Senior Vice President (retired), Starbucks Coffee Company
Healdsburg, CA

Howard Wollner DCI 2018_Sept 2021Howard is a retired Senior Vice President of Starbucks Coffee Company. He held numerous leadership positions during his tenure at the company, helping to build the company from its early stage of operations into an iconic brand and global business. Prior to joining Starbucks, Howard worked in employee benefits consulting for a national employee benefits consulting practice. He was the president of the Seattle office.

He now provides consulting and advisory services to non-profits, retailers, manufacturers and restaurant groups in the areas of organizational design, corporate culture development and strategic planning. Howard is a Public Director on the board of NPR Inc. in Washington D.C. currently serving as Chair of the Governance Committee. He is past Chairman of the NPR Foundation and continues as a Trustee on the NPR Foundation board.

Howard has served on the boards of IslandWood, a nationally recognized environmental learning center on Bainbridge Island, WA, from 2002-2009, and is an Emeritus Board member; the Seattle Foundation (2007-2010); and the Healdsburg Jazz Festival (2009-2010). He most recently served for 9 years on the board of the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco.

Howard was a dialogue partner on the book, Going to Scale with New School Designs: Reinventing High School.

Howard was a Fellow at Stanford University in the Distinguished Careers Institute from January 2018 to June 2019. Subsequent to his time as a DCI Fellow Howard co-founded Shine On SF.org, a fiscally sponsored non-profit in partnership with the City and County of San Francisco, committed to restoring civic pride and creating a clean, cared-for San Francisco.

He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Georgetown University and a Master of Business Administration degree from Seattle University.

Partner: Barbara Van Wollner