McDonald’s is likely hoping to usher in some fresh ideas about reviving its sales with a slate of new executives.
At least two more senior executives are leaving the fast food chain, McDonald’s said as first reported by the Wall Street Journal Monday. The CFO of the golden arches, 60-year-old Karen King, plans to retire at year end. A senior vice president of customer experience, 51-year-old Erik Hess, also plans on retiring.
“While Karen and Erik will be greatly missed, their retirements provide an opportunity to change our organizational structure to further enhance our connectivity with our owner-operators and our customers,” a McDonald’s representative wrote.
In August, McDonald’s USA President Mike Andres said he would retire at the end of the year, while the head of the high-growth markets division, David Hoffman, and Chief Administrative Officer Pete Bensen, also voiced plans to leave the company.
The executive shakeup comes at a time when McDonald’s is struggling position itself as consumer preference begins to shift toward gourmet and natural meal options. The fast food giant has found success thus far on a platform of speedy and cheap service, and attempts to shift toward custom-made burgers or more gourmet options have not caught on.
Meanwhile, the chain’s decision to introduce all-day breakfast last year helped boost sales for a period, until same store sales in the U.S. rose just 1.8% in the second quarter, coming far below analyst estimates. In the first quarter, U.S. comparable sales rose 5.4%, the restaurant chain’s third straight increase after two years of declines.
McDonald’s is set to announce third quarter earnings on Friday.
