Weekly Global News Wrap: McDonald's posts new diversity goals; Chipotle enhances virtual staff training; Wendy's, Burger King join U.S. chicken sandwich scene

Here is a summary of the most interesting QSR news stories of the week from around the world.

Amidst mounting discrimination charges, McDonald’s vowed to increase the diversity of its leadership team and will tie executive bonuses to the hiring of women and people from underrepresented groups.

As reported by Restaurant Business, CEO Chris Kempczinski said the company would increase women in leadership roles—senior director and above—to 45% by the end of 2025, from 37% now. The company also said it would reach gender parity by the end of 2030. Read more here.

McDonald’s also unveiled its global packaging redesign, the first time in five years. AdWeek reports the redesigned packaging will be rolled out to all markets globally, including the U.S. over the next 24 months. Read more here.

Chipotle enhanced its remote employee learning and personal development offerings to include Udemy for Business, an online educational platform offering over 5,500 courses on a variety of topics, including tech, business and wellness. It also introduced UNIFIED, the chain’s first employee resource group to be founded in a completely virtual setting. Read more here.

Wendy’s and Burger King are the latest chains to announce they are introducing new chicken sandwiches to their U.S. menus this year, Today reports. Read more here.

Dine Brands is the latest casual dining company to roll out a virtual chicken concept, Nation’s Restaurant News reports. The Cosmic Wings brand features fried chicken wings and boneless wings, which are battered and fried chicken breast pieces, as well as chicken tenders, waffle fries, onion rings and cheese bites. The items will be prepared out of nearly 1,300 Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar kitchens. Read more here.