Which CEO succeeded Steve Easterbrook as CEO of McDonald's in 2019?

Chris Kempczinski succeeded Steve Easterbrook as McDonald’s CEO in 2019. McDonald’s appointed him president and chief executive in November 2019 after the board removed Easterbrook.

Kempczinski had already spent several years inside McDonald’s. He joined the company in 2015 as executive vice president of strategy, helped oversee the company’s U.S. business, and became a central figure in its plans for delivery, digital ordering, and restaurant growth. Before McDonald’s, he worked at Procter & Gamble and PepsiCo and later served as president of Kraft International.

Easterbrook’s departure created the succession opening: McDonald’s said he violated company policy by having a relationship with an employee. Kempczinski’s appointment therefore followed not a routine retirement but an abrupt leadership change.

A common mix-up is Don Thompson, who was Easterbrook’s predecessor, not Kempczinski’s. Jim Skinner led McDonald’s earlier, from 2004 to 2012. Kempczinski later became chairman as well as CEO and continued leading the company.