Restaurants
10 Starbucks operations leaders
These ten current and former Starbucks operations leaders have run regions, markets and operations programs as regional directors, vice presidents and senior vice presidents. A reader can learn how a large coffeehouse chain manages district managers, store performance and multi-store results across a region.
Professionals to explore
01—10Brad Nielsen
LinkedInExperience: Regional Director of Operations · Starbucks
Regional Director of Operations at Starbucks since April 2013; his profile describes responsibility for 107 retail Starbucks locations in Utah and Arizona, with full P&L responsibility and all real estate and development activities. He was previously Vice President of Corporate Operations (2011–2013) and Vice President of Operations for Cold Stone Creamery (2004–2011) at Kahala Brands.
Carla Ruffin
LinkedInExperience: Regional Director of Operations, New York Metro · Starbucks
Former Regional Director of Operations, New York Metro at Starbucks (2014–2019). Her profile describes an award-winning regional operations director with 15 years of experience transforming underperforming areas for multi-unit restaurants. Her other Starbucks roles include Project Manager, Implementation (2007–2009) and District Manager (2004–2007).
Catherine Porter
LinkedInExperience: Regional Director of Operations · Starbucks
Former Regional Director of Operations at Starbucks (2023–2025), where her profile says she led a 100+ store urban market in San Francisco and nine District Managers, stabilizing operations during the post-COVID recovery and moving the market up from bottom-quartile performance. Her other Starbucks roles include Regional Vice President of Operations (interim) (2022–2023), regional director (2010–2022) and District Operations Manager (2005–2010).
Jessica Borton
LinkedInExperience: Vice President Operations Implementation · Starbucks
Vice President Operations Implementation at Starbucks since October 2025. She was Regional Vice President Retail Operations at Starbucks (2023–2025), a role her profile places in Northern California and the PNW, and her other Starbucks roles include Regional Vice President of Retail Operations, TLA (2022–2023), Regional Director of Operations (2015–2022) and District Manager (2006–2015).
JP Fesperman
LinkedInExperience: Regional Director of Operations · Starbucks
Regional Director of Operations at Starbucks since September 2024, where his profile says he supports 120 coffeehouses over 3 states. His other Starbucks roles include Regional Operations Coach (2023–2024) and District Manager (2018–2023), and he was previously District Manager at Aramark (2007–2018).
Lilia Tuero
LinkedInExperience: Regional Director Of Operations · Starbucks
Regional Director Of Operations at Starbucks since April 2020, a role her profile places in South Florida. Her other Starbucks roles include Director Operations Services (2016–2020), Regional Director of Operations (2012–2016), which her profile places in Seattle, and Regional Operations Manager (2009–2012).
Mike Ezzo, MBA
LinkedInExperience: Regional Director of Operations · Starbucks
Regional Director of Operations at Starbucks since April 2024, where his profile says he leads 9 District Managers overseeing 90+ stores that generate $250M+ in annual sales across Southern Ohio, Northern Kentucky and Southern Indiana. He was previously Senior Director Region Operations at Sally Beauty (2023–2024) and Director of Store Operations at GameStop (2022–2023).
Mike Okamoto
LinkedInExperience: Regional Director of Operations · Starbucks
Regional Director of Operations at Starbucks since April 2025, a role his profile headline places in Southern California; the headline also calls him a 17.25-year Starbucks operator and former Director, Regional Operations for Orange County and Hawaii. His other Starbucks roles include Director of Business Operations, U.S. (2022–2025), Regional Vice President (Interim) (2023–2024) and Director, Regional Operations (2021–2022).
Stacia Durree
LinkedInExperience: Regional Vice President of Operations · Starbucks
Regional Vice President of Operations at Starbucks since October 2024, a role her profile places in the Pacific Northwest. Her other Starbucks roles include Director of Business Operations (2023–2024), Regional Director of Operations (2019–2023), Regional Operations Coach (2019) and District Manager (2014–2019).
Tom Ferguson
LinkedInExperience: Senior Vice President, International Operations · Starbucks
Former Senior Vice President, International Operations at Starbucks (2018–2022), described on his profile as the primary Starbucks operations executive for market presidents in international markets, leading both licensed and company-owned models across 80 markets. His other Starbucks roles include President Latin America & Caribbean (2022–2025) and Senior Vice President, US Retail West Division and US Fraud and P&AP (2014–2018).
Choose the right perspective
Match the person's scope to your question, since a regional director of operations can speak to running a set of districts day to day while vice presidents speak to setting operating priorities across many regions or markets. If your model depends on licensed stores, company-owned stores or international markets, ask each person which of those their roles covered.
Questions to take into the conversation
- 01How do you set targets and coach district managers when stores in the same region perform very differently?
- 02Which operating metrics did you review each week, and what actions did they trigger?
- 03How did you roll out a new operating program or store standard across a region without hurting service?
About this directory
This is a professional research starting point based on business profile data retrieved on . Titles and companies reflect that source snapshot and may describe past or present roles. Check the linked profiles for current details. Inclusion does not imply Instant Expert membership or availability.
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