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McDonald’s hiring after digesting record sales

Germans appear to be hungrier for McDonald's burgers than ever before, pushing the fast food chain to record sales in 2010 and prompting 2,000 new hirings this year.

Published: 22 February 2011 17:18 CET

McDonald's hiring after digesting record sales

Photo: DPA

McDonald’s on Tuesday reporting turnover over €3 million for the first time last year despite shrinking business for the fast food sector overall. The figure makes Germany the company’s fourth most important market behind the United States, France and Japan.

Bane Knezevic, head of McDonald’s in Germany, said the chain expected sales to grow by up to four percent in 2011, spurring him to create some 2,000 jobs.

McDonald’s currently boasts 1,386 branches in Germany and is looking to open between 20 and 30 new restaurants this year.

“We’ve managed to grow in a difficult market,” said Knezevic.

Half of the new positions will will be traineeships, he said. McDonald’s is currently Germany’s 30th largest employer, with some 62,000 people on its payroll.

Knezevic said the humble cheeseburger remained the chain’s top selling product, but innovations such as a veggie burger were drawing in new customers. However, the biggest surge in business has been through the McCafé segment, brewing up an increase in sales of 17 percent.

As McDonald’s take a bite out of their competition by continuing to grow, the company is planning to hold on to its place at the head of the table. There might not yet be plans for an organic burger, but options such as a healthier chicken wrap or premium-standard burgers will feature heavily on the menu. French fries also have half as much salt as they did in the past.

Prices look set to rise this year, however, with an expected increase of 0.8 percent until the Autumn.

In 2010, McDonald’s worldwide operations chowed down on $24 billion in sales and $4.9 billion in profit.

DAPD/DPA/rm

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Which Bavaria-based companies regularly hire English speakers?

Munich ranks third in German cities with the highest total GDP, behind Berlin and Hamburg, but in terms of GDP per capita, it’s higher than both of them.

It also consistently ranks high, often highest, in terms of average household income.

As of 2023, nine of the 40 companies listed on DAX, Germany’s stock index, were based in Bavaria. Seven of those are based specifically in Munich.

While Frankfurt is commonly known to be Germany’s business capital, Munich can claim the title of Germany’s insurance capital, which is saying something, as Germany is home to some of the largest insurance firms in the world, like Allianz.

Beyond the state’s capital city, a number of international companies are based elsewhere in Bavaria, particularly in the Franken region, near Nuremberg.

Which companies actively hire English speakers?

Bavaria, and Munich in particular, is home to a number of companies at the forefront of international business. But the state is known for its traditional, sometimes conservative, culture, which affects its business culture as well.

Whereas companies embracing English as their primary business language are easy to find in Berlin, the practice is less common in the south. That said, there are some notable exceptions.

Sportswear giants, Adidas and Puma, both have their headquarters near Nuremberg in Herzogenaurach, and regularly recruit English speaking international talent.

“As an international company, our teams reflect the rich diversity of our consumers and communities,” Jon Greenhalgh, Senior Manager Media Relations for Adidas told The Local. “Fostering a culture of inclusion where we value and leverage differences, ensures that we can authentically engage with our employees and truly connect with our consumers.”

He added that around 40 per cent of Adidas’ Germany-based employees are foreign nationals, from over 100 different countries.

Siemens and BMW rank among Bavaria’s top employers, and are also known to hire their fair share of foreigners.

“In Germany, we recently had around 2,000 open positions,” Konstanze Somborn told The Local on behalf of Siemens AG.

He added that Siemens operates in 190 countries. “That is why we value international teams very much…English as a common language is very usual.”

READ ALSO: ‘Which German companies want to hire foreigners?’

Similarly, BMW hires workers from a variety of backgrounds.

“Every year, we hire lots of internationals and welcome them to the BMW Group,” Dr. Hans-Peter Ketterl, a press spokesman for BMW Group told The Local.

But not all of these positions are available to non-German speakers.

Ketterl added that BMW’s working language is German in the country, even though, “English is an indispensable entry requirement as the second corporate language in many areas of the company.”

Check job boards and follow best practices

If it’s your first time applying for jobs in Germany, make sure to change your resume to the German format, even for English positions.

While Germany is home to its own job boards, like Xing, LinkedIn is probably the best place to start. In addition to searching for positions based in your preferred location, you can check relevant groups, like Munich Startups, to broaden your horizons.

The English Jobs in Germany website is also a good resource to start with.

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