William J. McDonald CPA.CITP

Executive Vice President, Brand Management

Capital One

As Executive Vice President for Brand Management, Bill McDonald is responsible for leading Capital One’s Brand Strategy and Architecture, Advertising and Event Marketing, Consumer Research, Showcase Value Proposition Development, and Direct Marketing Creative Integration throughout North America and internationally.

Mr. McDonald brings to Capital One more than 25 years of Brand management and marketing experience. His career began with a 13 year run at PepsiCo, progressing from Assistant Brand Manager to Senior Vice President. Mr. McDonald started at Frito Lay in 1979 and worked in every major salty snack category. He then joined the corporate staff of PepsiCo as Director of Strategic Planning for the five worldwide beverage divisions. In 1986, Mr. McDonald joined Pizza Hut for the national rollout of Pizza Hut Delivery and ultimately the number two brand job in charge of the National Calendar, Event Marketing, and Brand Strategy. He was promoted in 1989 to SVP Chief Marketing Officer at KFC where he oversaw the re-branding of the concept, the launch of a more snackable menu, and a more aggressive price value promotion strategy.

Mr. McDonald left PepsiCo and joined the restaurant start-up, Boston Chicken, Inc., as EVP. He then became the financed area developer for northern California, and ultimately CMO, where he developed award-winning advertising for the Boston Market and Boston Carver brands.

Mr. McDonald joined Capital One in 1998, and the company has enjoyed a meteoric rise from anonymous monoline card issuer to one of the top financial services companies with one of the most maverick and recognized brands.

Mr. McDonald earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Business Administration at the University of Texas.