2025-03-12T06:35:53Z Read in app McDonald's CEO said the chain takes years to improve its burger recipes and needs to move faster. Mike Kemp/In Pictures via Getty Images This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now.Have an account? McDonald's is trying to get new burgers out the door and into its restaurants faster.CEO Chris Kempczinski said new products and upgrades to signature burgers take years to reach customers.He plans to shake up operations and introduce new executive roles to speed up the process.McDonald's takes years to introduce new burgers, its CEO says, and he wants to change that.The chain's chief executive, Chris Kempczinski, said he wants to speed up the process of introducing new burgers and improving existing signature burgers. He made these comments in an interview with The Wall Street Journal published on Tuesday.Kempczinski says he's switching things up in leadership and operations to make the company move faster. Part of that involves changing the job scopes of his leadership team to roll out new technology and products to its restaurants faster.Jill McDonald, who heads the company's international division, has been tapped to be the chain's first chief restaurant experience officer starting May 1. McDonald is a retail veteran, having held top roles at Marks and Spencer and Costa Coffee.She'll lead the team responsible for the company's innovation, supply chains, and operations."I wanted one person who's actually looking at all these tech things through the eyes of the restaurant general manager," Kempczinski said to the Journal.He did not elaborate on how else he would speed up the burger development process. Representatives for McDonald's did not respond to a query from Business Insider on the topic, sent outside regular business hours.In the interview, Kempczinski also hinted at a more extensive drinks menu. He said he would get executives to focus exclusively on beverage development.He said this would help the company find a way to keep customers in store and buying their drinks rather than going to competitors."We just need to make sure that our menu offering doesn't give somebody a reason why they come to us for their food and they maybe go to the place next door to go get the beverage," Kempczinski said.Kempczinski's comments come as the chain posted stagnant financial results in 2024. The chain's global comparable sales declined 0.1% in 2024. It reported a full-year revenue of $25.92 billion.When markets closed on Tuesday, McDonald's stock traded at $306.8. It has risen about 4% in the past year.The fast food industry is facing a wave of cost-conscious consumers in the USwho are put off byrising fast food product prices.Some are opting to eat at home.McDonald's, for its part, has doubled down on cheap meals to attract frugal customers. In a February earnings call, Kempczinski said its $5 meal deals in the US were working.It also offered a promotion on its Egg McMuffins on March 2, selling the popular breakfast item for $1 despite theskyrocketing egg prices in the US.