Ralph Álvarez (born 1955 in

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

) is a

Cuban-American Cuban Americans ( es, cubanoestadounidenses or ''cubanoamericanos'') are Americans who trace their cultural heritage to Cuba regardless of phenotype or ethnic origin. The word may refer to someone born in the United States of Cuban descent or ...

businessman and the former president and

chief operations officer A chief operating officer or chief operations officer, also called a COO, is one of the highest-ranking executive positions in an organization, composing part of the " C-suite". The COO is usually the second-in-command at the firm, especially if t ...

McDonald's Corporation McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechristened their business as a hamburger s ...

Education

Álvarez was born in

. In 1976, he earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Miami School of Business at the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, i ...

in 1976.

Career

Álvarez began his career with Burger King and

Wendy's Wendy's is an American international fast food restaurant chain founded by Dave Thomas (1932–2002) on November 15, 1969, in Columbus, Ohio. Its headquarters moved to Dublin, Ohio, on January 29, 2006. As of December 31, 2018, Wendy's was t ...

. He was subsequently appointed president and chief operations officer of

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechristened their business as a hambur ...

USA and later as president of

North America. Citing chronic knee pain, Álvarez announced his retirement from McDonald's effective December 31, 2009. He was previously rehired and given a second chance after being forced out in 1998 for having an affair with a subordinate. As of December 2012, Álvarez is on the board of directors of Dunkin' Donuts.

References

External links

Ralph Álvarez biography at McDonalds.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alvarez, Ralph 1955 births American chief operating officers Cuban emigrants to the United States Living people McDonald's people University of Miami Business School alumni