[Hiring] account director, Regional Grocery – North America Licensed Coffeehouses @Starbucks Coffee Company

Role Description

The account director, regional grocery – North America Licensed Coffeehouses (USLC) role contributes to business success by leading the strategy and execution of key licensee partnerships within the Target/Regional Grocery archetype across the United States and Canada. This role is responsible for driving strong business performance, strengthening licensee relationships, and ensuring consistent, high-quality customer and partner experiences across a diverse portfolio of regional grocery operators.

This leader oversees a team of account managers and serves as the primary steward of these partnerships—balancing relationship management, operational execution, and growth opportunities—while connecting licensee needs with enterprise priorities.

As an account director, regional grocery you will…

• Lead a team of account managers responsible for the day-to-day management of regional grocery licensees, providing coaching, direction, and performance oversight to drive consistent outcomes.
• Own the health and performance of the regional grocery portfolio, identifying opportunities to accelerate growth, improve operational execution, and strengthen partner and customer experience.
• Build and sustain strong licensee partnerships, acting as a trusted advisor and primary point of escalation while aligning on mutual goals, expectations, and long-term success.
• Drive business reviews and performance routines with licensees, using data and insights to identify trends, diagnose challenges, and implement action plans.
• Ensure operational excellence and brand standards, partnering with cross-functional teams and enablement resources to support compliance, readiness, and continuous improvement.
• Translate enterprise strategies into actionable plans for licensees, ensuring successful execution of programs, promotions, and key initiatives.
• Partner across licensed coffeehouse functions (strategy, enablement, operations, and product) to bring forward field insights and ensure solutions are practical and scalable.
• Champion consistency within the Target/Regional Grocery archetype, helping define and scale best practices across similar licensee models.
• Navigate complexity across US and Canada markets, ensuring alignment with regional nuances while maintaining enterprise standards.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in account management, relationship management, or business development, ideally within retail, grocery, or licensed/franchise environments.
• Strong ability to lead and develop high-performing teams, including coaching and performance management.
• Demonstrated success managing complex, multi-unit or partner-operated businesses.
• Executive-level communication and influencing skills, with the ability to build trust and drive alignment with internal and external stakeholders.
• Experience using data and insights to drive business performance and decision-making.
• Ability to balance relationship management with operational rigor and accountability.
• Strong cross-functional collaboration skills within a matrixed organization.
• Experience working across North American markets (US and Canada) is a plus.
• 8+ years of experience leading accounts, partnerships, or large-scale business segments.

Benefits

• Access to medical, dental, vision, basic and supplemental life insurance, and other voluntary insurance benefits.
• Short-term and long-term disability.
• Paid parental leave.
• Family expansion reimbursement.
• Paid vacation from date of hire.
• Sick time (accrued at 1 hour for every 25 hours worked).
• Eight paid holidays and two personal days per year.
• Participation in a 401(k) retirement plan with employer match.
• Discounted company stock program (S.I.P.).
• Starbucks equity program (Bean Stock).
• Incentivized emergency savings and financial well-being tools.
• 100% upfront tuition coverage for a first-time bachelor’s degree through Arizona State University’s online program via the Starbucks College Achievement Plan.
• Student loan management resources and access to other educational opportunities.
• Access to backup care and DACA reimbursement.