New York: Starbucks has appointed Anand Varadarajan as its new executive vice president and chief technology officer (CTO), the company announced. He will lead global technology operations and join the Executive Leadership Team, reporting directly to Chief Executive Officer Brian Niccol, Starbucks stated. Varadarajan succeeds Deb Hall Lefevre, who retired in September.
The appointment marks a significant step in Starbucks’ efforts to strengthen its technology and digital capabilities. “I’m proud to share that Anand Varadarajan will join us as executive vice president and CTO. He’ll lead the Starbucks Technology organisation and report directly to me,” Niccol said in a statement, quoted by CNBC. Varadarajan will officially take charge on January 19.
An alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras, Varadarajan has an extensive academic background. He earned a master’s degree in civil engineering from Purdue University and another in computer science from the University of Washington. “My time at IIT laid the foundation for my career in technology and engineering,” Varadarajan said in conversation with TechCrunch.
At Amazon, Varadarajan built large-scale, customer-focused technology platforms. Starbucks highlighted his experience in developing secure, reliable systems and scaling technology to support operational excellence while keeping customers at the centre. “Anand brings deep experience in creating technology systems that can handle large-scale operations while remaining customer-centric,” Starbucks said in a company statement, quoted by Business Standard.
