????坎塔盧波的前任杰克?M?格林伯格在60歲時退休，退休前他剛剛成功推出了一款以“為你制作”（made for you）為主題的廣告，同時推出了一些輕度定制的產(chǎn)品。當時恰好也是麥當勞連續(xù)遭遇7個季度收益下跌之時，與唐?湯普森的處境有些相似。

????對坎塔盧波和貝爾的任命起初并沒有給股東留下好印象，因為這些人事安排顯示，該公司出現(xiàn)了“近親繁殖”的問題。在貝爾短暫的CEO任期內(nèi)，麥當勞因為食品的健康性受到攻擊。特別是記錄片《超碼的我》上映更加劇了這種攻勢。在貝爾的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)下，麥當勞向食譜中加入了一些健康選擇，使父母們可以用果汁和蘋果片換掉孩子的薯條和軟飲料。為了不刺激消費者，“超大號”這個概念也被從產(chǎn)品中剔除了。在短暫的任期內(nèi)，貝爾的舉措成功地扭轉(zhuǎn)了局面，該公司的股價在其任期內(nèi)上漲了24%。貝爾也推出了麥咖啡和味道相當不錯的Newman’s Own咖啡。

????后來由于貝爾的健康狀況每況愈下，吉姆?斯金納接任了CEO一職。斯金納最大的成就——“制勝計劃”戰(zhàn)略，成功地扭轉(zhuǎn)了麥當勞的利潤下跌之勢。他的戰(zhàn)略將重點放在改善現(xiàn)有門店的運營上，而不是向過去一樣追求盲目擴張。麥當勞希望實現(xiàn)“更快、更友好的服務(wù)；更美味的食物；更有吸引力的氛圍；更好的價值；更犀利的營銷”目標。在斯金納及其團隊的帶領(lǐng)下，麥當勞的總銷量成功上漲，從2004年的501億美元增長至2008年的701億美元。

????事實上，就在這段時期里，麥當勞管理層還隱藏著其他一些商業(yè)明星，比如CFO馬特?波爾，以及前法務(wù)總顧問、麥當勞子公司Boston Market的CEO杰夫?金德勒等。（金德勒后來從麥當勞離職，成為輝瑞制藥公司的法律總顧問，后又擔任了該公司的CEO）。另一位是剛剛被任命為CEO的史蒂夫?伊斯特布魯克。他曾一度離開公司去運營其他的歐洲快餐連鎖公司，這段經(jīng)歷為他提供了寶貴的外部視角。從這層意義上說，伊斯特布魯克的軌跡與可口可樂前CEO內(nèi)維爾?艾斯戴爾很相似。

????伊斯特布魯克看起來的確是一個出色的選擇。他曾經(jīng)擔任過麥當勞的品牌管家，在歐洲也是一個非常出色的運營高管，成功地領(lǐng)導(dǎo)過企業(yè)扭虧為盈，并且向核心菜單上加入了非常成功的有機健康食品。他還引入了具有吸引力的現(xiàn)代化店面設(shè)計，而且支持各種具有前景的數(shù)字戰(zhàn)略。

????因此，盡管麥當勞犯下一些無心之過，但卻沒有什么管理上的重大過失。而且他們已經(jīng)認識到需要承認錯誤，對領(lǐng)導(dǎo)層進行改革，那些付出了艱苦努力的高管不應(yīng)該被非難。另外，麥當勞也不必依賴媒體宣傳或代理權(quán)爭奪戰(zhàn)等戲碼來促進改革。在董事會的投資下，麥當勞已經(jīng)具備了很深厚的“板凳實力”，使新一屆有準備、有實力的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人能夠在盡量不造成內(nèi)外混亂的情況下接管公司。（財富中文網(wǎng)）

????本文作者Jeffrey Sonnenfeld是耶魯大學商學院領(lǐng)導(dǎo)力研究高級副院長兼管理學教授，同時也是耶魯高管領(lǐng)導(dǎo)力學會會長。

????譯者：樸成奎

????審校：任文科

????Cantalupo’s predecessor, Jack M. Greenberg, stepped down at age 60 after his successful introduction of a “made for you” campaign, with mildly customized products. The initiative was introduced at a time when McDonald’s suffered earnings declines for seven consecutive quarters, a similar situation to what Don Thompson encountered.

????Shareholders were initially unimpressed with Cantalupo and Bell’s appointments, as it suggested that the company was suffering from inbreeding. During Bell’s short time as CEO, McDonalds’ was being criticized for the health of its food. This was exacerbated by the release of the documentary film Super Size Me. Bell led efforts to add healthier choices to the McDonald’s menu, allowing parents to substitute juice and apple slices for fries and soft drinks. The “Supersize” option was also eliminated. During his brief tenure, Bell’s initiatives resulted in a successful turnaround, with the firm’s stock price rising 24% during his brief reign. Bell also introduced the McCafe and the strikingly tasty Newman’s Own coffee.

????When Bell’s health declined, Jim Skinner stepped up. Skinner’s greatest accomplishment, the “Plan to Win” strategy, managed to reverse McDonalds’ falling profits. Skinner’s strategy focused on improving operations at existing locations instead pursuing the expansion models of the company’s past. The company hoped to achieve “faster, friendlier service; tastier food; a more appealing ambiance; better value; and sharper marketing.” Skinner and his team were able to increase McDonalds’ total sales, increasing from $50.1 billion in 2004 to $70.1 billion in 2008.

????In fact, there were terrific stars positioned just below the surface through much of this period, such as CFO Matt Paull and Jeff Kindler, former general counsel and CEO of such McDonald’s units as Boston Market. (Kindler left McDonald’s to serve as general counsel and then CEO of Pfizer.) One of these stars in the McDonald’s pipeline is Steve Easterbrook, now the company’s newly anointed CEO. Easterbrook left the company to run other European food chains, giving him valuable outside perspective. In this sense, Easterbrook’s trajectory marks a similar path to former Coca-Cola CEO Neville Isdell.

????Easterbrook seems to be a superb choice—as a brand steward and past top operating executive in Europe, he led triumphant turnarounds and engineered the very successful introduction of organic, healthy foods in the core menu. He also introduced modern, attractive store designs and championed promising digital strategies.

????So, while the company has made some honest mistakes, there is no governance failure at McDonald’s, beyond, perhaps the somewhat overly Chicago-oriented board. They have recognized the need to admit mistakes and change leadership without vilifying hardworking officials who swung at the pitch but missed. In addition, McDonald’s did not need media campaigns or proxy battle drama to make change. The McDonald’s board has invested in deep bench strength, giving the company prepared, credible leaders to take charge with little internal chaos and external confusion.

????Jeffrey Sonnenfeld is Senior Associate Dean for Leadership Studies and Lester Crown Professor of Management at the Yale School of Management, as well as President of the Yale Chief Executive Leadership Institute