Starbucks Corp. on Wednesday outlined shifts to its management team in a move designed to accelerate innovation and growth.
The management changes come less than a year after Starbucks reworked its leadership structure into a three-region operating model that focuses on North and Latin America, Asia and Europe/Africa/the Middle East.
Howard Schultz, Starbucks’ chair, president and chief executive, said the realignment will allow the company to better deliver on local relevancy and speed of decision-making.
“We will never rest when it comes to coffee innovation and elevating the overall coffee experience for our customers,” he said. “The leadership moves we announced today will enable us to more swiftly position ourselves for the exciting opportunities ahead while never losing sight of the fact that we are a global brand with a rich heritage in coffee, long-standing values, and the responsibility to use our scale for good.”
Here are the changes revealed Wednesday:
Arthur Rubinfeld, a former head of global store development who first joined Starbucks in 1992 and most recently designed the first Evolution Fresh location, has been named chief creative officer and president, Global Development and Evolution Fresh Retail.
In addition to continuing to lead store site selection and design, he will be responsible for developing and integrating a dynamic brand experience for customers around the world, as well as leading the Evolution Fresh retail store strategy. He will report to Schultz and serve on the senior leadership team.
EARLIER:
• Analyst: Starbucks' Evolution Fresh concept poised for growth
• Starbucks debuts Evolution Fresh location
• Starbucks buys Evolution Fresh for $30M
Annie Young-Scrivner, formerly global chief marketing officer, has been named executive vice president and president, Starbucks Canada, the company's largest market outside the U.S.
Young-Scrivner will be based in Toronto when she assumes her new role in September, at the end of the fiscal year. She will report to Cliff Burrows, president of the Americas region, which includes the U.S.
Starbucks said it has moved its marketing and category functions to the regional and market level. As a result, the global chief marketing officer position will not be filled.
As Young-Scrivner turns her attention to Canada, Jeff Hansberry, president, Channel Development, will take on the Tazo Tea brand, which will be included in the company’s emerging portfolio of brands along with Evolution Fresh and Seattle’s Best Coffee.
Lucy Lee Helm, formerly interim general counsel, was named executive vice president, general counsel and secretary. She will lead the Law & Corporate Affairs department, support board members and serve on the leadership team. Helm will report to Schultz.
Colin Moore, previously senior vice president of the Americas division and president of Starbucks Canada, has been named senior vice president, Enterprise Optimization. In the newly created role, Moore will be responsible for driving greater financial value creation, as well as economic and operating efficiencies worldwide. Based in Toronto, Moore will report to chief financial officer Troy Alstead.
Craig Russell, formerly senior vice president, U.S. Store Services, has been named senior vice president, Global Coffee. Russell steps in as Dub Hay, senior vice president, Global Coffee Authority, retires in November.
On Hay’s retirement, Schultz said in a statement, “I cannot overstate what an incredible asset Dub has been to Starbucks as a true force in the industry, whose passion for coffee is only surpassed by his expertise. We wish him the very best in his retirement.”
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