"He is uniquely positioned to shape this work"
Coffee giant Starbucks has named Indian-origin Laxman Narasimhan as its new Chief Executive Officer who will replace Howard Schultz.
Narasimhan will be joining the company on October 1.
Schultz will continue as interim chief until April 2023, after which he will continue as a member of the Starbucks Board of Directors.
Independent Starbucks Board of Director’s chair Mellody Hobson in a statement called Laxman Narasimhan an “inspiring leader”.
“His deep, hands-on experience driving strategic transformations at global consumer-facing businesses makes him the ideal choice to accelerate Starbucks’ growth and capture the opportunities ahead of us,” she added.
Present CEO Howard Schultz said, “When I learned about Laxman’s desire to relocate, it became apparent that he is the right leader to take Starbucks into its next chapter.
“He is uniquely positioned to shape this work and lead the company forward with his partner-centred approach and demonstrated track record of building capabilities and driving growth in both mature and emerging markets,” as quoted by Starbucks.
According to the company, Narasimhan will relocate from London to the Seattle area and join Starbucks as the incoming CEO on October 1.
With this appointment, Narasimhan joins a growing list of Indian-origin CEOs at the helm of US-based global giants, including Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai and Twitter head Parag Agrawal.
Indra Nooyi had served as PepsiCo’s CEO for 12 years before stepping down in 2018.
Narasimhan said he was “humbled” to join the global coffee giant.
Starbucks’ commitment to “uplift humanity through connection and compassion has long distinguished the company, building an unrivalled, globally admired brand that has transformed the way we connect over coffee,” said Narasimhan.
“I am humbled to be joining this iconic company at such a pivotal time, as the Reinvention and investments in the partner and customer experiences position us to meet the changing demands we face today and set us up for an even stronger future,” he said.
Laxman Narasimhan joined Reckitt in September 2019 and was the first external candidate to take the helm at the company since it was launched in 1999.
He also served as the CEO of the company’s Latin America, Europe, and Sub-Saharan Africa operations.
Before this, Narasimhan was a senior partner at McKinsey & Company. He is also a trustee of the Brookings Institution.
The Indian-origin man has also served as a member of the UK Prime Minister’s Build Back Better Council and is a member of Verizon’s Board of Directors.
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