Tressie Lieberman has recently been appointed as the executive vice president and global chief brand officer at Starbucks. Lieberman previously served as the chief marketing officer at Yahoo before joining Starbucks, where she will be reporting to CEO Brian Niccol. Niccol, who was previously the CEO of Chipotle, has a gameplan to reposition Starbucks’ brand amidst declining sales by focusing on the company’s premium coffee offerings. Lieberman’s role at Starbucks will encompass marketing, product development, digital strategies, creative initiatives, and data analytics.
As part of his strategy at Starbucks, Niccol is working on reintroducing the company to consumers and leveraging its strong brand image. Several executives have left the company under Niccol’s leadership, and Starbucks is also reorganizing its team structure to create clear accountability for the look and feel of its stores. Sara Trilling, executive vice president and president of Starbucks North America, will be receiving new direct reports to ensure a cohesive approach to store concepts, designs, and development. The company is also combining its Global Communications and Corporate Affairs teams under the leadership of Dominic Carr to streamline communication efforts.
Francois Vigneault, the co-founder and former CEO of Seattle biotech startup Shape Therapeutics, has stepped down from his role and been replaced by Chief Scientific Officer David Huss as interim CEO. Vigneault expressed his pride in the work done at Shape Therapeutics and his excitement to pursue new challenges. The startup, which focuses on RNA editing technologies, signed a significant deal with Roche in 2021 to support the development of gene therapies for neurodegenerative diseases. This leadership change marks a new chapter for Shape Therapeutics as they continue to innovate in the biotech industry.
Seattle startup Read AI has recently brought on Kate Reinmiller as vice president of operations and Karin Rodriguez as principal recruiter to support its growth trajectory. Using artificial intelligence, Read AI generates meeting summaries that include key topics, action items, questions, and video highlights. Reinmiller’s background includes roles as chief operating officer and co-founder at various tech companies, while Rodriguez has experience working with prominent organizations such as GoDaddy and Wyze Labs. Their addition to the team signifies a pivotal moment in Read AI’s expansion in the AI meeting summary space.
Alberto Grande has been appointed as the new head of marketing at Seattle startup DevZero, which focuses on cloud-based coding solutions for developers. Grande brings with him experience from his tenure as vice president of marketing at X-Team. Last year, DevZero raised $26 million in funding to support its growth and development efforts. With Grande leading the marketing team, DevZero is poised to make further strides in the cloud coding industry. Overall, these leadership appointments and strategic moves within Seattle’s startup and tech ecosystem reflect the ongoing evolution and innovation in the region’s business landscape.
