Starbucks taps Mellody Hobson - on the Biden cabinet short-list - as board chair, making her the only Black female director among the largest companies in America

• Starbucks announced on Wednesday that the coffee giant has tapped Mellody Hobson to be its board's next non-executive chair.
• When Hobson takes the position in March, she will be the only Black female chair among the S&P 500, according to Bloomberg.
• Hobson joined Starbucks' board in 2005.
• Hobson is co-CEO of asset management firm Ariel Investments and the former chairwoman of DreamWorks Animation. She is also married to director George Lucas.
• Insider reports that Hobson is on the Biden administration's short-list for Secretary of Commerce, and was being considered as a possible Secretary of the Treasury before Janet Yellen's nomination.
• Read more: Joe Biden's Cabinet-in-waiting: Meet the people in play for a new administration, and Biden's picks for key roles like Secretary of State and COVID-19 response
• "Mellody has been a trusted advisor to me and the company for more than 20 years. ... She has long embraced the purpose of Starbucks and, along with the leadership team, will continue to reimagine Starbucks future through the foundation of its past," Howard Schultz, Starbucks' chairman emeritus, said in a statement.

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