand the restaurant chain. He saw great potential in the concept that the brothers did not.

Eventually he would buy over the restaurant from the brothers at $2.7 million. Ray Kroc would revolutionize the dining industry by created an assembly line method of selling his burgers that would be standardized throughout the world.

By 1963, McDonald’s would have sold its 1 billionth burger and open its 500th restaurant.

At the end of his life in 1984, Ray Kroc amassed a personal fortune of $500 million, and in 2007, the McDonald’s Corporation that he founded had achieved a revenue of $22 billion.

Awards and Honours

---

1.Time 100: The Most Important People of the Century
2 The Ray Kroc Award, an award given to Macdonald’s top 1% managers, is named after him.

Ray Kroc Leadership Lessons

1. Having a big vision
When Ray Kroc first saw the multi-mixers in the restaurant of the McDonald’s Brothers, he envisioned 8 of these restaurants churning out burgers and making a steady stream of cash immediately.

Leaders are men of vision and when they look at a certain situation, they see its potential. They see what things could become. You must have that as a leader as well; to think about possibilities.

2. Commitment to Excellence
Ray Kroc has an obsession for cleanliness in his restaurants and he is known for being extremely particular about every corner of his restaurants. He expects that every employee do his best at every moment during his work.

I believe that this is one of the great traits of a leader as well: to be committed to every single detail in your plans, your events and so on. Your commitment to this details is your commitment to excellence and it will set you one notch above your competition.

What’s more, having a commitment to excellence will also compel your followers to live up to that same standard as you. When you set the standard with your personal example, you can expect to build a great organization.

Related Books on
Ray Kroc Leadership

---

Best Quotes from
Ray Kroc Leadership

---

“Luck is a dividend of sweat. The more you sweat, the luckier you get.”

“The two most important requirements for major success are: first, being in the right place at the right time, and second, doing something about it.”

“All money means to me is a pride in accomplishment.”

“We take the hamburger business more seriously than anyone else.”

“When you're green, your growing. When you're ripe, you rot.”

“While formal schooling is an important advantage, it is not a guarantee of success nor is its absence a fatal handicap.”

“You're only as good as the people you hire.”

“The quality of a leader is reflected in the standards they set for themselves.”

“Its easy to have principles when you're rich. The important thing is to have principles when you're poor.”

“Creativity is a highfalutin word for the work I have to do between now and Tuesday.”

“If you work just for money, you'll never make it, but if you love what you're doing and you always put the customer first, success will be yours.”

“If you're not a risk taker, you should get the hell out of business.”

“None of Us is as Good as All of Us.”

Video on
Ray Kroc Leadership

---

Other Links

Wikipedia: A highly detailed account of Ray Kroc's life
Time.com: Time's profile of Ray Kroc

» Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs is the Chairman and CEO of Apple Computers Inc. and arguably one of the world’s most successful businessmen today.

» Bill Gates
Bill Gates is consistently the richest man in the world; and the co-founder of Microsoft, the creator of the commonly used Windows. He is best known for being the entrepreneur that revolutionized the computer industry.

» Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie was the father of modern steel and was one of America’s richest men. He started the Carnegie Steel Company, which later merged with Steel Company to become U.S. Steel.

» Walt Disney
Walt Disney is the famous founder of Mickey Mouse, the loveable cartoon character that has permeated almost every country and culture in the world. He is the co-founder of Walt Disney Productions and one of the most influential motion picture producers in the world.

» Henry Ford
Henry Ford is the founder of the Ford Motor Company and also the inventor of the modern day assembly line method of production for his Model T cars. He is also an inventor who has been credited with over 100 patents. During his time, he was one of the richest people in the world.

» Sam Walton
Sam Walton is the founder of Walmart, the international discounting retail giant. He is a model business leader who has changed the way big business is done.

» Donald Trump
Donald Trump is an American business magnate and television personality. He is the Chairman of the Trump Organization, a US-based real-estate developer. To date, Donald Trump has accumulated wealth of up to US$2.7 billion, primarily through his real estate investments.

» John D Rockefeller
John D Rockefeller is an American Oil Magnate and the first billionaire in the history of the world. In today’s dollars, Rockefeller is still considered the richest man in modern history. He was also one of the first few philanthropists in the world, giving back a huge portion of his wealth to the community.

» Warren Buffet
Warren Buffet is one of the world’s richest men, with assets totally up to US$50 billion in 2011. His main source of wealth comes from his company Berkshire Hathaway, a conglomerate holding company headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, United States. His philosophy of value investing and prudence and influenced many investors worldwide.

Return from Ray Kroc Leadership to Leadership Stories

Return from Ray Kroc Leadership to Home Page

Return to Home Page