McDonald's Corp. said that its No. 2 executive Mike Roberts had decided to resign, spurring a management shake-up, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.

The nation's largest restaurant chain had named Ralph Alvarez to succeed Roberts as the company's president and chief operating officer. Previously, Alvarez was president of McDonald's North American unit, the report said.

As part of the reshuffling, McDonald has also named Don Thompson, 43, as president of McDonald's USA, where he had been executive vice president and chief operations officer.

Alvarez, 51, has worked for McDonald's since 1994 and held a series of executive positions with the company's U.S. division.

He also was president of McDonald's Mexico and a regional director for Chipotle Mexican Grill, a former McDonald's unit.

Roberts, 55, helped guide McDonald's through a dramatic turnaround that started in its U.S. restaurants four years ago. A 29-year veteran who began as a regional purchasing manager, he was considered a candidate for the top post after former chief executive Charlie Bell stepped down to fight cancer in 2004.

Editor: Yan