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Tronick awarded Ray Kroc Restaurant Manager Award
Nation wide honor recognizes top one percent of managers

Melissa Tronick, General Manager of the George Street restaurant in La Crosse, Wis. takes pride in providing great customer service and believes her restaurant is truly part of the community. She places a strong emphasis on training her crew. Her team continually excels in Friday drive-thru contests and performed exceptionally well in 2005 mystery shop scores.

These are just some of the reasons why Tronick was awarded the 2005 Ray Kroc Restaurant Manager Award. In March, she and 133 other recipients from around the country gathered in Chicago for the three-day function honoring these top-notch managers within McDonald’s Corporation. Recipients were awarded $2,500, a trophy, pin and jacket, along with a host of memories related to a fantastic experience.

“I felt like I was on the Red Carpet,” Tronick described. “When we arrived, there was a limousine waiting and McDonald’s management greeted us.” Award recipients attended an opening reception at Hamburger University. They enjoyed smaller table discussions with their divisional president. “We talked about the future of McDonald’s and offered input,” said Tronick. Attendees enjoyed dinner and dancing at Chicago’s House of Blues and spent some free time shopping in Chicago.

Tronick saw her name on the wall of the McDonald’s plaza building and viewed photos of Ray Kroc award winners on a wall at Hamburger University, too. “The awards ceremony was just like the Oscars.” Tronick described that evening as an elegant affair with McDonald’s executives in attendance. “It was also a proud moment to have Dick Lommen there to share it with me.  The man that started this opportunity for us all so many years ago was there to celebrate my journey. That was something special.”

To add to Tronick’s incredible experience, she was one of only a handful of 2005 recipients selected for a personal interview. As part of the Ray Kroc Award selection process, nominees write an “I story” that details their story as a General Manager. Tronick’s “I story” proved unique, and she was chosen to share aspects of it during an interview. Footage from recipients’ personal stories might be used to create McDonald’s commercials or for motivational training, she explained.

As part of her “I story,” Tronick told of the time when a young girl had an allergic reaction in the parking lot. She called 911 and performed CPR. In another instance, she wrote about her crew brewing coffee for firemen who were working in the cold weather to fight a nearby house fire. In one instance, Tronick quickly assisted an employee who was badly injured while cleaning the outdoor grounds. These are just some of the examples Tronick sets for her managers and crew regarding customer service and quick thinking.

Tronick focuses on providing excellent customer service. “Because of our location, we have a lot of regular customers and travelers,” she said. She and her team make an effort to greet customers by name and develop relationships. She also emphasizes manager development. “Two years ago, we lost a lot of managers. We started from the bottom, training.”

Tronick’s supervisor, Tonya Thomas-Mihalovic, agrees customer service and training is a priority for her. “Melissa is a great trainer. She’s somebody who sets the standards for everybody. Her store is a test store and she sets the standard for the rest of the company to follow,” said Thomas-Mihalovic. “She’s a great role model and a creative problem solver.”

In 2005, the George Street restaurant won at least one category in the Friday drive-thru contests every week of the year except one. Their mystery shop scores were an outstanding 98.7 percent by the end of 2005. Under Tronick’s leadership, her restaurant received the highest Restaurant Operating Process (ROIP) grade within the history of Courtesy Corporation. Her store received gold medal status nine out of 12 months (sending 34 cars in 15 minutes through the drive-thru, at least four times in one month).

Tronick is also part of the food improvement team. She estimates that she’s worked on 25-30 different tests to improve quality or efficiencies in McDonald’s food and operations.

Tronick started working at the George Street restaurant in 1993 when she was 16. “I was going to get a job to save money for college,” she recalled. She became a crew trainer within three months and within a year was promoted to management. She attended the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse while working as a swing manager. In fact, she was still in school when she became a manager and was the first “clock-in” store manager in the history of Courtesy Corporation. This summer marks Tronick’s fourth year as general manager of the George Street restaurant.