About

Talita Ramos Erickson is head of Global Legal Operations & Chief of Staff for the Global Legal and Compliance Department at McDonald’s Corporation, based in Chicago. Before joining McDonald’s in 2023, Talita held many roles at the Barilla Group in the U.S. and Italy, including General Counsel Region Americas (2012-2021), President & CEO of Barilla Restaurants (2018-2021), Global Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer twice (2013-2016; 2021-2022), Global Chief Legal & Compliance Officer (2021-2023), and Chief Transformation Officer (2022-2023). Prior to Barilla, she held several in-house counsel positions at Kraft Foods in Brazil and the U.S., including Assistant Corporate Secretary and Counsel Strategic Transactions. She holds a J.D. from the Federal University of Parana State School of Law (Brazil), an LLM in Business Law from Loyola University Chicago School of Law, and an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Talita is licensed to practice law in Brazil, New York, and Illinois. She currently serves on the Board of the non-for-profit Center for Disability & Elder Law, and in the advisory Board for the Hispanic Alliance for Career Enhancement. She has also been recognized as a leader in the U.S. Latine business community, including Illinois Diversity Council 2017 Legal Champion award, 2019 Crain’s Notable General Counsel, 2019 Top 50 Most Powerful Latinas in Corporate America by ALPFA, and 2019 Chicago United Top 50 Business Leaders of Color.