Burton D. Cohen is managing partner of Burton D. Cohen & Associates, LLC, a franchising consulting firm which he founded following his retirement as Senior Vice President and Chief Franchising Officer of McDonald’s Corporation. In that position, he was responsible for overseeing McDonald’s franchising activities worldwide. In addition to formulating franchising strategy and policy, his department reviewed over 1,000 franchising transactions each year in the U.S. alone. In the 19 years that Mr. Cohen was in charge of franchising, the McDonald’s System was widely considered as the premier franchising organization in the world. His vast U.S. experience has helped replicate McDonald’s franchising philosophy around the globe. McDonald’s has more than 5,000 franchisees who own and operate approximately 75% of the nearly 25,000 restaurants in 115 countries.

Burt Cohen was with McDonald’s for 35 years and had two different careers with the company. Prior to assuming responsibility for franchising in 1980, he was Assistant General Counsel and Director of the corporate legal department.

As a member of the Top Management Group he held a number of additional senior positions:

Advisory Member, McDonald’s Corporation Board of Directors
Trustee, McDonald’s Corporation Profit Sharing Trust
Chairman, McDonald’s Corporation Rewrite Committee
Member, McDonald’s Corporation Market Share Review Board
Member, McDonald’s Corporation Economic Advisory Team

Additionally, as a franchising authority, he has lectured widely to various organizations including:

University of Chicago Graduate School of Business
Practicing Law Institute
International Franchise Association

Among other activities and recognitions are the following:

Adjunct Professor of Management & Strategy, Kellogg Graduate School of Management
at Northwestern University (teaching Strategic Franchising)
Board of Directors and Audit Committee, The Dwyer Group, Inc., a diversified franchising company (Nasdaq: DWYR)
Advisor, Primary Insight, a subsidiary of JP Morgan, Chase, and Co., providing expert advice on franchising to institutional investors and other clients of the firm.
Board of Directors, Goodwill Enterprises Development Corporation
Vice Chair, Franchise Relations Committee, International Franchise Association
Senior Consultant, iFranchise Group
Franchise Mediator, CPR Institute for Dispute Resolution
Consultant and Coach, Executive Service Corps of Chicago
President and member of the Board, The Birchwood Club
American Bar Association, Forum Committee on Franchising
Louisiana State University Franchise Advisory Board
Who’s Who in America
Who’s Who in American Law

A Chicago native, Mr. Cohen received his undergraduate degree in Business and Economics from The Illinois Institute of Technology and his Juris Doctor degree from Northwestern University School Of Law.