On Tuesday, Starbucks announced a new phase in its leadership transition, with CEO Brian Niccol splitting important leadership positions and adding two more executives who worked for his previous job, Taco Bell.
“We need a new operating model for our retail team as we focus on our Back to Starbucks plan, with clear ownership and accountability and an appropriate scope for each role,” Niccol stated in a statement to employees that was posted on the company’s website.
Niccol was CEO of Yum Brands Taco Bell prior to working at Chipotle for six years. He has already recruited several of his former coworkers to assist him in his overhaul of the coffee behemoth since he began working at Starbucks in September. For instance, in the fall, he appointed Tressie Lieberman, a former employee of Yum Brands and Chipotle, as Starbucks’ global chief brand officer.
One of Starbucks’ most recent organizational modifications is the division of the North American president position into two positions. Sara Trilling, the company’s current president of North America, is leaving the position. Since 2002, Trilling has worked for Starbucks.
Meredith Sandland will take over as chief store development officer in February. At the moment, Sandland serves as CEO of the restaurant software startup Empower Delivery. She previously held the positions of Taco Bell’s chief development officer and Kitchen United’s chief operating officer.
Mike Grams will also become the company’s chief stores officer for North America in February. According to his LinkedIn profile, Grams has worked for Taco Bell for over 30 years, beginning as a general manager of a restaurant and progressing to the position of global chief operating officer.
Sandland and Grams will both be responsible for carrying out Niccol’s plan to return to Starbucks. The plan calls for cutting the menu, making its locations cozier and more welcoming, and cutting service times to four minutes per order.
Starbucks’ chief supply officer, Arthur Valdez, also intends to depart the organization. He worked at Target for seven years before joining in 2023. According to Niccol’s letter, Starbucks has already found a replacement for him and will announce the news in the upcoming weeks.
After the bell on Tuesday, Starbucks is anticipated to release its fiscal first-quarter earnings. As customers in China and the United States choose to get their caffeine fix elsewhere, Wall Street predicts that the company’s same-store sales will decline for the fourth straight quarter.
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