Ritzers Macdonaldization Essay Example for Free

Ritzers Macdonaldization Essay In this essay, I aim to explore the term ‘McDonaldization’ dubbed by esteemed Sociologist and University of Maryland Professor, George Ritzer, to correlate his findings with those of the English Sociologist Les Back and then ultimately examine the effect both Globally and Locally. Ritzer’s concepts are fundamentally built around the theories of Max Weber, a German Sociologist who first established the idea of ‘Rationalization’. More specifically, four headings were used to define this shift in the organizational structure of society: Efficiency, Calculability, Predictability and Control of new technologies increasing the productivity of the modern world. I will explore the relevance of these headings later in this essay. Weber maintained it was bureaucratization that contributes to this advance in achieving the â€Å"optimum means to ends† (Ritzer, 2008, 25). The bureaucracy as Weber defines it seems to be the prototype for flawless corporate functionality. â€Å"A bureaucracy is a large-scale organization composed of a hierarchy of offices. In these offices, people have certain responsibilities and must act in accordance with rules, written regulations, and means of compulsion exercised by those who occupy higher-level positions† With an operating structure as tightly knit as described above, it is no surprise that the paradigm of formal rationality according to Ritzer, McDonalds, is one of the most envied business models in the world. 50 million customers a day will find restaurants in 118 nations (Ritzer, 2008, 3). Thousands of businesses strive to emulate their successful rational framework yet fail to conquer, such as the fast-food giants, MacDonald’s. Franchising at an unbelievable rate, McDonalds profits are being maximized year after year as it expands worldwide. A British author Martin Plimmer captures the mastery of their expansion â€Å"There are McDonalds everywhere. There’s one near you, and there’s one being built right now even nearer to you† (Ritzer, 2008, 2). It is on the basis of this exorable power and infectious growth that Ritzer lays his ‘McDonaldization’ theory. â€Å"The process by which the principals of the fast food restaurant are coming to dominate more and more sectors of American society as well as the rest of the world†. Ritzer, 2008, 1). Another aspect to this notable commercial structure is McDonaldization’s propensity to de-humanize. Teamed with bureaucratization, McDonaldization has the leverage to spread to modern society on a whole. Fears that people will be consumed by such a heavy emphasis on the rational and technical benefits of practicality and efficiency, destroying the human spirit and reducing them to nothing more then â€Å"a small cog in a ceaselessly moving mechanism† (Macionis and Plummer, 2005:143) as rational globalization expands. Sociologist Les Back puts forward the positive and negative influences of the flourishing technological network on globalisation in his monograph ‘Local/Global’. The concept of a global village; the idea that through new technologies and new converging forms of economy and political state that the world is shrinking and diminishing the importance of peoples differences (Back, 1998, 77) is one that can be both greatly agreed upon or just as easily denied, in my opinion. Firstly, It cannot be argued that one of McDonald’s keys to it’s worldly success was it’s overt American-style image, which many people outside the United States Of America hankered after. The book ‘Golden Arches East’ by James L. Watson describes vividly McDonalds highly anticipated entry into East Asia â€Å"Prior to McDonalds opening in Beijing, the company’s name was already popular among trendy consumers and it was only natural that, when the first restaurant was opened in Beijing in April 1994, thousands lined up for the experience. † (Watson, 1997, 48). Not only did this fascination generate billions of capital for McDonalds (and other fast-food diners such as KFC, Pizza hut etc. ) steering revenue away from Asia’s own food industries but sociologically speaking, the influx of American-Style escapism in which the people of Asia were immersing themselves in spawned a question of multinationals refusal to localize. Are Hamburgers on the Champs-Elysees or Chicken Nuggets by the Grand Canyon really necessary or is it just corporate extremism exercising their capability to the nth degree? Somehow I’m not convinced it is a case that McDonalds cuisine is so delicious that we physically need to have it within reach at all times, particularly in such countries such as France, Italy or Spain, where gastronomy is paramount to their local culture. Back’s theory on this type of globalisation seems a lot more simplistic. He argues that â€Å"globalization can go hand in hand with the commercialization of exotic local cultures† (Back, 1998, 74) but I ask to what extent is this local commercialization succeeding? Chiefly global multinationals are apparent in the rapidly developing worldwide industries, leaving little to zero space for contained business ventures to gain momentum. Although Back does recognize an effective uses of localization in advertising imagery to which these trans-national companies happily comply. â€Å"Advertisers are willing to integrate all kind of notions of difference as long as they serve their purpose† (Back, 1998, 73). A fantastic example is that of the recent McDonald’s advertising campaign, which was specifically intended for a distinctly Irish audience. Johnny Logan, a well-known Irish performer appearing to many different characters with strong colloquial Irish accents, pulls in on regional interest. Vernacular phrases such as â€Å" ye plank.. † â€Å".. sound.. †and â€Å".. free gaff.. † are used, unmistakably local and familiar to McDonalds’s Irish consumers. Back relates the decreasing size of global margins to advances in technologies, which of course is impossible to deny. Although communication overseas and intercontinental conveyance is almost taken for granted at this stage, Back reiterates the speed at which this occurs and the inter-dependence this signifies. â€Å"International flows of technology and media hardware strengthen the dependency relationship between the West and the former colonial peripheries and promote a form of cultural homogenization† `(Back, 1997, 72) In spite of the fact that many of Ritzer’s examples are American the concept of this uniformity is at the heart of his writing and falls under the four heading’s of McDonadization aforementioned. Predictability is one of the devices multinational corporations have taken under their wing in the development of a McDonaldized framework of business. Globally, these giant organizations do not start at the bottom when it comes to extending their trade name abroad and casting their image over seas. â€Å"Wal-Mart bought out 120 stores in Canada in 1994 when it purchased the Wertkauf GmbH hypermarket chain in Germany in 1997, Similarly, when Starbucks moved into the U. K. n 1998, it acquiresd the already existing Seattle Coffee Company and refitted it’s 82 stores as Starbucks outlets†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (Klein, 2005, 139) Specifically many coffee shops have undergone ‘Starbucksization’ to the point where any coffee shop in the western world could fail to posses a hint of originality. Insomnia, Costa Coffee and increasingly McDonalds contribution to the market McCafe, are but a few of the cafe chains that are adapting to the modern competition. In our local environment a comprehensible instance of McDonaldization would be the excessive franchising of Spar shops in Ireland, eplacing another family corner shop as it unfurls over the country. As consumers we’ve experienced the components of Weber’s ‘Rationalization’ and Ritzer’s McDonaldization in its plainest form. The efficiency of these stores is unrivalled, often containing Juice Bars, Off Licences, Delicatessens and Coffee shops, a conglomerate of effectiveness under one roof. Calculability by the selection of staff who work at each counter, pricing, weighing and recommending items for purchase. Chiefly the predictability of a Spar shop would almost be similar to what one would expect of a handful of McDonalds’, the flooring, the lighting and the layout are all but slightly in difference nationwide. Finally, these environments are controlled not only by the presence of Security guards at the entrance to many branches but they are hi-tech and forward thinking in technologies in contrast with many of there older competitors, featuring Automatic doors and self check-out services. In conclusion, both George Ritzer and Les Back have some shared views and some conflicting one’s on the matter of globalization and how it affects us directly and indirectly. Ritzer’s theory of McDonaldization worked alongside many of Back’s viewpoints on technologies, in particular as regards the dimension of control. Finally, the concepts of Global and Local, I believe will be disputed not only by both Ritzer and Back as the relationship worldwide decreases in size with the introduction of further connectivity when does the benefits of this begin and cease.