Meet the Team Making McDonald’s Restaurants More Modern, Sustainable, and Welcoming

NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 1, 2023 / McDonald's Corporation

Think about the last time you stepped inside a McDonald's restaurant. Did you notice anything that surprised you?

Perhaps you enjoyed table service for the first time or lounged in the comfort of a stylish interior. Many McDonald's restaurants, both inside and out, look and feel different than they did in years past - and that's no accident.

Meet Nika Samedova and Silke Korporal: two women who are helping change the way McDonald's restaurants look and feel around the world. Combined, Nika and Silke have spent more than a half century working under the Golden Arches, and their work can be seen at McDonald's restaurants around the world.

Together, they're challenging the status quo to make McDonald's restaurants more modern, sustainable and welcoming for customers and crew.

"It never gets boring," Silke says.

How Nika and Silke's Careers Crossed Paths

Silke - now McDonald's Lead for Global Design Standards - started her McDonald's career as a restaurant crew member in Hamburg, Germany at age 18. "I wanted to buy designer jeans, and I needed a job," she remembers. She worked at the restaurant throughout her time at university, and ultimately landed a job with the German McDonald's development department after graduating and becoming a trained architect and urban planner.

Because of her experience as a restaurant crew member, Silke always pays attention to how small changes to restaurant design can impact the people working there. She's proud that McDonald's invites architects the company works with to experience a "restaurant day," where they spend time in a McDonald's kitchen to understand where changes may be necessary.

"It's so important to consider the crew's perspective," Silke says.

Nika, who was raised in Azerbaijan, began her career with an approved design and production supplier for McDonald's in the United States. Years later, Nika joined McDonald's, and she and Silke became coworkers at the McDonald's Design Hub in Europe. Now, they've worked closely together for more than a decade, with Nika ascending to Global Restaurant Design Lead - IRLX (In Real Life Experience) and New Format Design.

For years, Nika dedicated her efforts to enhancing the family and play experience for customers in McDonald's restaurants, including re-imagining McDonald's play strategy and deploying new solutions across markets. Nika has helped bring many family-focused McDonald's restaurants to life, with her current favorite located in Fulvio Testi, Italy.