Don Thompson

Don Thompson entered McDonald's through engineering. When he joined the company in 1990, his work included components for french-fry equipment. By 2012, he had become its first African American chief executive, one of the early African American chief executives of a Fortune 500 company, leading one of the world's largest restaurant systems.

Thompson grew up in Chicago and Indianapolis. BlackPast's biography records his birth near the Cabrini-Green housing projects on Chicago's near north side. Purdue University's Minority Engineering Program recruited him to study engineering, and he earned his electrical engineering degree there in 1984. He worked for Northrop before joining McDonald's.

Then came operations. BlackPast describes a stretch learning restaurant work in South Chicago, everything from cooking to managing shifts. Later assignments covered regional operations and leadership of the company's United States business. He led McDonald's until 2015.

That year, Don and Liz Thompson co-founded Cleveland Avenue in Chicago, naming the firm for the street where both had grown up. Its investments center on food and consumer products companies. The firm's leadership page describes investments in consumer brands and explains that its team supports businesses through functions including marketing, supply chains and operations.

Their educational work continued too. Purdue reported in 2021 that the Thompsons had created an endowment supporting its College of Engineering and Minority Engineering Program, funding renewable scholarships for engineering students. The university named Don its Dreamer Award recipient that year, recognizing service and support for diversity. The couple also established the Cleveland Avenue Foundation for Education, which supports students and professionals through education and mentoring.