From first jobs to big dreams: How McDonald's makes it "Easy Maging Best Me"

Beyond serving up feel-good moments for its customers, McDonald's Philippines is a powerhouse of opportunity, providing gainful employment that often serves as a crucial first step toward success for many young Filipinos. With every new McDonald's store that opens in the Philippines, it creates 80 to 100 job opportunities in that community. Today, McDonald's Philippines employs over 65,000 individuals across nearly 800 stores nationwide.

Since chairman and master franchise holder Dr. George T. Yang opened the first store in Manila in 1981, McDonald's has consistently offered its employees pathways to achieve their dreams, both within the organization and beyond.

This commitment to growth is at the core of the "Easy Maging Best Me" campaign, which highlights stories of individuals who started their careers at McDonald's and went on to achieve remarkable success in various fields. Many of them share that their work experience at McDonald's provided a solid foundation for their success, saying the training they received within a positive and engaging work environment prepared them to excel in their chosen careers.

Consider award-winning broadcast journalist Rico Hizon, who says he was an introvert growing up, and credits his stint behind the McDonald's drive-through counter for getting him out of his shell. He recalls the lessons he learned from his first job: "I learned a lot in terms of instilling a strong work ethic, discipline, consistency, and communication. It was about meeting new people, opening up, and practicing teamwork. I also learned humility, and of course, customer service.” 

Tess Lopez, now an assistant vice president of a popular toy store in the country, also developed confidence while working at McDonald's. She shares, "I became a stronger person, and someone who is always happy. Because I was proactive in our branch in Katipunan, I was promoted to marketing manager even though I was still in second year of college. That helped me as a leader now, because I learned to keep an eye out for talent.”

Independent filmmaker Real Florido recalls bringing happiness to events as one of the party hosts or McDonald’s mascots. "I used to be shy and insecure because of my appearance and background, but hosting gave me confidence. I remember being told at orientation, 'you are important to us so we hope you can make our customers feel important as well. That is a culture that I brought to my own company.” 

Even Cha Perdigon, now a celebrated volleybelle, balanced her work as a crew member, studies, and athlete training as a senior high school student in 2022. She appreciated how understanding McDonald's was of her schedule. From her time at McDo, she learned "time management, leadership, and communication. It also boosted my confidence because it taught me how to talk to people.” 

These stories underscore how McDonald's fosters fundamental life skills and an encouraging atmosphere for young individuals to thrive.

Rising through the ranks

The "Easy Maging Best Me" philosophy isn't just for those who venture outside; it's deeply ingrained within the McDonald's organization itself. Former crew members Manny Reyes, Eric Castro, Aya Guillermo, and JecSingson have grown within the organization and are currently McDonald’s operations managers.

Reyes recalls aspiring to be a crew trainer, then a manager, when he started out as a crew member at McDonald’s Cabanatuan City in 1996. He carries the motivation that "kapag pinagbuti mo, through patience and pagiging open to explore, posibleng mag-grow ka at maging successful.” 

Castro feels emotional when looking back at his career journey of three decades through McDonald’s, saying, "Nakapag-provide ako sa family ko ng better opportunity,better life. Now that McDonald’s is expanding to a thousand stores in the next two years it is so exciting, because if you want to be part of the growth, the opportunity to move up the ranks is at a more accelerated level.

While many young Filipinos aspire to work outside the country, Guillermo, a Hospitality and Tourism graduate from Brigham-Young University in Hawaii, chose to build her career with McDonald's Philippines. She emphasizes the world-class training she received: "It is not just ample training, but training that equipped you for whatever role you will step into, in a supportive environment where you learn from your restaurant manager and the other managers encourage you to succeed.” 

Singson joined McDonald’s 25 years ago as a management trainee. When asked what made her stay that long, she says the company’s values align with her own. "You learn values such as discipline, a sense of responsibility, and integrity. Now that I am handling 48 stores, I rely on people empowerment. Listen to your people, involve them, and try to come up with solution to offer even better service at our stores.”

The heart of the business: Investing in people

Kenneth S. Yang, President and CEO of McDonald’s Philippines, shares, “We take pride that by working in our restaurants, our people will learn world-class systems, go through robust learning and development training.” He adds, “In this rapidly evolving digital age, it is crucial to continuously upskill them in relevant competencies. Crew Level training focuses heavily on the foundation, such as hospitality and providing feel-good moments to our customers through food safety. Curriculum for managers are focused on managing people and managing the business.”

According to Yang the values McDonald’s aims for itsemployees to embody are: Customer driven, or conscious and deliberate action to exceed the needs and requirements of both internal and external customers; Malasakit (Compassion), concern for the customer, employees, co-workers, business partners, community, and company; Integrity, being upright in character and action, upholding the standards of one's profession and position through honesty, responsibility, and trust; Teamwork, working as one towards achieving a common goal; and Excellence, day-to-day drive to deliver the best results.

Yang emphasizes that at McDonald's, they recognize that more than the food they serve, "its people are the heart of the business.” The company strongly believes that "building a strong customer experience starts with a strong employee experience. In our goal to shape the best employee experience, old and new employee programs continue to be people-first and values-driven.” 

While all the values are manifested in everyday operations and interactions with customers and teammates alike, programs are in place to further instill these values among its people. By instilling the right values, McDonald's helps its employees become better people, not just at work, but in life.

Your own "Best Me" journey starts here

McDonald's is extending an open invitation to young individuals, especially Gen Z, to start their career journey with the company. Beyond the inspiring stories, McDonald's continuously lines up exciting activities to highlight vibrant and dynamic career prospects for in-school workers, fresh graduates, and anyone else seeking fulfilling and meaningful work. 

Ready to embark on your own "Best Me" journey? Explore career opportunities by visiting McDonald’s Philippines on Facebook.

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Editor's note: BrandedUp is designed to provide you with insightful, inspiring, and educational content created by PhilSTAR L!fe in collaboration with brands like McDonald's Philippines.