Charles Bell, 44, stepped down as McDonald's CEO to concentrate on his cancer treatment.  He will try to ``devote all of his time and energy to his courageous battle against cancer.'' The company said that ``Charlie is a remarkable leader and well loved by the McDonald's family, and we fully understand and respect his decision.''

 

Bell was replaced with James Skinner, 60, who ``will continue the strategic focus established by Jim Cantalupo and Charlie Bell,'' the company statement says. The two previous CEOs are considered to have initiated the improvements in service that contributed to the 18-month year-on-year sales rebound against the background of previous revenue drops.

 

At the moment McDonald's faces challenges in Europe as sales growth there has recently been slow. US sales on the contrary have shown robust growth after McDonald's expanded its menu with meal-sized salads and improved service.

 

James Skinner is the third McDonald's CEO in seven months, and a frequent leadership change is viewed as detrimental for the company. James Cantalupo who had been Chief Executive before Bell stepped in presumably died of a heart attack. Also, James Skinner is less known to investors than Charles Bell, although he is quite popular with franchisees and employees.

 

His partner will be Mike Roberts who was named president and chief operating officer.

 

An analyst with Piper Jaffray said they “do not anticipate a change in direction related to those efforts and management's newfound adherence to capital discipline,” and added that “although [Mr Bell's] tenure as CEO was brief, his mark on the company is long lasting”.

 

McDonald's shares added 1.7% on the news yesterday, reaching $29.88 by midday in trading on the New York Stock Exchange.