Sr Manager, Communications
Date: Jul 2, 2026
Location: Chicago, IL, US, 60607
Company: McDonald's Corporation
Company Description:
McDonald’s is proud to be one of the most recognized brands in the world, with restaurants in over 100 countries that serve 70 million customers daily. We continue to operate from a position of strength. Our updated growth strategy is focused on staying ahead of what our customers want and realizing further growth potential. Our relentless ambition is why McDonald’s remains one of the world’s leading corporations after almost 70 years. Joining McDonald's means thinking big and preparing for a career that can have influence around the world.
At McDonald’s, we see every day as a chance to create positive impact. We lead through our values centered on inclusivity, service, integrity, community and family. From support of Ronald McDonald House to our Youth Opportunity project and sustainability initiatives, our values keep us dedicated to using our scale for good: good for our customers, people, industry and planet. We also offer a broad range of outstanding benefits including a sabbatical program, tuition assistance and flexible work arrangements.
Department Overview
The McDonald's Global Impact team is aligned around a vision to make McDonald’s famous for our positive impact on people and the planet. Read more about McDonald’s Purpose & Impact here. Within Global Impact, the Global Communications team (Enterprise Communications, External Affairs & Crisis, Segment Communications, Story Lab, Strategy Insights & Operations and our McDonald’s production & creative Agency – Agency123) functions as a global center of excellence meant to promote and protect the McDonald’s brand and grow the business.
We’re looking for a Senior Manager, Transformation Communications, to define and lead a comprehensive transformation enterprise communications strategy and plan – ensuring we bring highly connected stakeholders along at the right time and in the right context as we design the future of McDonald’s.
The world is changing fast as AI, new technologies, and data capabilities create opportunities to work smarter, move faster, and deliver more personalized experiences to fans at scale. We’re taking an unconstrained view of capabilities, tools and partnerships and taking advantage of an opportunity to design for the future, not react to it
This role will be based in Chicago, IL, and you will report directly to the Director, Global Transformation Communications with a dotted line into the Director, Change Management Lead. You will be a member of the broader Global Impact and Global Communications team.
Key Responsibilities
- Enterprise Narrative & Systemwide Communications Strategy
- Develop and maintain a master enterprise narrative for transformation that is grounded in enterprise strategy, anchored in growth and opportunity, and designed to build belief across key audiences
- Liaise across global business to develop and execute an enterprise communications strategy for engaging global System audiences
- Foster peer relationships across Global Transformation to ensure best practices, opportunities and key learnings are shared and applied as relevant to sharpen comms approach
- Stakeholder Communications & Readiness Approach
- Partner with program leads to anticipate near-term activity and ensure appropriate comms context and guidance accompanies outreach
- Lead comms during key System moments, ensuring clarity during change
- Draft and oversee development of executive-ready materials including talking points, leader messages, FAQs, briefing decks, and cascade toolkits to support leaders at Global, Segment, and Market levels
- Facilitate and manage global leader and stakeholder review processes
- Cross-Functional Integration & Risk Management
- Partner across Global Comms to ensure risks, impacts, and developments are escalated appropriately and that McDonald’s brand reputation and stakeholder experience (employee, franchisee, agency) are prioritized and protected
- Collaborate with Segment and Market communications/change leads to ensure globally consistent yet locally relevant strategies and materials, and counsel on forums/channels/timing for local execution
- Serve as strategic advisor to key stakeholder, cultivating trusted partnership with business leaders and their teams
- Measurement & Continuous Improvement
- Assesses communications efforts and their effectiveness to find opportunities for enhancement
Qualifications
- BA/BS degree required
- Prior corporate communication experience – both in strategy development and in execution
- Outstanding writing and editing skills, with an eye to messaging for a range of channels and audience types
- Excellent verbal communications skills
- Ability to navigate, orchestrate, and work through complex issues with a strategic, tactical, and fresh perspective
- Proven ability to adapt quickly to a fast-paced environment and support multiple high priority work streams and at times, with ambiguous undefined circumstances
- Self-starter with strong sense of initiative and focused on results
- Effective collaborator who will work cross-functionally across teams, geographies, and time zones
- Strong project management skills and experience managing stakeholder relationships, SMEs, and cross-functional partners
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience supporting transformation/modernization communications for multi-year initiatives with global stakeholder complexity.
- Familiarity with the marketing & communications ecosystem (agencies, media, measurement, CRM/data) and comfort translating technical concepts into clear leadership-ready language.
Compensation
Bonus Eligible: Yes
Long - Term Incentive: Yes
Benefits Eligible: Yes
Salary Range
The expected salary range for this role is $141,955.00 - $177,444.00 per year
The above represents the expected salary range for this job requisition. Ultimately, in determining your pay, we may also consider your experience, and other job-related factors.
Additional Information:
Benefits eligible: This position offers health and welfare benefits, including but not limited to comprehensive health insurance, which includes medical, prescription drug, mental health, dental and vision coverage, as well as, life insurance.
Bonus eligible: This position is eligible for a bonus, calculated based on individual and company performance.
Long term Incentive eligible: This position is eligible for stock or other equity grants pursuant to McDonald’s long-term incentive plan.
McDonald’s is an equal opportunity employer committed to the diversity of our workforce. We promote an inclusive work environment that creates feel-good moments for everyone. McDonald’s provides reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities as part of the application or hiring process or to perform the essential functions of their job. If you need assistance accessing or reading this job posting or otherwise feel you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process, please contact mcdhrbenefits@us.mcd.com. Reasonable accommodations will be determined on a case-by-case basis.
McDonald’s provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to sex, sex stereotyping, pregnancy (including pregnancy, childbirth, and medical conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding), race, color, religion, ancestry or national origin, age, disability status, medical condition, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, protected military or veteran status, citizenship status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.
Nothing in this job posting or description should be construed as an offer or guarantee of employment.
Nearest Major Market: Chicago