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Category

People & Culture

Hiring, retention, training, labor law, leadership

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people
People & Culture

Women in QSR Leadership: Progress and Problems

Female CEOs, franchisees, and executives - the numbers and the stories. Why progress is slow, where barriers remain, and which chains are actually changing.

MAR 20, 2026 · 5 MIN READ
people
People & Culture

The QSR Labor Market in 2026: Where the Workers Actually Went

The restaurant industry lost 29,700 jobs in February 2026 alone. Turnover still exceeds 100% annually at many chains. Wages rose 6.3% in 2024 and keep climbing. Here is what the BLS data and industry reports actually show about the QSR workforce.

MAR 20, 2026 · 8 MIN READ
people
People & Culture

Inside Chick-fil-A's Operator Selection: How 0.25% of Applicants Get Chosen

The selection process, interview stages, what they look for, and why operators can't own multiple stores. Harder than Harvard, more selective than MIT, and structured to filter for a rare combination of traits.

MAR 20, 2026 · 11 MIN READ
people
People & Culture

California's $20 Fast Food Wage, Two Years Later: Higher Prices, Fewer Jobs, and an Automation Accelerant

Two years after AB 1228 imposed a $20 minimum wage on California fast food workers, new UC Santa Cruz research shows higher prices, reduced employment, and accelerated automation.

MAR 20, 2026 · 8 MIN READ
people
People & Culture

The Restaurant General Manager Shortage Is the Real Labor Crisis of 2026

While the industry obsesses over hourly wages, GM salaries have surged 12% in a single year. The real labor crisis in QSR is not finding crew members. It is finding the experienced operators who can run a $2-3 million restaurant.

MAR 24, 2026 · 7 MIN READ
people
People & Culture

Chili's Wants to Turn General Managers into Owners, and It Could Reshape Company-Operated QSR

CEO Kevin Hochman is studying a profit-sharing ownership model for GMs modeled on Texas Roadhouse's managing partner structure. If it works, it could redefine unit-level leadership across company-operated chains.

MAR 24, 2026 · 7 MIN READ
people
People & Culture

The Restaurant CEO Pay Gap: What Top Chain Executives Earn vs. the Workers Serving the Food

When McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski earned $19.2 million in 2024, the crew members at the counter made around $14 an hour. That gap is wider than most industries, and it's becoming a real operational problem for chains struggling to hire and retain staff.

MAR 24, 2026 · 7 MIN READ
people
People & Culture

Starbucks Workers United: Four Years Without a Contract and the March 2026 Proposal That Could Break the Deadlock

Starbucks Workers United filed a comprehensive contract proposal on March 13, 2026, reigniting stalled negotiations that have dragged on for four years without a first contract. For QSR operators watching from the sidelines, the Starbucks labor standoff is the most consequential union story in the industry's modern history.

MAR 24, 2026 · 7 MIN READ
people
People & Culture

Yum Brands After Gibbs: Chris Turner Inherits a 59,000-Restaurant Empire and an Unfinished AI Transformation

Chris Turner stepped into the Yum Brands CEO seat in October 2025 after three decades of operational DNA built by David Gibbs. A financial architect taking the wheel of the world's largest fast food company by unit count raises real questions about execution versus analysis, especially as Yum's AI bet scales toward 60,000 locations and Pizza Hut bleeds stores.

MAR 24, 2026 · 7 MIN READ
people
People & Culture

Chicken Salad Chick's Millennial and Gen Z Franchisee Surge Signals a New Franchise Model Preference

Chicken Salad Chick named Jill Thomas CMO as the brand reports a record 2025 with nearly 100 new franchise deals and a pipeline surpassing 300 units, driven by younger entrepreneurs seeking structured ownership.

MAR 24, 2026 · 7 MIN READ
people
People & Culture

Popeyes Appoints Chris Padoan as COO, Expands Field Team 75% in Turnaround Push

Restaurant Brands International named Burger King veteran Chris Padoan as Popeyes COO and expanded the chain's field operations team by 75%, the latest moves in a turnaround effort after four consecutive quarters of same-store sales declines.

MAR 24, 2026 · 6 MIN READ
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