"McDonald's needed to do something because
it was too big of a job for Mr. Skinner to handle alone," says Janna Sampson, a chief investment officer with OakBrook Investments. The former No. 2, Ralph Alvarez, resigned last month because of
recurrent knee problems. He also told The New York Times that his expectation that Skinner intended to stay on for a while played a part in his decision. Thompson, who began his career at
McDonald's in 1990, is thought to be more patient about stepping up.
Jan Fields, who had served as COO under Thompson, will become president of the U.S. division. Jim Johannesen, the head of McDonald's Central division, will take her former position.
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