CEO Jim Skinner: speed key to McDonald's success

It was McDonald’s that put the “fast” in fast food, and its speed continues to be a major factor in the iconic restaurant chain’s profits.

“One of the things we do very well is to make sure it’s [a new product is] not real until it’s real in the restaurant,” McDonald’s CEO James Skinner told CNBC. “We don’t put something on the menu until it can be produced at the speed of McDonald’s.”

To keep the burgers moving, the company has recently expanded the "footprint"of the drive-thru, explained Skinner. “If you’re driving down the road and you see seven or eight cars in the drive-thru—even though the service time might be 30 seconds per car—you’ll drive by it,” said Skinner. “I do.”

By shaving six seconds off a transaction, Skinner said, an individual restaurant can accommodate 15 more cars per hour.