McDonald’s recently hosted another Breakfast Meet & Greet with Mayor White and staff at Lander City Hall, bringing together city employees, the Lander Police Department, and the McDonald’s team for a morning full of conversation, laughs, and plenty of McGriddles.
And judging by the police department’s reaction, the McGriddles may have stolen the show.
Along with hot coffee, the breakfast created the perfect setting to talk about the many ways McDonald’s continues to partner with the community.
One of the biggest topics was the bicycle safety partnership between McDonald’s and local law enforcement. Last year, McDonald’s donated 37 youth bike helmets along with about 200 free ice cream tickets that officers handed out to kids they spotted riding safely with helmets on. This year, McDonald’s plans to donate even more helmets and ice cream tickets to continue encouraging safe riding habits among local kids. Officer Pieracini expressed how thankful he is for the program and the positive impact it has on the community.
The conversation sparked another idea for older kids, too. Officers shared that teenagers especially love receiving free Big Mac cards, so McDonald’s happily agreed to provide more of those for future giveaways.
The morning also offered a behind-the-scenes look at how much McDonald’s operations have evolved over the years. With more than 420 employees for all 8 Central Wyoming restaurants and plans to grow to 500 employees by summer, the restaurants are constantly adapting to meet customer demand.
“Our employees look forward to the County 10 and McDonald’s meet-up every year!” said Anne Even, City of Lander Community Development Coordinator. “We had many great conversations, including how we can keep McDonald’s posted on community events so that they can be adequately staffed when we have large numbers of visitors in our community. It was interesting to hear how they plan and add additional staff for Lander’s signature events, such as the 4th of July.”
McDonald’s leaders explained just how technology-driven today’s operations have become. Between front-counter orders, mobile app orders, kiosks, drive-thru lanes, delivery services, and curbside pickup, multiple ordering systems run simultaneously. One feature that impressed the group was the restaurant’s three-mile geo-fence technology, which alerts the kitchen when a curbside customer is getting close so staff can begin preparing the order at just the right time to keep the food fresh.
From helmets and Big Macs to high-tech ordering systems, the Meet & Greet highlighted something bigger than breakfast. The strong connection between McDonald’s and the communities it serves.
And while the conversations covered everything from staffing to technology, one thing was clear by the end of the morning: bringing people together over breakfast never goes out of style.
