On this week’s special episode of Extra Serving, NRN editor Alicia Kelso speaks with Yum Brands chief operating officer and chief people officer Tracy Skeans.

Tracy Skeans joined Yum Brands in 2000 and has since worked her way up through the ranks gaining experience in finance, HR, business transformation, operations, food safety, culture, talent – name it.

Now, as the company’s chief operating officer and chief people officer, she oversees many parts of the global restaurant company. But when it comes to what she’s most passionate about, it’s gender parity. In fact, Skeans has spent the past several years as a board member for the Women’s Foodservice Forum, including as chair in 2022.

It’s perhaps no coincidence, then, that Skeans’ company walks the walk on this issue. Yum Brands is a founding member of the WFF, for instance, as well as a member of the Paradigm for Parity coalition. It has been recognized for its efforts by the Bloomberg Gender-Equity Index, Forbes’ “Best Employers for Diversity” list, Fortune’s “World’s Most Admired Companies” list, Newsweek’s “America’s Greatest Places for Women” list and more.

Notably, the company’s Paradigm for Parity membership includes a pledge to achieve gender parity in global leadership positions by 2030, and the company is well on its way to meeting that goal. Currently, more than 42% of the company’s leadership positions are held by women, up materially from about 30% when the goal was first announced just five years ago.

Take a listen to their full conversation.