Neal Mohan
STARBUCKSAbout Neal Mohan
Neal Mohan (age 51) is an independent director of Starbucks Corporation, serving since 2024. He is Chief Executive Officer of YouTube (since February 2023), previously Chief Product Officer at YouTube (2015–2023), and earlier Senior Vice President of Display & Video Ads at Google (2008–2015) and Senior Vice President of Strategy & Product Development at DoubleClick (2005–2008). He holds an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business (Arjay Miller Scholar) and a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University, bringing deep product, technology, marketing and trust & safety expertise to the board .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube (Google) | CEO | Feb 2023 – Present | Leads a platform with >2B users; focus on product, UX, trust & safety |
| YouTube (Google) | Chief Product Officer | 2015 – Feb 2023 | Responsible for products, UX, trust & safety across platforms |
| SVP, Display & Video Ads | 2008 – 2015 | Led ad products for YouTube, Google Display Network, AdSense, AdMob, DoubleClick | |
| DoubleClick | SVP, Strategy & Product Development | 2005 – 2008 | Built strategic plan, grew business; helped pioneer digital media; led sale to Google and integration |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 23andMe Holding Co. | Director | 2021 – 2024 | Former public company board service |
| Stitch Fix, Inc. | Director | 2020 – 2023 | Former public company board service |
| Council on Foreign Relations | Member | N/A | Policy and global affairs network |
| The Paley Center for Media | Board of Trustees | N/A | Media/communications governance |
| Stanford GSB Advisory Council | Member | N/A | Academic advisory role |
Board Governance
- Committee assignments: Nominating & Corporate Governance Committee member (not chair); the committee met 7 times in FY2024 .
- Committee scope: Oversees board leadership/membership, governance processes, director compensation for independent directors, corporate political contributions/expenditures, and recommendations on shareholder proposals .
- Independence: The board determined all director nominees except the CEO/Chair are independent; Neal Mohan is independent under Nasdaq rules .
- Attendance: In FY2024, the board held 16 meetings and each incumbent director attended at least 75% of board and committee meetings while serving .
- Board service limits: Full-time employees of a public company may serve on no more than one other public company board in addition to Starbucks; audit committee service limits also apply .
Fixed Compensation
SBUX’s FY2024 Plan Year (Mar 2024–Mar 2025) non-employee director pay structure emphasizes equity; directors may elect cash or RSUs for retainers.
| Type | Amount | How Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Annual retainer | $130,000 | Cash or fully-vested RSUs, at director’s election |
| Equity award | $180,000 | Fully-vested RSUs |
| Lead Independent Director additional retainer | $185,000 | Cash or fully-vested RSUs |
| Committee chair retainers | $30,000 (Audit); $20,000 (Comp, Impact, Nominating/Gov) | Cash or fully-vested RSUs |
Neal Mohan FY2024 actual:
| Item | Amount ($) |
|---|---|
| Fees Earned or Paid in Cash | — |
| Stock Awards (RSUs) | 373,602 (includes RSUs granted Jan 16, 2024 and Mar 13, 2024) |
| Option Awards | — |
| Total | 373,602 |
Performance Compensation
| Element | Detail |
|---|---|
| Performance-based equity | None; directors do not receive performance-based equity awards. Annual director RSUs vest immediately at grant . |
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company | Role | Dates | Potential Interlocks / Conflicts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 23andMe Holding Co. | Director | 2021–2024 | None disclosed with Starbucks |
| Stitch Fix, Inc. | Director | 2020–2023 | None disclosed with Starbucks |
| Related party transactions | N/A | FY2024 | Starbucks disclosed only aircraft-related arrangements for CEO transitions; no related person transactions involving Neal Mohan were reported . |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Technology and product leadership (YouTube, Google, DoubleClick) with focus on digital platforms, trust & safety, and user experience .
- Senior leadership, global operations, brand marketing, and public company board experience; skills mapped include technology (TEC), senior leadership (SNR), public company governance (PUB), finance (FIN), international (INT), human capital (HCM), diversity (DIV), and board experience (BRD) .
Equity Ownership
| Holding Type | Amount |
|---|---|
| Shares | — |
| Options (exercisable within 60 days) | — |
| Restricted Stock Units | — |
| Deferred Stock Units | 4,153 |
| Total Beneficial Ownership | 4,153 (<1% of shares outstanding) |
- Director stock ownership guidelines: Non-employee directors must own at least 5x the annual retainer ($650,000) in Starbucks stock; all current non-employee directors are in compliance or on target .
- Hedging/pledging: Prohibited by Insider Trading Policy; no current executive officer or director has pledged Starbucks shares .
Governance Assessment
- Independence and conflicts: Mohan is independent; Starbucks disclosed no related person transactions involving him in FY2024, limiting conflict risk from his external roles .
- Committee effectiveness: As Nominating/Governance member, Mohan participates in oversight of board composition, director compensation, political spending oversight, and shareholder proposal recommendations—key levers for governance quality and investor alignment .
- Attendance and engagement: Board/committee attendance thresholds were met broadly in FY2024; the Nominating/Governance committee met 7 times, suggesting active governance engagement .
- Ownership alignment: Equity-heavy director pay and stringent ownership guidelines (5x retainer) support alignment; Mohan uses RSUs and DSUs, consistent with policy .
- Time commitment risk: As a full-time CEO of YouTube, Mohan is subject to Starbucks’ board service limits for full-time executives (Starbucks plus no more than one other public company), mitigating overboarding concerns; prior public board roles concluded in 2023–2024 .
- Monitoring focus: Given Mohan’s leadership at YouTube/Alphabet, investors should monitor for any material business relationships between Starbucks and Alphabet/Google that could require related party review; none were disclosed for FY2024 .