The U.S. posted its largest jobs gains report in six months in September as the unemployment rate fell to 4.1 percent. Nonfarm payrolls upped 254,000 jobs—the most since March, per the BLS. Restaurants and bars tacked on 69,400 to raise the total to nearly 12.5 million, or an average rate of 14,000 added over the last 12 months.
These figures are materially above pre-COVID marks at this stage, but for a lot of chains, the discussion has moved well past the recovery trend and into the task of supporting growth. Yum! Brands opened more than 4,700 new stores across fiscal 2023 and had a few milestones slated for 2024 (30,000 restaurants at KFC, passed in January; 20,000 at Pizza Hut, and well over 60,000 globally for the company).
KFC debuted a record 4,754 gross units last year; Taco Bell lifted 417 through 25 countries; Pizza Hut 1,586 in 73 countries; and Yum!’s more recent acquisition, fast casual Habit, opened 35.
Here’s how those brands unpacked in the U.S.
KFC
- 2023 US System-wide Sales: $5.2 billion
- 2023 Average Sales Per Unit: $1.386 million
- 2023 Franchised/Licensed Units: 3,745
- 2023 Company Units: 46
- 2023 Total Units: 3,791
- Total Change in Units from 2022: –127
Taco Bell
- 2023 US System-wide Sales: $15 billion
- 2023 Average Sales Per Unit: $2.1 million
- 2023 Franchised/Licensed Units: 6,922
- 2023 Company Units: 483
- 2023 Total Units: 7,405
- Total Change in Units from 2022: +207
Pizza Hut
- 2023 US System-wide Sales: $5.6 billion
- 2023 Average Sales Per Unit: $1.015 million
- 2023 Franchised/Licensed Units: 6,586
- 2023 Company Units: 7
- 2023 Total Units: 6,593
- Total Change in Units from 2022: +32
The Habit Burger Grill
- 2023 US System-wide Sales: $700 million
- 2023 Average Sales Per Unit: $2,004 million
- 2023 Franchised/Licensed Units: 59
- 2023 Company Units: 307
- 2023 Total Units: 366
- Total Change in Units from 2022: +28
As it does every year, Yum! provided an update Tuesday on the makeup of its workforce as it scales in the company’s 2023 Global Citizenship & Sustainability Report.
Here were some points:
Yum!’s fleet of nearly 60,000 locations (98 percent franchised) now employ roughly a million people. In the U.S., about 80 percent of current RGMs were promoted from other positions in Yum!’s restaurants.
The company said franchisees last year identified a gap in their talent pipeline at the executive level. In response, it launched fresh programs through its Yum! Center for Global Franchise Excellence at the University of Louisville. The Accelerating Growth executive education programs focus on equipping people to take on senior management roles in franchise organizations. It offers two tracks—a six-month program designed to train RGMs to become area coaches; and a one-year program customized to prepare area coaches and above-restaurant leaders for more senior titles.
Yum! created this Center in 2021 and houses it at Louisville’s College of Business. It’s since brought through more than 900 people at the undergraduate, graduate, and executive levels in franchise operation and ownership.
The path to parity
Yum! previously set a goal to reach global gender parity in leadership by 2030. In 2023, 44 percent of global corporate leadership roles were held by women and roughly 53 percent of the workforce was composed of women. Back in 2018, that 44 percent was 33 percent.
To get there, Yum! said it plans to update job listings with information more attractive to women job seekers, including salary ranges, and broader qualifications. Then, regarding retention, it will support women in initiatives like women-centered communities of belonging and parent-friendly benefits in the U.S., and also bring women executive leaders together to “inspire the next generation of women at Yum! to see themselves in leadership roles,” it said.
Beyond corporate, the company plans to develop leadership training for franchisees and restaurant employees and create opportunities for women in the communities where its restaurants operate.
A new community of belonging (Sponsor, Help, Inspire, Narrate, Encourage, or SHINE) was launched in 2023 dedicated to women’s empowerment as well, which now has more than 800 members, including franchisees.
KFC in particular achieved parity between women and men globally across its corporate offices this past March, where women now constitute 51 percent of the collective team.
Additionally, the company announced it closed the gender experience gap globally across its restaurant support centers. Since 2021, KFC has measured progress using the McKinsey & Company Inclusion Survey.
Overall as a company, Yum! has a partnership with McKinsey and its Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging team that allows junior to senior-level employees to complete leadership training and courses. More than 150 people did so last year.
Yum! also wants to continue measuring employee engagement more widely. It said 92 percent of above-restaurant, corporate employees responded as “satisfied” in 2023.
Additionally, 100 percent completed annual compliance training, including Yum!’s Global Code of Conduct.
Yum! noted it’s working to unlock opportunity for employees, front-line workers, and communities around the world by investing $100 million over five years to remove barriers to equity and inclusion, education, and entrepreneurship.
That $100 million “Unlocking Opportunity Initiative” was announced in 2020. As of last year, $71 million of funding was used and/or committed in support of north of 30 community impact programs, Yum! said. That’s up from $50 million at year-end 2022. Yum! noted UOI programs have reached 204,000 individuals around the world.
On the training front
There’s a good deal happening internally to support upward mobility. The company said about 7,750 employees participated in leadership development programs last year, including Heartstyles, Coach Academy, and Leadership Accel.
Heartstyles was acquired in March 2020 after years of partnership. It gave Yum! a leadership platform to shore up talent from within. The ultimate aim was to spread the system—created by married couple Stephen and Mara Klemich—to Yum!’s 1,500-plus franchisees (it’s also now offered to operators and RGMs worldwide). The primary feature is a “Heartstyles Indicator,” which is an assessment and action plan that helps employees cultivate a path forward.
In 2023, more than 7,100 RGMs and assistant RGMs on six continents completed Leading With Heart (the development program).
Yum! made upgrades, too, including a new conference-style format, two executive programs, and an app to support ongoing engagement.
“Coach Academy” is a global, virtual program for managers; “Leadership Accel” enables employees to grow as strategic thinkers.
Yum!’s leadership development efforts are also expanding. It offered “internal career development weeks” for corporate employees in 2023 where attendees could hear from senior leaders and other speakers. The company uploaded more than 47,000 LinkedIn Learning videos and courses from above-restaurant leaders.
Another shared update from Yum! concerned its Next Generation of Women (NOW) program, initially launched by KFC in 2022, which has now expanded company-wide. It’s designed to help advance women to the director level and above through recruiting practices and a structure plan that uses insights from Yum!’s “Heartstyles” platform. In 2023, a third of participants earned promotions.
The company’s “Inclusive Leadership” training program, developed in partnership with Heartstyles and built to “challenge perceptions and demonstrate the holistic benefits that inclusion brings to our operations,” plans to roll out further as well. Yum! wants to offer the virtual two-day experience to all corporate employees, franchisees, and RGMs by the end of 2025.
Yum! hosts an annual conference (MidRISE) for junior and mid-level employees in the U.S., primarily made up of individuals from underrepresented communities, with quarterly follow-up virtual events. It offers technical apprenticeships through a OneTen and Multiverse pilot program for restaurant employees to build skills and transition into full-time corporate roles. Last year, there were 15 participants, with 63 percent moving into corporate positions.
Yum! continues to offer a range of health and well-being programs, options from Teledoc to an Employee Assistance program. In 2023, it hosted Live Well Weeks for the first time, where corporate employees had the opportunity to learn how to better their well-being.
Some other highlights from the report:
Food
- In 2023, over 70 percent of Yum!-approved suppliers achieved Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) Certification.
- Sourced over 90 percent cage-free eggs for the 25,000 restaurants with a 2026 goal.
- Endorsed the Antimicrobial Use Stewardship Principles in Poultry, supporting an initiative that includes over 40 percent of global poultry meat production.
Planet
- On track to achieve Yum!’s 2030 emission reduction goals across both Scopes 1 and 2, as well as Scope 3 as it relates to energy emissions from franchisee-owned restaurants.
- Advanced Yum!’s sustainable supply chain work with KFC Europe committing to source 100 percent sustainable soy by 2025 and Pizza Hut decreasing emissions by 10 percent in the milk used for its cheese by improving cattle feed.
- Invested in sustainable packaging and infrastructure with Taco Bell expanding its recycling program with TerraCycle beyond its own sauce packets and Habit Burger & Grill reducing paper usage with new takeout bags.
