Who Is Anand Varadarajan? Starbucks Appoints Ex-Amazon Executive As New Chief Technology Officer

Anand Varadarajan is the newly appointed chief technology officer of Starbucks. The global coffee chain announced on Friday that he will take charge from January 19, as chief executive Brian Niccol moves

ahead with a major technology overhaul in stores to improve labour efficiency.

Varadarajan replaces Deb Hall Lefevre, who stepped down from the role in September. After her exit, Starbucks had named Ningyu Chen as interim CTO. Varadarajan now takes over at a time when the company is focusing on modernising store operations through technology.

Starbucks CEO shared the announcement online, saying Anand Varadarajan will join as executive vice president and CTO from January 19, reporting directly to him. He added that Varadarajan will lead the Starbucks Technology organisation and join the Executive Leadership Team. Outside work, he is an avid runner chasing all seven World Marathon Majors and a coffee lover who starts his day with a tall latte or brewed coffee.

He brings nearly two decades of experience from Amazon, where he worked for 19 years. At the e-commerce giant, he led technology and supply chain operations for its worldwide grocery business. Varadarajan has also previously worked at software firm Oracle, adding to his strong background in large-scale technology systems.

Varadarajan holds a Master of Science in Computer Science from the University of Washington and a Master’s degree in Civil Engineering from Purdue University. He earned his undergraduate degree from the Indian Institute of Technology, building a strong academic foundation across engineering and technology disciplines that has shaped his leadership career in global companies.