TL;DR
Sweetgreen has appointed Cindy Olsen as its SVP, Chief Strategy Officer, a newly created role. Olsen will report to Jonathan Neman, CEO of Sweetgreen, and oversee corporate strategy and strategic communications.
Sweetgreen announced the appointment of Cindy Olsen as the Company’s SVP, Chief Strategy Officer, a newly created role reporting to Jonathan Neman, Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. Olsen will play a critical role in accelerating the Sweet Growth Transformation Plan by translating Sweetgreen’s strategic priorities into long-term value creation.
“Cindy is known for her ability to drive profitable growth through a disciplined approach to strategic decision-making,” said Jonathan Neman, Co-Founder and CEO of Sweetgreen. “She is the perfect addition to the executive team at this juncture in our transformation, with deep consumer and restaurant industry experience and a track record of bringing rigor to investment decisions.”
“I’m thrilled to join Sweetgreen and its mission of connecting people to real food. I’ve long admired the brand and see a significant opportunity to increase enterprise value,” said Cindy Olsen, SVP, Chief Strategy Officer of Sweetgreen. “I look forward to working alongside others on the leadership team to accelerate the transformation plan driving near-term execution while building long-term profitable growth.”
In this role, Cindy will oversee corporate strategy and strategic communications. Her role bridges strategy, finance, and operations, with accountability for turning strategic priorities into measurable outcomes and clear communication for both internal and external stakeholders.
Cindy joins Sweetgreen from Chipotle Mexican Grill, where she served as Head of Investor Relations and Strategy. At Chipotle, Cindy worked closely with the executive team to evolve the long-term strategy and connect it to value creation, bridging the priorities of team members, guests, and shareholders. Prior to Chipotle, Cindy served as Managing Director and Equity Research Analyst at Nuveen and at Franklin Templeton, where she spent a total of 17 years covering public and private companies across the consumer sector, giving her a unique investor’s perspective on what makes exceptional brands truly enduring.
In this story
This story was originally published by Danny Klein in QSR Magazine on May 26, 2026. Burnaze summarizes and links to the original reporting.
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