Final answer:
The strategic issues McDonald's faces include dealing with the societal impact of its ubiquitous business model, balancing the uniformity of its products with growing consumer desires for individuality and sustainability, and navigating its role in international labor practices and politics.
Step-by-step explanation:
Discussing the strategic issue(s) that McDonald's faces involves considering the concept of McDonaldization of Society. This term refers to the spread of the fast food business model to various sectors, emphasizing efficiency, predictability, calculability, and control. The issue here is the impact such a model has on society, including its role in the U.S. obesity epidemic, perceptions of jobs in the fast food industry, and its environmental and cultural effects.
McDonald's has been a pioneer in franchising, a business strategy that helped it establish a global presence. However, the company's success has also contributed to reducing product diversity in the market, as well as creating a uniform and generic product experience.
This has sparked trends in de-McDonaldization, with movements towards more individuality, craftsmanship, and sustainability. In response to this and societal critique, even McDonald's is beginning to shift towards strategies that emphasize customization and individual tastes.
Finally, the company's influence extends beyond the consumer market into politics and the global workforce. McDonald's is an example of how multinational corporations can affect labor practices and environmental regulations, especially in developing nations, and how globalization influences workers worldwide.