In 2008, McDonald’s Shared Services team was a decentralized organization that was quickly evolving into the first truly global function at McDonald’s. McDonald’s recognized the importance of developing teamwork, cohesiveness, and alignment across the team in order to drive common global solutions. They knew they needed to build a diverse, global team with leaders that could expand beyond their current capabilities. McDonald’s engaged Full Circle Group and The Leadership Circle to lead this effort.
Aiming High
It’s always nice to read about principles and practices that, theoretically, are supposed to improve an organization’s performance. But when all is said and done, there’s often more said than done. We know you’re not interested in talk. You want solutions that actually work.

MCDONALDS CORPORATION - GLOBAL SHARED SERVICES
THE BUSINESS CHALLENGE
THE WORK DONE BY THE LEADERSHIP CIRCLE
When the Leadership Circle was first introduced, the team was skeptical. Despite the initial hesitation, the Global Shared Services (GSS) organization has since become the group that applies the Leadership Circle most holistically and consistently. GSS is unique in that they continue to use public feedback with each team member talking about their strengths and weaknesses in front of the group. Kelvin McLaurin, VP of Finance Strategy Alignment explains, “The Leadership Circle has become the common language across the GSS Leadership Team to onboard and develop our leaders.”


The Results
The culture that the Leadership Circle Profile has helped to create in GSS is a key contributor to the success of their organization. They achieved their five-year strategic plan in only three years and then set in place the GSS 2020 Strategy to continue their momentum toward their vision to be a world-class shared services organization. Debbie Ballard, VP of Shared Services, explains, “It is part of our DNA, part of who we are… we’ve forged a cohesive, high-performing leadership culture in GSS.” Both McLaurin and Ballard continue to be strong advocates for the Leadership Circle process, driving application in their organizations and sharing their experiences with others in the McDonald’s system.
Transformational Leadership across different industries around the globe
The Leadership Circle serves a broad and influential group of organizations. We feel privileged that we have the opportunity of bringing our leadership training to companies of all types of industry. See the categories below to view a small sampling of prior engagements.
Financial/Business
Everbank Commercial Finance
Wikimedia Foundation
Quicken Loans
American Express
Carlson Companies Worldwide
Federal Express
Healthcare
Roche
The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Bon Secours Health System
Blue Cross Blue Shield of FL
Intermountain Health Care (IHC)
Kaiser Permanente
Professional / Technical Services
Pixar Animation Studios
Schouten Global
Accenture
ASIS International
Heitman
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)
Retail Trade
McDonalds Corporation
Dolby Labs
3M
Backcountry.com
Evereve
GOJO Industries
Manufacturing
Honda, Inc.
Syngenta
Boeing
DTE Energy
Level 3 Communications
Morton Thiokol
Education / Government
University of Notre Dame
Harvard university Graduate School of Education
Yale University
Food & Drug Administration
Michigan Consolidated Gas Company
US Department of Transportation
Case Study Portfolio
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