Warren Buffett, the legendary investor, has a new favorite toy: Squishmallows.

In an open letter last week, McDonald’s USA president Joe Erlinger blasted proposed California legislation related to conditions for fast food workers as stemming “almost entirely at the behest of organized labor’s firm grip on many of the state’s lawmakers.”  Have public perceptions changed to the point where retailers need to be more open to working with unions?

The biggest U.S. fast food chain is planning some corporate job cuts even as it pursues a nationwide store expansion. Where do you see the biggest opportunities for McDonald’s to grow its business in the U.S. through its “Accelerating the Arches” strategy?

McDonald’s last week opened its first partially automated restaurant, with machines handling everything from taking orders to delivering the food. The opening sparked both positive and negative responses on social media. Will the efficiencies gained from an automated restaurant such as McDonald’s pilot offset any aspects lost from removing human interaction?

McDonald’s is beginning a small test of the sale for a limited time of select Krispy Kreme doughnuts at nine restaurants in Louisville and the surrounding area. Does the collaboration between Krispy Kreme and McDonald’s make sense for both companies?

McDonald’s announced for the first time the release of a Happy Meal aimed at adults in a limited-edition collaboration with cult streetwear label, Cactus Plant Flea Market Box. And you should know what comes in adult happy meal.

McDonald’s has launched “Camp McDonald’s,” a campaign offering 27 consecutive days of food deals, menu hacks, musical performances and limited-edition merch drops — available only via the McDonald’s App. Do you see a month-long campaign such as Camp McDonald’s working for other food establishments and retailers trying to overcome summer traffic doldrums?

While ingredient scooping and burrito rolling remain in the hands of human staff at Chipotle for now, tortilla chip-making duties at the chain may soon be managed by robots. What roles do you see robots playing  in restaurants over the next five years?

McDonald’s and Starbucks have announced a suspension of operations in Russia following that country’s unprovoked attack on neighboring Ukraine that has resulted in thousands killed and the largest refugee crisis to hit Europe since the second world war. Will retailers and brands that continue operating in Russia lose sales in Western nations as a result?

McDonald’s recently announced that for a limited time, starting today, January 31, patrons will be able to purchase four special menu items via a new “Menu Hacks” section of its app, or at participating restaurants.  What can retailers learn from McDonald’s hacks menu program?

P.F. Chang’s last week became the latest retailer to open an online retail store. Why have retail merchandise offerings, whether year-round or limited-time, become such a possible tactic for fast-food chains and restaurants?

Apple reportedly lifted mask requirements at more than 100 of its 270 U.S. stores starting last Friday due to declining COVID-19 cases and climbing vaccination rates. Is it appropriate or still too risky for Apple and other retailers to ease mask mandates for customers ahead of CDC guidance?

At a McDonald’s in Medford, OR, a ginormous banner, “Now Hiring 14 and 15-year-olds,” has drawn nationwide media attention and a healthy amount of applicants amid the country’s labor crisis. Are you in favor of fast food chains or retailers hiring 14 to 15-year-olds to mitigate labor shortages?

Taco Bell last week introduced a new two-story concept, Taco Bell Defy. The design features four drive-thru lanes on the ground level and houses the kitchen on the second level where orders are prepared to send below for pickup. Is the Taco Bell Defy concept likely a winner?

McDonald’s has named longtime company veteran Manu Steijart to the newly created position of global chief customer officer.  What do see as the opportunities and challenges for McDonald’s as it reorganizes its various departments under a single chief customer officer?

City by city and state by state, U.S. retailers are reopening as reported COVID-19 infections continue to drop. Fast food chains, however, have been moving more slowly. Are fast food chains hurting themselves by not reopening more quickly?

Visitors to the McDonald’s drive-thru might soon be talking to a robot instead of a person when they place their orders. Do you see voice-ordering drive-thru technology, once the kinks are out, being widely used in drive-thru operations?

McDonald’s plans to shrink its presence inside Walmart to about 150 U.S. locations from about 500 at the start of 2000 in moves accelerated by the pandemic. Why do you think McDonald’s is no longer a strong fit inside most Walmart locations?

Burger King in the UK is asking customers to support its fast-food rivals. What is your reaction to the campaign to encourage business for fast-food restaurants, including rival chains like McDonald’s?

McDonald’s has scored a breakout hit with a limited-edition collaboration with rapper and record producer Travis Scott. The partnership aims at helping the fast-food chain better connect with Millennial and Gen-Z customers. What do you think of the opportunity for rappers and other celebrity limited-edition collaborations in the QSR space?

In recent years, articles on drones have been filled with complaints about their noise, spying capacity and threat to planes. In the last few months, they’ve been hailed as heroes amid the pandemic. Will increased activations during COVID-19 help speed up the adoption of drones for delivery and other retail purposes?

McDonald’s “The Dine-In Reopening Playbook,” published for franchisees and company-owned restaurant managers, describes in detail the process for welcoming customers back to eat at the chain’s more than 14,000 U.S. locations. Will McDonald’s approach to reopening restaurants make franchisees, workers and customers comfortable about sit-down dining?

Last week, a security guard at a Family Dollar in Michigan was fatally shot after telling a customer to wear a face mask. Other high-profile incidents involving rebellion have occurred against social distancing mandates. How should stores manage the minor and major confrontations stemming from social distancing mandates?

“If you ever dreamed of playing for millions around the world, now is your chance. Play inside, play for the world.” That advertising campaign embracing the importance of social distancing came out Saturday from Nike. What advice would you have about appropriate messages from brands and retailers during the COVID-19 crisis?

Burger King is testing out a new look at two of its locations, and the new dining experience is looking high-concept. What do you make of brands applying high-concept design elements like “Whopperishness” or “transparency” to improve the appeal of the dining experience?

Two years after eliminating the role of chief marketing officer in favor of a chief growth officer, Coca-Cola is bringing back the CMO. What likely prompted Coca-Cola to bring back the chief marketing officer role?

McDonald’s board fired its CEO after learning that “he violated company policy and demonstrated poor judgment involving a recent consensual relationship with an employee.” Should retailers and other businesses set rules that prohibit personal relationships between co-workers, regardless of their positions in the company?

McDonald’s is testing the use of artificial intelligence to enable the drive-thru to predict what customers want before they place an order. Is offering predictive suggestions at the drive-thru a good way to upsell, and could other restaurants benefit from such an offering?

McDonald’s last week began enabling job seekers to start an application by using voice commands with Amazon’s Alexa or Google’s Assistant. Do you see voice assistants emerging as a major hiring and recruiting tool?

With unemployment rates at or near historic lows, retailers sometimes look in different places to find good workers. According to a recent piece from Bloomberg, some restaurant operators are hiring ex-criminals in order to fill the worker gap.  Should retailers hire ex-cons?

McDonald’s franchisees across the country think they have an idea to keep Chick-fil-A from eating their lunch. They want a chicken sandwich that’s just like their rival’s. Do you think McDonald’s needs to develop its own premium chicken sandwich to head off market share losses to Chick-fil-A?

McDonald’s, which often promotes itself as “America’s best first job,” has formed a partnership with AARP to hire more workers over the age of 50. Do you see more pros than cons for retailers and food establishments in hiring a greater percentage of older workers?

McDonald’s, a target of worker groups promoting a $15 an hour minimum, recently said it would stop engaging in a National Restaurant Association campaign to kill such efforts. Does McDonald’s gain anything from its announcement that it will no longer oppose efforts to raise minimum wages on the local, state or federal level?

Yesterday, McDonald’s announced it would acquire Dynamic Yield Ltd., a firm that specializes in creating personalization and decision logic tech. What benefits will McDonald’s see with the deployment of recommendation tech at drive-thrus, in-store kiosks and on its mobile app?

Burger King last week introduced a $5.00-a-month coffee subscription service. Does the BK Café Subscription program represent a competitive threat to McDonald’s, Starbucks, Dunkin or others?

When you visit the quick-serve drive-thru, the voice taking your order might not be human — if one new startup is successful. Should QSRs be thinking seriously about automating the drive-thru experience with voice assistant technology?

Marking its biggest acquisition ever and first step into retailing, Coca-Cola announced plans to plunk down $5.1 billion to acquire Costa Limited, the third-largest player in coffee retail. What will Coca-Cola bring to the coffee category?

McDonald’s is offering free fries every Friday for the rest of the year for spending at least $1.00 through its mobile app. How important is it for QSR establishments to encourage mobile ordering and payment?

For years there has been speculation that technological advancements would eventually automate away fast food jobs. The launch of a new robotic burger chef will doubtless have people wondering if that possible future is here. Is Creator among the first steps toward total automation of fast food jobs?

On the ground floor of McDonald’s new headquarters building in Chicago, its restaurant is now featuring menu items from the fast-food chain’s businesses from around the world. Do you think it is likely that international menu items will be tested in the U.S., should they sell well in Chicago?

Few restaurants are less associated with healthy eating than McDonald’s. But as American dining trends skew healthier, the chain is taking steps to revamp one of its most iconic offerings to make it better for its patrons. Is McDonald’s going too far, or not far enough, with its proposed attempts at healthier offerings for kids?

McDonald’s plans to bring back and expand its Dollar Menu with the introduction of a “$1 $2 $3 Dollar Menu,” a move expected to spark a price war in the fast-food space. Will the “$1 $2 $3 Dollar Menu” work better than the “Dollar Menu” for McDonald’s?

McDonald’s model for serving cheap burgers fast disrupted the food industry in the chain’s early days. Now, the fast food giant is looking to again stir up the market, except this time it plans to use technology to help achieve its goals. Will McDonald’s investments in technology help it disrupt the fast food industry?

Joining Budweiser and other major advertisers, McDonald’s has ended its a 41-year run as a sponsor of the Olympics. What do you think is the primary reason McDonald’s ended its sponsorship deal with the Olympics?

McDonald’s latest commercial doesn’t mention its name or display its logo. The spot is part of McDonald’s first unbranded marketing campaign in which it attempts to use the power of the Coca-Cola brand and Google search to drive traffic — particularly younger consumers with smartphones. Will McDonald’s unbranded campaign prove successful in driving sales of Coke at the chain’s restaurants?

The major news about McDonald’s coming out over the past year has depicted a chain revamping its look and feel to try to dump its budget image and compete with fast-casual restaurants. But its latest move seems to indicate that McDonald’s still wants – or needs – to compete on price. Is McDonald’s betraying its avowed goal to be seen as a “progressive” burger company by focusing on low-price offerings?

Recent sales evidence suggests the allure of being able to get a McMuffin or McGriddles sandwich anytime may be waning. What does McDonald’s plan to do next? Offer more Big Mac choices, of course. What do you see as the fundamental challenges facing McDonald’s as its seeks to cultivate new generations of customers?

McDonald’s last week announced plans to roll out table service to all of its 14,000 U.S. restaurants. After customers place their orders at a touch-screen kiosk and pick up a digital location device, orders will be delivered to their tables. Will touchscreen ordering and table service improve the McDonald’s experience?

Coming off a quarter in which McD’s posted a 1.8 percent increase in same-store sales in a softening market, some wonder how long the chain will continue to see a bump from all-day breakfast. Do you think all-day breakfast can continue to lift McDonald’s or are menu changes needed to keep from sliding back?

After appearing in Happy Meals for only a short time, McDonald’s has pulled the fitness trackers from Happy Meals in response to complaints. What can retailers learn from McDonald’s public relations crisis surrounding the fitness tracker and promotions aimed at children?