Last week I was having a conversation with some colleagues about the future of application development in a cloud-computing enterprise model (yes, I really have conversations like these - not that I fully understand it all), when one of these colleagues noted that fast food restaurants across the country were utilizing centralized call centers to handle remote drive thru communication. At the forefront of this "innovation" is McDonald's. And what do you know, after a quick trip down the Google highway, I found out that this has been in place for at least 5 years. Basically, when you pull up to the drive thru at McDonald's, you can no longer assume that the person you are speaking to is inside the building. More likely, they are in some cubicle in some facility hundreds of miles away.
I admit, it is hard to fathom that the person I'm talking to at the drive thru squawk box in not inside the restaurant. It's just outside my frame of reference. But of course, I don't know if the McDonalds in my area utilize call centers. But if the model is successful, no doubt they will be someday soon. They just better hope the power, phone and internet lines never go dark. But that hardly ever happens, right?
McDonald's isn't done innovating (and reducing its store workforce footprint). In Europe, the company is introducing self-service kiosks (touchscreens and swipe card readers) into its stores. How this works for people paying cash, I'm not sure. I imagine they'll set up a "cash only" line or something. Nevertheless, there will be fewer cashiers because you will be able to walk up to the counter, punch in your own order, and swipe your credit card. It is only a matter of time before this kind of "customer service" crosses the pond and transforms our American fast food service. Because if it works for McDonald's, you know the competition will follow suit.
In terms of the cost of doing business, the increasing use of self-service touch screens and call centers may very well be better for the bottom line. But if you are a teenager looking for employment, chances are there will be fewer and fewer food service opportunities, at least in the fast food market. Unless, of course, you just want to cook or take out the trash. Jobs requiring people skills, or jobs offering the opportunity to develop said skills, will become few and far between.
This reality aside, I have to confess that I'm not entirely opposed to the transformation. When I travel, I far prefer being able to largely check myself in for my flights using self-service kiosks. And let's face it, isn't this really just an extension of the bank ATM model?
One thing is certain, however. The further away we get from doing business with people face-to-face, the less 'real' they may become to us. Socially, what is the cost of convenience? Stunted growth? Isolation? The inability to discern reality from technology?
Life is looking more and more like the Matrix all the time. But I'll adjust - as long as they get my order right.
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