By Megan Graham and Katie Deighton

McDonald's is promoting Alyssa Buetikofer, the chief marketing officer of its Canadian business, to lead its marketing efforts in the U.S. as Tariq Hassan, the burger chain's U.S. chief marketing and customer experience officer, steps down after three years.

Hassan's role will be filled on Feb. 15 by Buetikofer, who will become senior vice president and chief marketing and customer experience officer of McDonald's U.S.A.

Buetikofer joined McDonald's in 2011 and has held roles across five departments, McDonald's USA President Joe Erlinger wrote in an email to staffers. During an earlier stint on the U.S. marketing team, she was involved in introducing McDonald's "Famous Orders" program with celebrity endorsers, which has been among the chain's most successful promotional efforts in recent years.

Hassan, a former Petco marketer, was named U.S. marketing chief of the fast-food chain in 2021, succeeding Morgan Flatley after she was promoted to global CMO. He steered the brand's marketing as it confronted rising food costs, which it answered with both higher prices and a new $5 meal deal, and franchisee backlash over a Famous Orders promotion with rappers Cardi B and Offset.

"Across our marketing, we're focused on putting McDonald's at the center of culture," Hassan said then in defense of the Cardi B and Offset meal.

He was also at the marketing helm when Grimace, the chain's fuzzy purple character, became a TikTok sensation.

McDonald's said in November that it was spending about $35 million on marketing for its U.S. business to help its restaurants recover from an E. coli outbreak tied to onions served on its Quarter Pounders.

Hassan will stay on to support the transition through most of the first quarter, Erlinger's email said. McDonald's executive Francesca Cardarelli, currently a senior director overseeing strategy and insights, will take over the Canada CMO role from Buetikofer, a company spokeswoman said.

Write to Megan Graham at megan.graham@wsj.com and Katie Deighton at katie.deighton@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 27, 2025 17:45 ET (22:45 GMT)

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