Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson Is Stepping Down After 5 Years

Kevin Johnson is retiring from his post as CEO of Starbucks next month. The coffee chain's founder, Howard Schultz, will step back into the role on an interim basis. Johnson, 61, has served as CEO since 2017, when Shultz was the one relinquishing the role. At the time, Schultz said he was retiring as he floated the idea of challenging former President Donald Trump's reelection campaign by running as an independent candidate. The Starbucks founder's political efforts in 2019 were ultimately short-lived. As for Johnson, he began signaling his intention to step down after 13 years with Starbucks in 2021. There's no indication that the transition back to the brand's founding father is part of a larger shakeup or lingering issues related to the pandemic. In fact, as of last fall, Starbucks showed significant recovery after a precipitous drop in foot traffic and subsequent store closings during the first 18 months of the global health crisis. Still, the company remains hampered by supply chain issues and inflationary pressures. Starbucks also faces challenges from unionization efforts at more than 50 of its U.S. stores. And while it's made a public effort to be more inclusive in its hiring, finding staffers at all levels is as difficult for Starbucks as other service industry brands. Nevertheless, the company added nearly 500 new locations in the first quarter of this year to its worldwide 34,300 stores. Global sales jumped 13% in the first quarter, while U.S. saw an 18% rise in revenues, due in part to higher prices, Starbucks said in its earnings report last month. Those numbers were in line with analysts' expectations. Johnson's legacy Schultz officially returns to the CEO seat on April 4. He's also rejoining the board of directors. For most of Johnson's 13-year association with Starbucks, he primarily served as a director, starting in 2009. In March 2015, he was named Starbucks president and COO, before being elevated to CEO. As an executive, Johnson's experience was far removed from fast food and casual dining. Still, the ecommerce elements that Starbucks has continued to refine, particularly through app-based ordering and rewards programs, has likely been aided by Johnson's position as a tech leader at Microsoft, where he spent 16 years in a variety of executive marketing posts starting in 1992. In between Redmond-based Microsoft and Seattle-based Starbucks, Johnson served as CEO of cloud computing provider Juniper Networks. His current corporate activities are rounded out in his role as director at a real estate company Ten-X's subsidiary, Auction.com. As for his legacy, Johnson will likely be known as a stopgap in Schultz's period of retirement. In announcing his departure, the company touted Johnson's People Positive, Planet Positive and Profit Positive framework. The concept seeks to create "a better world for Starbucks partners, farmers, customers and the communities it serves." Sustainability promises fall short Like most major brands, Starbucks has attempted to position itself as more sustainable in recent years. Earlier this month, the chain pledged to shift away from single-use plastics by piloting reusable cup programs in six markets. By 2025, the company hopes to give “customers easy access to a personal or Starbucks-provided reusable to-go cup for every visit." The company has also offered a vague goal of reducing waste by 50% by 2030, though such pronouncements tend to leave eco-conscious consumers dismissive. Schultz puts 'innovation framework' in place It's not clear how long Schultz will be back in the CEO post. But he does plan to make this stint count as much as his initial one. “When you love something, you have a deep sense of responsibility to help when called. Although I did not plan to return to Starbucks, I know the company must transform once again to meet a new and exciting future where all of our stakeholders mutually flourish,” said Schultz in a statement. As interim CEO, Schultz will focus on setting an innovation framework, while also coaching and onboarding the next permanent CEO of Starbucks. “Our success is not an entitlement. We must continue to earn the trust of our people and our customers every day by how we deliver the Starbucks experience, how we treat each other and how we act as a responsible community member and corporate citizen. With the backdrop of Covid recovery and global unrest, it's critical we set the table for a courageous reimagining and reinvention of the future Starbucks experience for our partners and customers,” Schultz added. Schultz is volunteering his time as interim CEO, and will receive a symbolic salary of $1. As Starbucks Turns 50, It Celebrates the Power of Coffee to Connect in New Ad