Stephen Gillett
Encyclopedia
Stephen Gillett is a technology and business leader currently serving as Chief Information Officer
, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Digital Ventures at Starbucks Coffee Company in Seattle, WA. Gillett was hired by Howard Schultz
as part of the transformation leadership team in 2008. Gillett previously held executive positions at Corbis
, Yahoo and CNET
. He currently lives in the greater Seattle, Washington area.
Gillett was born in Panorama City, CA and grew up in Eugene, Oregon
. He is of Lebanese descent: his father being from Tripoli, Lebanon
. He was a member of the University of Oregon Football team in the late 1990s and attended the 1996 Cotton Bowl Classic.
As of January 2009, Gillett was considered amongst the youngest of the C-Level executives in the Fortune 500
.
In 2005, Gillett was featured on HGTV Curb Appeal in San Francisco.
Gillett is a long-time MMORPG
guild leader most recently in World of Warcraft
.
In 2006, Gillett was recognized as an innovative Guild Master in World of Warcraft by Wired (magazine)
You Play World of Warcraft? You're Hired!
In 2008, Business Weekly of Taiwan and China profiled Gillett and his guild leadership style and profile.
In 2009, Starbucks added Digital Ventures to Gillett's CIO duties.
Gillett was invited to the 2009 Aspen Institute by John Seely Brown
and John Hagel as a young business and technology leader. The program, "Leveraging the Talent-Driven Organization in a Time of Economic Crisis," had Gillett facilitate a discussion: "Structure to Promote the Talent-Driven Organization".
In July 2009, Gillett was named to the Boys & Girls Club of King County board of directors. Also in July, Gillett was named a "40 Under 40 of Seattle & Puget Sound," a regional award program that spotlights the top business leaders under the age of 40.
In March 2010, the Aspen Institute
named Gillett in the 2010 Henry Crown Fellow Program. The Henry Crown Fellowship is designed to engage the next generation of leaders in the challenge of community-spirited leadership. Also in March, Gillett was named a finalist in the Takreem achievement award ceremony held in Beirut
Lebanon.
In October 2010, Fortune (magazine)
ranked Gillett #22 in its "40 under 40" list.
Chief information officer
Chief information officer , or information technology director, is a job title commonly given to the most senior executive in an enterprise responsible for the information technology and computer systems that support enterprise goals...
, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Digital Ventures at Starbucks Coffee Company in Seattle, WA. Gillett was hired by Howard Schultz
Howard Schultz
Howard Schultz is an American business magnate. He is the best known as the chairman and CEO of Starbucks and a former owner of the Seattle SuperSonics...
as part of the transformation leadership team in 2008. Gillett previously held executive positions at Corbis
Corbis
Corbis Corporation is an American company, based in Seattle, Washington, that licenses the rights to photographs, footage and other visual media...
, Yahoo and CNET
CNET
CNET is a tech media website that publishes news articles, blogs, and podcasts on technology and consumer electronics. Originally founded in 1994 by Halsey Minor and Shelby Bonnie, it was the flagship brand of CNET Networks and became a brand of CBS Interactive through CNET Networks' acquisition...
. He currently lives in the greater Seattle, Washington area.
Gillett was born in Panorama City, CA and grew up in Eugene, Oregon
Eugene, Oregon
Eugene is the second largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon and the seat of Lane County. It is located at the south end of the Willamette Valley, at the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast.As of the 2010 U.S...
. He is of Lebanese descent: his father being from Tripoli, Lebanon
Tripoli, Lebanon
Tripoli is the largest city in northern Lebanon and the second-largest city in Lebanon. Situated 85 km north of the capital Beirut, Tripoli is the capital of the North Governorate and the Tripoli District. Geographically located on the east of the Mediterranean, the city's history dates back...
. He was a member of the University of Oregon Football team in the late 1990s and attended the 1996 Cotton Bowl Classic.
As of January 2009, Gillett was considered amongst the youngest of the C-Level executives in the Fortune 500
Fortune 500
The Fortune 500 is an annual list compiled and published by Fortune magazine that ranks the top 500 U.S. closely held and public corporations as ranked by their gross revenue after adjustments made by Fortune to exclude the impact of excise taxes companies collect. The list includes publicly and...
.
In 2005, Gillett was featured on HGTV Curb Appeal in San Francisco.
Gillett is a long-time MMORPG
MMORPG
Massively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
guild leader most recently in World of Warcraft
World of Warcraft
World of Warcraft is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game by Blizzard Entertainment. It is the fourth released game set in the fantasy Warcraft universe, which was first introduced by Warcraft: Orcs & Humans in 1994...
.
In 2006, Gillett was recognized as an innovative Guild Master in World of Warcraft by Wired (magazine)
Wired (magazine)
Wired is a full-color monthly American magazine and on-line periodical, published since January 1993, that reports on how new and developing technology affects culture, the economy, and politics...
You Play World of Warcraft? You're Hired!
In 2008, Business Weekly of Taiwan and China profiled Gillett and his guild leadership style and profile.
In 2009, Starbucks added Digital Ventures to Gillett's CIO duties.
Gillett was invited to the 2009 Aspen Institute by John Seely Brown
John Seely Brown
John Seely Brown is a researcher who specializes in organizational studies with a particular bent towards the organizational implications of computer-supported activities....
and John Hagel as a young business and technology leader. The program, "Leveraging the Talent-Driven Organization in a Time of Economic Crisis," had Gillett facilitate a discussion: "Structure to Promote the Talent-Driven Organization".
In July 2009, Gillett was named to the Boys & Girls Club of King County board of directors. Also in July, Gillett was named a "40 Under 40 of Seattle & Puget Sound," a regional award program that spotlights the top business leaders under the age of 40.
In March 2010, the Aspen Institute
Aspen Institute
The Aspen Institute is an international nonprofit organization founded in 1950 as the Aspen Institute of Humanistic Studies. The organization is dedicated to "fostering enlightened leadership, the appreciation of timeless ideas and values, and open-minded dialogue on contemporary issues." The...
named Gillett in the 2010 Henry Crown Fellow Program. The Henry Crown Fellowship is designed to engage the next generation of leaders in the challenge of community-spirited leadership. Also in March, Gillett was named a finalist in the Takreem achievement award ceremony held in Beirut
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
Lebanon.
In October 2010, Fortune (magazine)
Fortune (magazine)
Fortune is a global business magazine published by Time Inc. Founded by Henry Luce in 1930, the publishing business, consisting of Time, Life, Fortune, and Sports Illustrated, grew to become Time Warner. In turn, AOL grew as it acquired Time Warner in 2000 when Time Warner was the world's largest...
ranked Gillett #22 in its "40 under 40" list.