McDonald's USA appoints Skye Anderson as president, effective August 4

Published Aug 4, 10:43 AM UTC

McDonald's has appointed Skye Anderson as the new president of McDonald's USA, effective August 4, 2026. Anderson, a 26-year veteran of the company, succeeds Joe Erlinger, who is leaving after a 20-year tenure including nearly seven years leading the U.S. business. Erlinger will remain as an advisor until early next year to ensure a smooth transition. Anderson was previously appointed chief operating officer of McDonald's USA in April as part of a deliberate leadership transition plan. In her new role, she will oversee the U.S. portion of McDonald's NEXT strategy, which focuses on improving restaurant experience through new designs, menu innovation, back-of-house improvements, and technology deployments. Anderson has held various leadership roles including finance leadership in Australia, field and zone leadership in the U.S., and creation of the chain's Global Business Services. During her four years overseeing the U.S. West Zone, she helped modernize over 5,700 restaurants, drove comparable sales growth of over 30%, and increased restaurant unit cash flow by $100,000. The leadership change comes as McDonald's seeks to address a dip in U.S. traffic during Q2.