Century 21 Real Estate LLC, franchisor of the world's largest residential real estate sales organization, today announced the appointment of Craig Leonard to the position of chief operating officer, reporting directly to Tom Kunz, president and chief executive officer. In his new position, Leonard will oversee the servicing and operations of the global real estate franchise system and will work to develop and execute strategies for long-term growth and profitability of existing and new CENTURY 21 ® franchisees.

"Craig brings to this position a tremendous amount of leadership experience in the franchise sector and will play a crucial role in enhancing the delivery of services to our network of franchised offices both domestically and abroad," said Kunz. "While focusing on strengthening the infrastructure of day-to-day operations, Craig will help to enable our franchisees to better leverage affiliation with the CENTURY 21 System in their local markets."

Leonard comes to the CENTURY 21 System with more than three decades of professional experience in the area of franchise operations and sales, most recently with McDonald's Japan where he held the position of chief operating officer, senior vice president and served as a member of the organization's board of directors. Leonard held roles of increasing responsibility within the McDonald's organization dating back to 1976.

"Transitioning from one 'golden' icon to 'The Gold Standard' represents a tremendous opportunity to leverage my experience and knowledge in successfully operating franchise organizations. I'm excited to be a part of the ongoing effort to provide best-in-class service and resources to CENTURY 21 franchisees and to the home buyers and sellers they service around the world," said Leonard.