Starbucks new CEO Laxman Narasimhan: Starbucks on Thursday named Laxman Narasimhan as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the cafe giant. Narasimhan will join the company on 1st October but assume his new role from April next year. 

Before assuming the new leadership he will work with Starbucks interim CEO and founder Howard Schultz. He will also be on the Board of Directors of Starbucks.

As Starbucks new CEO Laxman Narasimhan joins the club of Indian-origin CEOs in foreign-based global giants there are a lot of things still unknown about him. So, let us look at how his journey has been reaching Starbucks.

A three-decade-long career

With a three-decade experience, Narasimhan is believed to be a master in the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) industry. His core strengths are in operations and finance, and his ability to connect management and frontline teams.

19 years at Mckinsey and Co

After completing an engineering degree in mechanical engineering from the College of Engineering, Pune, Laxman Narasimhan joined Mckinsey and Co in 1993. He served as Director and location manager for the company for the New Delhi office till 2012. 

7 years at Pepsico

Working for 19 years at various positions for Mckinsey, Narasimhan finally left the company in 2012 and joined Pepsico. 

He had a portfolio of working as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Pepsico Americas Foods, and Chief Commercial Officer (CCO). Later, he served as CEO of Pepsico’s Latin America, Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa operations.

3 years at Reckitt Benckiser

In 2019, Narasimhan left Pepsico after serving in various roles for seven years.

He then took the leadership of British healthcare and consumer goods company Reckitt Benckiser which owns popular household brands such as Dettol, Lysol, Harpic, Durex, Veet and Strepsils, in September 2019. 

After having served for three years as the company’s Global CEO, the 55-year-old engineer will now be leading as Starbucks new CEO, a US-based coffeehouse chain. 

Educational and personal life

Starbucks new CEO Laxman Narasimhan holds American citizenship. He is married and blessed with two children, and lives in London (England). He will relocate from London to Seattle (America) and join Starbucks. 

Apart from his mechanical engineering degree he also holds an MA degree in German and international studies from the Lauder Institute, University of Pennsylvania. 

Narasimhan has also completed MBA in Finance from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.