FLIPPING burgers will be regarded by many as a dead end job.

But try telling that to Pritpal Singh.

What started as a stop-gap job while looking for engineering work after graduating has developed into a successful business career.

Over the past 33 years, Pritpal has become one of the leading operators of franchised McDonald’s sites.

His 'empire' includes the Keighley franchise, which was one of his earlier ones.

He now looks after the Hard Ings Road site plus 22 other restaurants across West and North Yorkshire.

“I joined McDonald’s in 1983 after graduating from Nottingham University in chemical engineering and fuel technology," he said.

"It was a time when jobs in engineering were scarce and at first I regarded it as a stop-gap move.

“I was offered a trainee management position and accepted as I believed it was not just a burger firm but a company that managed people well and offered good opportunities in a growing business.

“At that time McDonald’s had fewer than 100 UK restaurants and this has expanded to more than 1,200. Over the years there have been many changes and developments; for instance back then we didn’t do breakfasts.”

He said many of the restaurants were different in design and upgraded sites had digital technology at the centre of their operations, including a digital ordering point, electronic menu and order tracking screens.

“Franchisees have the benefit of support from the McDonald’s construction department which works with them to develop designs," he added.

"There is some choice with flexibility in the look and design of each site. For instance, our Guiseley and Keighley restaurants are different from Idle."

Pritpal says sales at Keighley are evenly split between the restaurant and drive-through facility.

Overall, his restaurants employ nearly 1,800 people, with most recruited locally, ranging from students and parents seeking part-time work to graduates looking for career opportunities.

Pritpal said 95 per cent of McDonald’s restaurant managers start on the shop floor.

“Some people may feel that as a graduate you are wasting your time working for a fast food business but I refute that," he said.

"It has enabled me to build a successful business operation over 33 years.

“We have people celebrating 25 years’ service who started with no qualifications and have developed successfully and taken on responsibility. We have a successful apprenticeship programme providing training to Level 2 qualifications in hospitality and catering which has seen 480 people trained since 2010.

“Our level of training is second to none. When you take a 16 to 17-year-old who has never worked in a team before and never been customer facing and see them develop and become confident and come out of their shell it gives you a big sense of satisfaction.”

He now has an operations manager reporting directly to him and oversees three area managers, each responsible for eight restaurants.

But he remains hands-on, breaking away from paperwork and strategy to flip burgers and clean tables when he gets the chance.

“If you want the business to succeed you have to be hands-on,” he said. “I can’t tell staff how to do things unless I know how to do it myself.

“I don’t particularly like paperwork so the opportunity to come and work behind the counter is great.

“The support structure I have in place helps me but that doesn’t mean I take a back seat. Working in the restaurants occasionally keeps me grounded.”