Ex-CEO Bell Is Remembered as Key in Reviving McDonald’s

Charlie Bell, who died eight weeks after stepping down as McDonald’s Corp. chief executive, was remembered Monday for playing a key role in the fast-food chain’s resurgence and helping to give it an edgier brand image.

Bell’s seven-month stint as CEO last year was cut short by his battle against colorectal cancer, which ended early Monday with his death at age 44 in his native Sydney, Australia.

Besides being the company’s first non-American CEO, analysts say, his legacy will lie primarily in the turnaround strategy that he helped put in place in 2003 as president and chief operating officer under Jim Cantalupo and that remains in place today.

New restaurant openings were cut back and McDonald’s overhauled its U.S. restaurant operations, boosting sales sharply through a combination of menu changes, service improvements, extended hours and building renovations.

Bell also oversaw the acclaimed “I’m lovin’ it” global marketing campaign, drawing on his experience running McDonald’s operations in Australia, Asia and Europe to insist on hipper, more relevant ads that have resonated with young adults. At the same time, the company moved to promote more healthful food options.

Irwin Kruger, a McDonald’s franchisee for 36 years who has known all seven company CEOs, said Bell had a strong sense of restaurant operations and a flair for marketing.

Bell began with McDonald’s as a part-time restaurant worker at age 15 in the Sydney suburb of Kingsford and became Australia’s youngest store manager at 19.

After rising through the ranks, he was promoted to the top job April 19 after Cantalupo’s death from a heart attack, but he was diagnosed with cancer within days. He resigned Nov. 22 and was succeeded by Jim Skinner.