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Starbucks hires first chief technology officer as mobile focus continues to grow

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By Natalie Mortimer | N/A

October 7, 2015 | 2 min read

Starbucks has named Adobe's senior vice president and chief information officer Gerri Martin-Flickinger its first ever chief technology officer as it looks to tighten its grip around mobile marekting.

The Seattle founded coffee brand said Martin-Flickinger will "champion the next phase of growth and innovation" at a time when Starbucks is investing heavily in digital technology. Since rolling out mobile payments in the US two years ago the method now represents 20 per cent of all in-store sales there, and the brand is now extending the capability into other markets.

Kevin Johnson, Starbucks president and chief operating officer said Martin-Flickinger will take the coffee company's mobile capabilities "to the next level".

"As we continue to shape our global technology agenda at Starbucks, we needed leadership talent with deep experience in cloud, big data analytics, mobile and security to take us to the next level. As we searched for that leader, Gerri stood out as someone who has years of experience in Silicon Valley and brings deep management and technical expertise to help us navigate the future".

Martin-Flickinger will report to Johnson and serve as a member ofStarbucks senior leadership team when she takes up the role on 2 November. She added: "“Starbucks is on the cusp of entering into its next phase of technology leadership, and I am honored to be working alongside Starbucks strong IT management team to map out our long-term strategy.”

Before joining Adobe, Martin-Flickinger was chief information officer of VeriSign, where she oversaw corporate information technology services for the company's 60 offices worldwide. Prior to VeriSign, she held the same position at Network Associates, and McAfee Associates.

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