How McDonald's CX Chief Alycia Mason Cultivates Mentor and Sponsor Relationships
In this episode of Women in Retail Talks, Women in Retail Leadership Circle Senior Editor Marie Albiges interviews Alycia Mason, U.S. chief customer experience officer at McDonald’s Corporation, the world’s leading global foodservice retailer. She’s also co-founder and owner of Candycopia, her family’s Chicago-based candy store. Listen in as Mason details her responsibilities at McDonald’s (0:53) and lessons she’s learned as a leader and mentor (2:20). She described how she “fell into” new experiences and positions during her career (5:38), along with her journey into her current role at McDonald’s (9:12).
Mason shares her “three Ps”— people, purpose, and push — which is her trick to making the most of an opportunity (11:32), as well as her transparent “we’re all adults” leadership mindset that enables herself and her team to better prioritize life outside of work (15:09). She describes what her mentorship and sponsorship relationships look like (18:50), and gives advice on cultivating those relationships (24:32). Lastly, Mason shares her personal and professional goals for 2023, which include reflecting on work performance and dedicating more time to her family business, Candycopia, during the holiday season (26:05).
Alycia Mason leads the development and commercialization of MyMcDonald’s Members, as well as digital and delivery strategies that are transforming the customer experience across 14,000 restaurants for 230 million customers. Under her leadership, McDonald’s has more than doubled digital and delivery sales and launched the largest QSR loyalty program, while maintaining the largest digital app base of customers and largest QSR delivery share.
Prior to joining to McDonald’s, Mason spent seven years at Publicis as a proven leader of large-scale, integrated teams. Alycia led the Kellogg’s Publicis Global team, which was at the helm of transforming Kellogg’s brand-building model inclusive of Creative, Media, CRM and Analytics. Prior to Kellogg’s, Mason worked on BP, Kraft and Luxottica Retail in various leadership roles in media and digital. Outside of work, Mason enjoys spending time with her husband and two girls, reading 15-plus magazines a month, and sharpening her cooking skills.
Date: December 6, 2022
Credits: Alycia Mason
Duration: 30:39
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