Message from Brian: Executive Leadership Team Changes
Partners,
I wanted to let you know about some changes to the Executive Leadership Team (ELT).
Leadership Changes
First, let me share the news. As we focus on our “Back to Starbucks” plan, we need a new operating model for our retail team, with clear ownership and accountability and an appropriate scope for each role.
- As we’ve had conversations about what the new model means for their existing roles, Sara Trilling and Arthur Valdez have made the decision to leave Starbucks.
- I’m delighted to welcome three new leaders to Starbucks to take on the following roles in our new model:
- Mike Grams will take on the role of evp, North America chief stores officer.
- Meredith Sandland will take on the role of evp, chief store development officer.
- We have also identified a new evp, chief supply chain officer as Arthur’s successor, which we will announce in the coming weeks.
New Operating Model
Let me give you a little more context. With our new operating model, we’re establishing two new roles:
- North America chief stores officer: Responsible for our retail teams, store performance and everything that happens in them. The customer solutions group will move to this team.
- chief store development officer: Responsible for our store development strategy and store design, including leadership of a center of practice across our global Design community, all intended to deliver the community coffeehouses our customers and partners expect.
Sara Trilling and Arthur Valdez
As I’ve talked with Sara and Arthur about these new roles, and what is right for them, they have both made the decision to leave Starbucks:
- We are splitting Sara’s role in two. Sara believes this is the right decision for the company, but that neither new role was right for her. Sara has been with Starbucks for over 20 years. Before her current role leading North America, Sara held leadership roles across the company and around the world. In every role, she’s demonstrated the best of Starbucks with a relentless focus on team, mission and impact.
- Arthur agrees that integrating the customer solutions team with the stores team is the right approach. This change will drive clarity and accountability for how we set our partners up for success in our stores. With this change in scope, Arthur decided it was time to hand things over to a supply chain new leader. Since he joined Starbucks in 2023, Arthur has championed transformation and innovation across our supply chain and in how we deliver the tools and equipment our store teams need to serve customers.
Both Sara and Arthur have agreed to assist with the transition over the next few months.
New ELT Members
Here are some more details on our new ELT members who will start in February:
- Mike Grams, evp, chief stores officer: Mike joins us after more than 30 years at Taco Bell, where he last served as President and Chief Operating Officer. He’s a seasoned operator, and a people-first leader who understands everything we do starts and ends with the team in stores.
- Meredith Sandland, evp, chief store development officer: Meredith currently serves as CEO of Empower Delivery, a software company that works to optimize restaurants for modern omnichannel demands. Her deep experience includes Chief Operating Officer at Kitchen United, Chief Development Officer at Taco Bell and restaurant industry consulting roles at Bain & Company. She’s a strategic thinker and an agent of change who deeply understands consumer needs.
- We will share more about our incoming evp, chief supply chain officer in the coming weeks.
I understand this is a lot of change, and I’ll talk more about it at this week’s Quarterly Connect. I’m grateful to Sara and Arthur for the contributions they have made, and I’m excited to welcome new leaders to our team as we get “Back to Starbucks.”
On we go,
Brian Niccol
chairman and chief executive officer