McDonald's elects WNBA commissioner to board following CEO shakeup and renewed emphasis on corporate ethics
- McDonald's announced on Monday that Cathy Engelbert has been elected to join its board of directors.
- The move follows the abrupt termination of CEO Steve Easterbrook in early November after an investigation into his relationship with a coworker.
- "McDonald's will benefit from her fresh perspectives, strong operational experience, and broad financial expertise," said Enrique Hernandez, Jr., McDonald's chairman of the board. "Cathy's election also underscores our commitment to diversity at all levels, from the crew room to the board room."
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McDonald's has elected a new member to its board of directors, following the fast-food giant's CEO shakeup in early November.
On Monday, McDonald's announced that Cathy Engelbert had joined the company's board of directors.
Engelbert became the commissioner for the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) earlier this year. She served as CEO of Deloitte from 2015 to 2019, making her the first female top executive at a "Big Four" professional service firm.
"Cathy is an exceptional leader with a track record of guiding organizations to strength and success," Enrique Hernandez Jr., McDonald's chairman of the board, said in a statement.
"McDonald's will benefit from her fresh perspectives, strong operational experience, and broad financial expertise," Hernandez Jr. continued. "Cathy's election also underscores our commitment to diversity at all levels, from the crew room to the board room."
The move follows an abrupt CEO shakeup at McDonald's that employees told Business Insider shocked those inside the company. In early November, the company announced that then-CEO Steve Easterbrook had been terminated and would step down from the company's board, following his relationship with a coworker. Easterbrook was replaced by Chris Kempczinski, who previously served as the head of the US business.
"Cathy is a leader who has challenged convention to deliver tangible change," Kempczinski said in a statement. "I am inspired by her people-first approach to business and looking forward to benefiting from her entrepreneurial thinking across our global organization."
Since becoming CEO, Kempczinski has continued to stick with the company's growth plan established under Easterbrook, franchisees and employees told Business Insider. However, he and the board have also emphasized a renewal of ethics at the company in internal meetings and memos.
Engelbert said in a press release that she is eager to help build a more inclusive and diverse McDonald's.
"I am encouraged by McDonald's Global Gender Balance and Diversity Strategy and its commitment to increasing the representation of women throughout the business - from the crew room to the board room," Engelbert said in a statement.
- Read more:
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- McDonald's new CEO had a global town hall about the future of the fast-food giant
- McDonald's franchisees call leadership 'a privilege' and a respectful workplace a 'societal expectation' in leaked internal memo after CEO was fired for relationship with employee