Wouleta Ayele

Balancer
DISC Type : S

Chief Technology Officer at sweetgreen

United States

Overview

Wouleta Ayele is the Chief Technology Officer at sweetgreen, leveraging over twenty-five years of experience in digital transformation for major brands like Starbucks and Coca-Cola. A graduate of Mercer University and Cumberland University, she excels in AI/ML, data analytics, and building high-performing teams. People often describe her as a creative, strategic, and outstanding leader.

Outside of her executive role, Wouleta enjoys traveling with her husband and two daughters. She is a board member at Everside Health and previously served on the board for the University of Washingtons Information Technology School, demonstrating a commitment to health and education.

She has been recognized as one of the Top Women in Retail Tech and was included in NRNs 2025 Power List for Women in Foodservice.

Personality Overview

Risk-Averse

Slow To Decisions

Process-Oriented

They like following the process even if it takes time to reach any conclusion.  They are courteous and respectful but practical. They are comfortable taking long term decisions.

Topics They Care About

Food and Tech
As CTO of sweetgreen, she focuses on the intersection of food and technology to enhance customer experience, improve operations, and pave the way for a healthier future.
AI in Restaurants
She believes AI will unlock highly personalized guest experiences through tailored recommendations and promotions by analyzing customer data and preferences.
Digital Transformation
Her career at Starbucks, Coca-Cola, and sweetgreen has centered on using technology for brand-differentiating transformations and improving operational efficiency.

Media Appearances

Sweetgreen CxOs on Connecting People to Real Food. Featured in Metis Strategy

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sweetgreen Appoints Wouleta Ayele as Chief Technology Officer. Featured in Business Wire

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Sweetgreen CTO shares the chain's data‑focused loyalty strategy. Featured in Customer Experience Dive

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Work History

8-2021
Chief Technology Officer at sweetgreen
5-2021
Board Member at Everside Health
1-2018 - 12-2021
Board Member at University of Washington - Information Technology School
2-2019 - 8-2021
senior vice president of Technology at Starbucks
8-2016 - 1-2020
vice president, Enterprise Data & Analytics Technology at Starbucks

Education

1990 - 1992
Masters from Mercer University
1980 - 1985
Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Cumberland University
2019
Artificial Intelligence from MIT Sloan School of Management

More Information

Social Presence :

Prographics :

Exp : 40 Location : United States Job Level : Leadership Designation : Chief Technology Officer at sweetgreen
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Insights For Selling To Wouleta

During A Call Or A Meeting

DO's

  • Tell them about the outcome and results before talking about the input
  • Focus on making them comfortable before really commencing the sales motion
  • Unless they are the decision maker, bring other stakeholders into the process early

DONT's

  • Ensure that you don’t seem disinterested when speaking to them
  • Don’t try to be overly social in the early interactions
  • Do not sound very transactional, make extra effort to be genuinely interested

When Cold Calling

When Writing An Email

While Negotiating & Closing

    The secret to closing fast with Wouleta is

  • Low-risk, adoption by others and strong collaterals matter the most to them.
  • Will you ever get a clear answer from Wouleta

  • They never refuse directly, they push out the decisions or just go quiet.

Insights For Deal Planning

    How fast (or slow) will Wouleta move?

  • They can be some of the slowest decision makers.
  • Can Wouleta take some risk or not?

  • They have no risk-appetite and prefer to take safe decisions.

You And Wouleta

Personality Compatibility


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