Ralph Alvarez

Ralph Alvarez served as president and chief operating officer of McDonald’s Corp. from 2006 to 2009. Following the company’s financial struggles in the late 1990s, he played a major part in the company’s renewed success. Alvarez was responsible for broadening the menu to include, salads, chicken sandwiches, and specialty coffee drinks. He also led the renovation of thousands of restaurants, equipping them with WiFi access. Since then, he has served as a director of both Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc. and pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly and Co., as well as chairman of Skylark Co., a restaurant chain operator based in Japan. Alvarez is a graduate of the University of Miami. Updated 2013