(Bloomberg) -- McDonald’s Corp. Chief Executive Officer Chris Kempczinski will add the role of executive chairman as the current head of the board retires, making the fast-food chain the latest big company to recombine its top jobs.

Enrique Hernandez Jr. will retire as nonexecutive chairman after 28 years on the board, the company said in a statement Tuesday. The changes will be effective at the company’s shareholder meeting.

More S&P 500 companies have been separating their CEO and chairman roles in recent years, according to search firm Spencer Stuart. In a report last year, the firm said 59% of boards reported that the positions were separate, up from 45% in 2013 and 16% in 1998.

Still, a few companies recently have put the jobs back together. Clorox Co. gave the chair title to CEO Linda Rendle effective Jan. 1, moving former chairman Matthew Shattock to lead independent director.

At McDonald’s, Miles White, on the board since 2009, will become lead independent director, the company said. McDonald’s also nominated Mike Hsu, CEO of Kimberly-Clark Corp., to the board.

--With assistance from Matthew Boyle and Leslie Patton.

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