McDonald’s has announced today that its European business will be restructured from the current four divisions into three divisions, effective 1 January 2014. The changes will enable the European teams to work more closely together and to scale programmes and initiatives faster.
Jill McDonald appointed President of newly-formed North West
Jill McDonald, will assume the role of Division President, for the new North West Division which will consist of Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Norway, Sweden and the UK. This adds responsibility for Germany, McDonald’s largest market in Europe, and Luxembourg to her current remit as President of the Northern Division.
Jill joined McDonald’s UK in 2006 and was appointed UK CEO and President – Northern Division in 2010. Under her leadership, the UK has delivered strong results, growing sales and profitability, and building brand trust. Holger Beeck, last month announced as President & Managing Director of McDonald’s Germany, will report to Jill.
Mark Hawthorne appointed Managing Director of McDonald’s UK
To enable Jill to focus across the Division, Mark Hawthorne, currently Regional Vice President in McDonald’s Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa (APMEA) has been appointed Managing Director of McDonald’s UK. Prior to his current role where he is responsible for 23 markets, Mark was Managing Director of McDonald’s New Zealand after holding various positions in McDonald’s Australia. Mark will report to Jill and will shortly be relocating to London.
There will be a new Central Division of McDonald’s consisting of all markets across Central and Eastern Europe including Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine.
The Southern Division will continue to consist of Belgium, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Morocco, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland.
Doug Goare, President, McDonald’s Europe said: “The management changes and promotions announced today position the Company for future growth and will more effectively leverage the talents of our leadership team in Europe. They will also ensure that we can scale successful initiatives across the region even more seamlessly.”
McDonald’s is Europe’s leading foodservice retailer with more than 7,400 restaurants in 38 countries serving over 15 million customers a day. Over 70% of McDonald’s restaurants in Europe are owned and operated by independent local business men and women. Together with franchisees, more than 415,000 people are employed in Europe.