From Crew Member to Development Manager of one of McDonald’s critical technologies
Meet Michael Weinstein, a former Crew Member, who brings a unique end-user perspective to his current work of developing technological solutions for McDonald’s.
by Philip Kellner, Manager, Software Engineer
Meet Michael Weinstein, a former Crew Member, who brings a unique end-user perspective to his current work of developing technological solutions for McDonald’s.
The world of software development success is often defined by creating novel approaches and improvements to old problems. But what happens to long-established systems that are still effective, but require modernization to meet customer and crew needs? Enter technologists like Michael Weinstein who sees the value in focusing on collaboration, planning and architecture to forge a smoother path forward.
Weinstein leads a development team that modernizes and improves McDonald’s point-of-sale system. It is one of McDonald’s most critical restaurant platforms and serves as the command center in our restaurants that is used for everything from ordering, payment and fulfillment.
A long-time member of McDonald’s family, Michael’s experiences on both the crew side when he was a teenager and now the corporate side have influenced his perspective.
What brought you to McDonald’s and how long have you been working here?
A McDonald’s recruiter reached out to me about software management opportunities. I read up on the technologies that McDonald’s acquired in the years prior along with how McDonald’s has been able to positively navigate issues during COVID. I’ve been in Global Technology for just over a year (but started working at McDonald’s as a teenager).
What’s the most exciting thing you’ve worked on since you’ve been at McDonald’s?
Building up two squads who are contributing to new feature development for the point-of-sale systems and kiosks, and the fact that those features are being deployed into restaurants has been rewarding. Also, having the opportunity to work on the Automatic Order Taker (AOT) integration was a very cool experience, especially seeing how it improves the customer and crew experiences. It’s also been rewarding to establish relationships and build a network with product, architecture and technology partners to support critical business needs.
What career experiences have shaped how you approach work at McDonald’s?
I was a McDonald’s crew member in my very first job at the age of 15, and during that time I worked in every area of the restaurant from front counter to the grill. I even worked with McPizza and the restaurant cleaning shift! This has given me a better understanding of our end users, which is important in the development process.
Since college, I’ve held many different positions in software engineering ranging from developer, testing, project manager, quality assurance manager and senior engineering manager. Having a diverse technical background across multiple industries has allowed me to fully understand what we need to do effectively and efficiently to get our work done in the best way possible.
Any past experiences dealing with well-established code and how you’ve applied it with McDonald’s infrastructure?
I certainly have experiences on how to divide and conquer certain technical challenges. One aspect of working with established code is that you can only absorb so much from reading code and documentation, and the best you can do is just take a low-priority bug and start work from there. In this process, you learn to navigate the code, how to make changes and how to validate assumptions made along the way and really understand the behavior of the implementation and learn the patterns used.
What do you enjoy most about software development?
I enjoy a collaborative environment where I’m creating robust architecture that meets the needs of key stakeholders. I love decomposing the architecture into critical building blocks to ensure we’re using the right design patterns for an optimized solution, process, and toolchain.
Finding the right design pattern and optimizing our solutions correctly involves understanding the needs of our key stakeholders, quickly providing updates with no downtime, as well as testing to identify issues early. Additionally, having the ability to easily make smaller updates that make the lives of the end users better are all informed by being conscious of the architecture.
What non-technical skills do you have that makes you a better manager/technologist?
Being an active listener, being upfront and honest with the team and making sure that everyone understands the problems that they are trying to solve. Ultimately, we’re implementing solutions that help support crew members and customers. In that way, I think having the skills to listen and build trust with everyone involved so we can to the right questions and ensure we’re problem solving early and often.
Of all the new developments happening at McDonald’s, what piques your interest the most?
It’s been an awesome year building my team to support critical restaurant technology! Building up our knowledge alongside our technology partners with the point-of-sale system has enabled us to make contributions that improve the restaurant ordering platform for all crew members and customers, helping enhance functionality to the automated beverage service and AOT, as well as ensuring fiscal compliance in various markets.
I also appreciate that we have the opportunity to contribute to a variety of initiatives and work with a variety of teams.
What is your favorite perk you enjoy while working at McDonald’s?
The hybrid-remote option I would say is my favorite. It gives everyone the flexibility to get the personal things done that aren’t so easy to accomplish in the evenings. I also enjoy going into the office. McDonald’s Global Headquarters is a great office, in a great location, with plenty of space to collaborate, and has a great technology infrastructure to get work done.
Another perk that I enjoy is Summer Hours. In the summer months, McDonald’s offices follow a compressed work week in order to end early on Fridays, and in combination with the nicer weather, it makes for a really nice benefit. And finally, the variety of learning platforms that McDonald’s offers to help develop our skills.
Do you have any hobbies or other interests outside of work?
I enjoy travel, tennis, house projects that don’t include drywalling, and spending time with my kids. I enjoy of all types of music but most notably hip hop, Brazilian jazz and pop.
Any favorite travel destinations?
Many come to mind, but I would start with a three-day hike to Machu Picchu. We did a private guided tour that provided food and campsites and really made the experience memorable. Another would be a two-week trip to Patagonia and Argentina, and two weeks spent in Italy.
