--- title: "Starbucks plans to hire thousands of new ‘coffeehouse coach’ roles" url: https://burnaze.com/article/f859812d-14e9-4694-834c-380e2a7c4967 source: "Restaurant Business" original_url: https://restaurantbusinessonline.com/workforce/starbucks-plans-hire-thousands-new-coffeehouse-coach-roles category: "Coffee & tea" industry: "Restaurants" segment: "Coffee & tea" published: 2026-06-23T12:31:24.000Z modified: 2026-10-31T14:58:02.482Z image: https://cdn.informaconnect.com/platform/files/public/2026-06/background/Starbucks%20remodel%201.jpg?VersionId=t1GVaXMgZ3JWGwHnNqU9q9vZh.oNpQrJ --- # Starbucks plans to hire thousands of new ‘coffeehouse coach’ roles **TL;DR:** Starbucks plans to hire thousands of new full-time in-store leaders, called coffeehouse coaches, to improve store operations and provide leadership development opportunities. The company will hire 300 coffeehouse coaches this month, with 90% of the roles expected to be filled internally. *originally published in Restaurant Business on 2026-06-23. [Read the original](https://restaurantbusinessonline.com/workforce/starbucks-plans-hire-thousands-new-coffeehouse-coach-roles).* ## Key facts - Starbucks to hire 300 coffeehouse coaches this month - 90% of roles to be filled internally - Test locations saw improved customer experiences ## Story Starbucks plans to hire thousands of new, full-time, in-store leaders this year in a bid to improve the operations of its stores and provide more leadership development opportunities for its workforce. The company said on Tuesday that it will hire 300 of the full-time “coffeehouse coach” roles this month, with more to be hired later this year. Eventually, the company plans to have such roles in the bulk of its 10,000 company-operated shops in the U.S. Ninety percent of the roles are expected to be hired from within, which is part of the chain’s plans to provide more opportunities for career growth for baristas. ## New leadership roles For the Seattle-based company, the coffeehouse coach role is designed to provide more leadership inside its coffee shops throughout the day, and not just when store managers are on site. Starbucks announced the plan last year and started testing the role at 62 locations in six markets starting in October. In its announcement on Tuesday, the company said the test led to improved customer experiences and led to more consistent business performance in the stores that employed the coaches. The company said that test locations had better execution. Existing leaders had more capacity for planning and development tasks and that store managers were able to “disconnect outside of working hours” because they had leadership in the store during those periods. The company also said that hourly workers, which Starbucks calls “partners,” were better supported and prepared, “leading to stronger, more consistent customer connection.” “The biggest impact I’m seeing is my partners have the support they need across all dayparts where the coffeehouse coach ensures the store is providing the best customer and partner experience,” Melissa C., a coffeehouse leader at a store in Rio Grande Valley, Texas, said in a message Starbucks posted on its website. ## Career growth opportunities Starbucks said that more than 90% of the coffeehouse coach roles in test markets were internal hires. The company believes that the roles will provide clearer paths to leadership for baristas who want to make a career out of Starbucks. “Serving as a coffeehouse coach has expanded my perspective on leadership and career growth at Starbucks,” Tim L., a coffeehouse coach in Rio Grande Valley, said in a statement. “Creating opportunities for ongoing support and development has helped strengthen consistency across the team while also building trust and engagement.” ## Business turnaround efforts Starbucks has made considerable investment inside its coffee shops in its bid to turn the business around. The chain has hired more workers for its stores while allowing managers flexibility for deploying those workers during busier periods. It is also in the process of remodeling thousands of stores across the system to make them more inviting for in-store customers. The chain has also improved the functionality of its mobile app, providing a governor that limits order backups during peak periods. Customers are also now able to choose when they get their orders when they use the app. The changes have generated strong results, including 7.1% same-store sales growth in the first three months of 2026. *Members help make our journalism possible. Become a Restaurant Business member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.* ## Entities - QSR (sector) - Starbucks (company) - Restaurant Business (publication) - leadership development (topic) - career growth (topic) - store operations (topic) - business turnaround (topic) - Melissa C. (person) - Tim L. (person) --- Originally reported by Restaurant Business (https://restaurantbusinessonline.com/workforce/starbucks-plans-hire-thousands-new-coffeehouse-coach-roles). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/f859812d-14e9-4694-834c-380e2a7c4967).