McDonald's in Italy today has about 32,000 employees, of which 62% are women, as well as 50% of restaurant managers and 50% of the management team of McDonald's Italia, while this percentage drops sharply among franchisees, among which over 70% are men.

The networking program Women in Franchising, presented in Milan in collaboration with Terziario Donna (Confcommercio) and Valore D, starts from these numbers: the objective is to increase the inclusion of new female entrepreneurs within its franchising network, a model of reference through which today it manages over 90% of the restaurants in Italy, thanks to 150 licensees operating throughout the peninsula.

The project received an important endorsement from the government, through a video message sent by the Minister for Family, Birth Rate and Equal Opportunities Eugenia Roccella. "It is important - Roccella said - that there is attention from the business world because this country needs a big change, which also includes corporate welfare and a more women-friendly work organization. The government, the first in Italy led by a woman, it immediately showed great commitment on this front, but we also need a subsidiary will, which starts from the world of work and business”.

The new networking program aims to raise awareness on the issue of female entrepreneurship, collaborating with companies and third parties to provide tools, know-how and training dedicated to women who want to take this path, in the belief that investing in female entrepreneurship does not only mean promoting equal opportunities, but also proposing a new point of view and sensitivity, with the aim of stimulating the socio-economic development of the country, in terms of innovation, culture and economic growth.

Dario Baroni, CEO of McDonald's Italia, reiterated the goal of increasing female entrepreneurs among licensees in Italy. “ At McDonald's we believe that valuing female talent can contribute to the cultural transformation of the world of work. For this reason we are convinced that a greater representation of women favors an even more efficient work organization and consequently, an improvement in results. This is where networking comes into play: dialogue and collaboration between institutions, businesses and associations become indispensable for shaping increasingly inclusive contexts that are capable of generating valuable opportunities", concluded Baroni.

The presidency of Women in franchising has been entrusted to Cecilia Snichelotto , who manages two restaurants in Campania. The presentation of the initiative was also attended by Lino Stoppani, President of Fipe-Confcommercio, Diana De Marchi , Councilor in charge of employment policies, social policies, equal opportunities of the Metropolitan City of Milan, Luisa Adami , General counsel & franchising Director in McDonald's Italy, Francesca De Lucchi , president of the Women's Tertiary Group Confcommercio Milano, Laura Tosto , president of Datacontact and councilor of Valore D, and Valeria Casani, Co-Founder of Girls Restart.