McDonald’s chooses depth over disruption with Skye Anderson

McDonald’s is turning to a 26-year company veteran to lead its U.S. operations amid sluggish sales. Skye Anderson, who has held more than half-a-dozen roles with the company, has been named president of McDonald’s USA. Anderson will be charged with reversing what Chairman and CEO Christopher Kempczinski called a significant sales slump of just 0.8% in the U.S. in its most recent quarter. In a release, the company says “few leaders have worked across as many parts of the McDonald’s system as Anderson,” noting that, during her four-year tenure as head of the U.S. West Zone, she led efforts to modernize a base of more than 5,700 restaurants, grew sales more than 30% and increased average restaurant unit cash flow by $100,000. Illinois-based McDonald’s operates more than 45,000 locations in more than 100 countries.