Is Starbucks’s New CEO Really Going to Fly to Seattle 3 Times A Week?

Love it or hate it, Starbucks has been a major part of the Washington State economy. What the company does affects us beyond the coffee shop - so when Starbucks announced on August 13 that it was hiring Brian Niccol, former CEO of Chipotle, as its new CEO, heads turned.

While some talking heads have been focused on Niccol's management philosophy and previous work with Chipotle, others have turned their eyes to the employment offer letter from Starbucks. After looking past Niccol's salary ($1.6 million) and signing bonus ($10 million), critics have found something wild to latch on to.

New Starbucks CEO will not be required to move to Seattle

The first point of contention in Niccol's offer letter is his "working location." More specifically, the new CEO will not be required to relocate to Starbucks's headquarters in Seattle. Instead, the clause states, "You agree to commute from your residence to the Company’s headquarters (and engage in other business travel) as is required to perform your duties and responsibilities."

That might not be such a big deal if Niccol lived in Spokane or Portland - but he lives in Newport Beach, California. And Starbucks has a hybrid work week, where employees are expected to be at the office three days a week.

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How will Brian Niccol commute to Seattle weekly in his position as CEO?

As anyone would expect, Starbucks has a corporate jet - and of course the CEO gets to use it. But the offer letter states that Niccol may use it for:

• business-related travel in accordance with the Company’s travel policy
• travel between his city of residence and the Company’s headquarters in Seattle, Washington
• his personal travel in accordance with the Company’s policies

This fact, combined with Niccol keeping residence in Newport Beach, has led to a new talking point about Starbucks's new CEO: that he will "supercommute" 1,000 miles, three days a week, on the company's private jet.

Will Starbucks send their CEO via jet California to Washington three times a week?

It'd certainly look bad for Starbucks, a corporation that has sworn to sustainability and reducing its carbon footprint, if they were using a corporate jet to whisk their CEO back and forth half of the week just to go to office. It honestly sounds rather exhausting for everyone involved, too.

But a company spokesperson told CNBC Make It that Niccol will still be expected to work from the Seattle office three days a week, stating "Brian’s primary office and a majority of his time will be spent in our Seattle Support Center or out visiting partners and customers in our stores, roasteries, roasting facilities and offices around the world."

At this time, neither Starbucks or Brian Niccol have commented on their exact plan to help the new CEO make his required commute. Instead, it's useful to turn back to the offer letter to see what we do know.

What the offer letter to Niccol also says

While we can't say for certain how this travel arrangement will work out, there are a few points in the offer letter that hint that Niccol is not likely to be jetting three days a week from Southern California to Seattle.

First: the use of the corporate jet is limited to a "maximum amount of $250,000 per year, which amount will be based on the aggregate incremental cost to the Company." That jet expense has to go toward visits to partners and investors worldwide, not just making it to the Seattle office - and each trip costs a lot more than the cost of filling up your car's tank here in Washington.

Second: the offer letter indicates that Niccol is, at least, encouraged to get a secondary home in Seattle. Starbucks has offered to pay for temporary housing in Seattle, along with a driver for transportation, up to three months after Niccol's start date. Niccol will also be eligible for reimbursement if he chooses to relocate to Seattle per the company's relocation policy.

So what's the likely outcome?

I don't have much love for corporations - I'll put that out up front. That said, it seems unlikely that Niccol will commute via corporate jet three days a week to  Seattle. It's more likely that he will go between the two locations once a week, with temporary or secondary housing in the Seattle area while he is at that office location. We'll only really know until Niccol starts officially as CEO (expected to be September 9).

That doesn't absolve Starbucks or Niccol from criticism. However, it's important to hold criticism of the company and its policies to facts, not rumors or exaggerated headlines based on assumptions.

In the mean time, sit back with a beverage and wait to see what happens next.