Who is Laxman Narasimhan? 5 things to know about new Indian-origin Starbucks CEO   

The American coffee giant Starbucks on Thursday appointed Indian-origin Laxman Narasimhan as its next Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Narasimhan will replace Howard Schultz, who is the interim CEO of the company. Hours after the announcement, Mahindra Group chairman Anand Mahindra said that appointments of Indian-origin CEOs were now an unstoppable trend. "What was initially a trickle of water has turned into a Tsunami. The appointment of Indian-origin CEOs at the world’s most iconic companies is now an unstoppable trend. International boardrooms consider them to be almost ‘safe’ leadership bets," he said. 
 
5 things to know about Laxman Narasimhan, new Starbucks CEO 
 
- Narasimhan has nearly 30 years of experience of leading and advising global consumer-facing brands. Most recently, he served as the chief executive officer of Reckitt, a FTSE-12 listed multinational consumer health, hygiene and nutrition company.
 
- Before this, Narasimhan held various leadership roles at PepsiCo, including as global chief commercial officer, where he was responsible for the company’s long-term strategy and digital capabilities. He also served as CEO of the company’s Latin America, Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa operations. He was also the CFO of PepsiCo Americas Foods. 
 
- Prior to PepsiCo, Narasimhan was a senior partner at McKinsey, where he focused on its consumer, retail and technology practices in the US, Asia and India and led the firm’s thinking on the future of retail.
 
- Narasimhan is also a trustee of the Brookings Institution, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He has also served as a member of the UK Prime Minister's Build Back Better Council, and is a member of Verizon’s Board of Directors. 
 
- He holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the College of Engineering, University of Pune, India. He has master's degree in German and International Studies from The Lauder Institute at The University of Pennsylvania, and an MBA in Finance from The Wharton School of The University of Pennsylvania.
 
Starbucks interim CEO Schultz said that Narasimhan was the right leader to take the company into its next chapter. "He is uniquely positioned to shape this work and lead the company forward with his partner-centered approach and demonstrated track record of building capabilities and driving growth in both mature and emerging markets," he said. 
 
Founded in 1971, Starbucks today has over 34,000 stores worldwide.