Meet Adam Oellrich, General Manager, East North St. McDonald’s

Adam Oellrich

General Manager,
East North St.

What year did you start working for McDonald’s and the Walla Organization?

2003

What led you to your current career at McDonald’s?

The summer of 2003 started and my mom told me “You’re going to have to go get a job”. At first, I didn’t want to. As she continued to “remind” me to get a job, I just kept saying okay. One day when I was at McDonalds eating I asked for an application, filled it out that night and came in the next day, had an interview on the spot. The hiring manager Jeremy was impressed that I had all A’s in school and said he would give me a shot. I opened for 8 years straight and the rest is history!

What is your current position and responsibility?

My current position is the General Manager of the E. North McDonalds. Of the many, many responsibilities I hold, the most important is being the leader of a store. Being a leader is being a mentor, being the person who takes the great with the good, the opportunity with the praise. Leading a team is an every moment job.

Why do you work at McDonald’s?

Loyalty! Wendy, Josh, and Todd have been loyal to me. In return, I am loyal to them. Loyalty is more than the time (19 years) working for the Walla Organization. It’s the extra fun things. The words of encouragement, backed up by action. It is the extra time put in for my people. Staying that extra hour to have a conversation with someone who needed to talk so they follow in my footsteps to have the feeling of loyalty. Loyalty means being fair. “Meet this goal!” “Achieve this metric!” “Obtain this level of achievement!” Keep bettering myself as a whole as we better as a team. You hear of all the other stories of “jobs” with people who don’t understand that it’s how you treat and listen to your people to make the team a success.

We all have lives outside of work and what is important to people as humans, needs to be held that way. What is important to me is made a priority to get me my joys so I have the same joy for the people I work for!

What is it like working for the Walla Organization?

Like working for the family, you love! We are in this together. Those are not just words. We celebrate together. We battle together. Working for the Walla organization is fair and rewarding. Being able to celebrate huge milestones and huge victories. Experiencing the Jordan steakhouse while traveling for training. Seeing my first football game live because of the Walla organization. The Vegas convention that was a trip of a lifetime. Waking up and having a job where I know I am valued, while still having expectations to grow every single day. Some things are not fair and working for the Walla organization is as fair as can be. In short, I’m truly blessed. Blessed to work for caring, loving humans that want to be better than they were yesterday and want me by their side.

What is your go-to meal at McDonald’s?

McChickens and McDoubles all day long! As a teenager, I added 1% in sales every day to whatever store my friends and I ate at!

How does your career at McDonald’s support your life outside of work?

I am fortunate enough to be able to support me and my family while working at McDonalds for the Walla Organization. I can do, buy and have whatever my heart desires. I have worked from the bottom up and am paid a more than fair wage. The benefits of time off and help paying insurance is more than generous. I am able to help others by providing life skills on the job.

We teach more than “burger flipping,” we have hands-on roles in helping develop the youth. We see a large amount of the community every single day, teaching our next wave of managers and young people how to interact with others and how to talk and work together is so rewarding when those feel-good moments happen. As a Christian, those things help fulfill me spiritually.

What do you like to do in your free time?

Watch Wrestling! AEW Professional Wrestling and watching/collecting movies are my favorite pastimes. I go pawn shopping as often as possible to aide in my movie collecting. I am a home body, so relaxing at home and hanging out with my little dog Alice (mini Dachshund) is fantastic. She is named Alice from Resident Evil. I even taught her a T-Virus trick, where she will “play dead” and not move except for wagging her tail fast! My wife works at Black Hills Works and has a giant heart. She cares for others more than herself and makes me want to be a better person.