Name: Anand Varadarajan
New title: Chief technology officer, Starbucks
Previous title: Vice president, worldwide grocery technology and supply chain, Amazon
Starbucks is hiring Anand Varadarajan to replace outgoing Chief Technology Officer Deb Hall Lefevre, CEO Brian Niccol announced Friday. Varadarajan will start with the coffee chain on Jan. 19.
Lefevre’s departure in September followed more than three years with the coffee chain, a tumultuous period that saw the chain adopt and abandon a variety of tech plays. For example, in 2022 the chain launched a marketplace for non-fungible tokens — digital badges then in vogue as potential loyalty play — only to shutter it 18 months later. After a long period of emphasizing mobile-order-and-pay, Starbucks closed down its mobile-only stores earlier this year as part of a broader return to on-premise emphasis.
Varadarajan joins the chain from Amazon, where he spent nearly two decades “building technology that puts customers first and helps teams move with speed and agility,” according to Niccol’s announcement.
One of the most substantial tech changes at Starbucks recently has been the development of a mobile-order sequencing algorithm intended to reduce operational bottlenecks and improve cafe speed of service.
In a recent discussion at the Wall Street Journal CEO Forum, Niccol said that Starbucks planned to subordinate technological innovation to the customer experience.
The announcement is thematically similar, with Niccol noting Varadarajan’s time building tech focused on improving the customer experience.
“He knows how to create systems that are reliable and secure, drive operational excellence and scale solutions that keep customers at the center,” Niccol said.
Varadarajan held responsibility for tech at both Whole Foods and Amazon Fresh; the tech giant spent much of 2025 deepening the integration between its Whole Foods unit and the rest of its tech ecosystem.
