Laguna Niguel, California, United States — October 2026: Sweetgreen, the publicly traded restaurant company focused on fresh, healthy food, has appointed Lauren Crowley as Chief People Officer (CPO). She succeeds Adrienne Gemperle and will report directly to Jonathan Neman, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Sweetgreen.
Crowley brings more than 25 years of professional experience in human resources leadership, talent management, organizational development, employee relations, workforce strategy, and cultural transformation. Her career spans leadership positions at OC Sports & Entertainment, Expedia Group, Starbucks, Dell Technologies, Whole Foods Market, and Hot Topic.
In her new role, Crowley will lead Sweetgreen’s people strategy, drawing on her experience in organizational transformation, leadership development, and workforce management to support the company’s evolving business priorities.
Leadership at OC Sports & Entertainment
Before joining Sweetgreen, Crowley served as Senior Vice President – Human Resources at OC Sports & Entertainment, where she led the HR function for OCVIBE, a 100-acre mixed-use sports, entertainment, retail, and hospitality development in Anaheim, California.
Her responsibilities included talent acquisition, talent management, team member relations, employee experience, HR business partnering, and administrative services. Working closely with the CEO and executive leadership team, she helped develop the people strategy, organizational capabilities, leadership practices, and workplace culture required to support OCVIBE’s development and phased opening.
This role expanded her experience in building organizational structures and workforce capabilities for a large-scale development project.
Global Talent Leadership at Expedia Group
Crowley spent approximately six and a half years at Expedia Group, progressing through several senior human resources leadership positions. Most recently, she served as Global Vice President – Talent Management, leading enterprise-wide talent programs for approximately 16,500 employees across 56 countries.
Her work focused on business performance, skills development, career growth, and talent management practices across the organization.
Previously, as Global Vice President – People Business Partner Leader, Expedia Business Services, she led the people function for a business operating across more than 25 countries with approximately 6,000 employees. She also held the positions of Senior Director – People Partner and Director – People Partner, supporting global HR business partnering, organizational growth, and transformation initiatives.
Her experience at Expedia strengthened her expertise in global talent strategy and aligning people programs with business objectives across geographically diverse operations.
Human Resources Leadership at Starbucks
Before Expedia Group, Crowley spent more than six years at Starbucks, holding leadership roles including Director – Partner Resources (Human Resources), Director – Partner Resources, Store Development, Design and Latin America, and Manager – Partner Resources Business Partner.
Her responsibilities included supporting U.S. retail human resources operations covering more than 200,000 employees across over 15,000 stores, working through a nationwide network of HR professionals.
She also supported executive leadership teams and employees across the United States and Brazil. These responsibilities provided extensive experience in multinational HR operations, leadership advisory, organizational development, and workforce management.
Earlier, Crowley served as a Human Resources Business Partner at Dell Technologies for more than two years, further developing her experience in HR partnership and organizational support.
Building a Broad Human Resources Foundation
Crowley began her professional career in university recruiting at Trilogy, followed by employee relations and staffing roles at Hot Topic, where she spent approximately three and a half years.
She subsequently joined Whole Foods Market as Associate Director – Team Member Services, supporting regional HR operations across the Southwest and Rocky Mountain regions. Her responsibilities included talent acquisition, organizational development, compensation, training, and employee relations.
Her career progression across recruitment, employee relations, regional HR operations, global talent management, and senior executive leadership reflects a broad background in people strategy and organizational effectiveness.
Focus on People Strategy and Workplace Culture
As Chief People Officer at Sweetgreen, Crowley will oversee the company’s talent development, workplace culture, and workforce strategy. Her experience across retail, hospitality, technology, travel, entertainment, and food-related businesses provides a foundation for addressing the people and organizational requirements of a growing restaurant company.
Her appointment brings together global talent leadership and hands-on experience supporting large workforces, executive teams, and organizational transformation. These capabilities will be relevant as Sweetgreen continues developing its restaurant operations and strengthening the employee experience across its business.
About Sweetgreen
Sweetgreen (NYSE: SG) is an American restaurant company focused on connecting people with fresh, responsibly sourced food. Founded in 2007, the company has developed a fast-casual dining model centered on seasonal, chef-crafted menus, fresh ingredients, and relationships with farmers and growers.
With more than 285 locations across the United States, Sweetgreen aims to make nutritious food accessible while creating restaurant experiences that connect customers, communities, and food producers.
The company’s mission is to build healthier communities by connecting people to real food. Through its supply chain, agricultural partnerships, and focus on food quality and sustainability, Sweetgreen continues to develop its restaurant operations and customer experience while maintaining an emphasis on people, food, and purpose.
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