MCDONALD’S USA HIRES TWO NEW BLACK MARKETING LEADERS

Two African American marketing executives have joined the McDonald’s U.S. business branch. Kenny Mitchell has been named vice president of brand content and engagement and Lizette Williams has been tapped for an entirely new role, head of cultural engagement.

The appointments come after Morgan Flatley, formerly of PepsiCo, joined the fast food conglomerate in 2017 as its U.S. chief marketing officer. “We are excited about the fresh, innovative thinking and experience Kenny and Lizette bring to our team,” said Flatley in a statement, reports AdWeek. “They are both highly-respected, talented leaders, and with their respective teams, will play a critical role in bringing our marketing strategy to life as we continue to raise the bar for our customers.”

Mitchell, who is slated to begin working at the Golden Arches on Feb. 5, previously served as head of consumer engagement at PepsiCo’s Gatorade, leading their global integrated marketing effort. Prior to that, he led brand and consumer marketing for Nascar for a year and a half. According to the statement, in his new role, Mitchell will oversee cross-functional teams and agency partners “to deliver world-class innovative storytelling” and “drive brand love.”

“McDonald’s is one of the most iconic brands and I couldn’t be more excited to be joining the talented McDonald’s team, helping to shape the future of the brand in the U.S.,” said Mitchell, who is replacing an outgoing executive that retired from McDonald’s in 2017.

Williams, who began her start at McDonald’s on Monday, left Kimberly-Clark North America, where she was a multicultural marketing leader at the billion-dollar packaged goods maker. She also spent five years working at PepsiCo’s Quaker brand before joining Kimberly-Clark.

With her new position, Williams will be tasked with building and developing devotion to the McDonald’s brand among multicultural customers. “I am absolutely thrilled to be joining the McDonald’s family,” she said. “I look forward to helping drive continued growth as we work to transform marketing in a multicultural America.”