McDonald’s Corp.’s Chief Executive Jim Skinner is retiring, handing the challenge of sustaining one of the restaurant industry’s strongest runs to the company’s president, Don Thompson.

The 67-year-old Skinner, CEO since 2004, will step down June 30, after 41 years at the fast-food giant, McDonald’s said in a statement.

When Skinner retired, the 48-year-old Thompson, who is also McDonald’s operating chief, has long been at the top of the list of candidates to succeed him. He became the chain’s first Black CEO.

A 22-year veteran of McDonald’s, Thompson helped spearheaded some major initiatives at the burger giant, including the company’s national rollout of specialty coffee drinks. He has helped guide McDonalds’s through the economic downturn, making it one of the most successful restaurant chains in recent years.