LONDON—Incoming Starbucks boss Laxman Narasimhan is returning to the U.S. after a three-year stint in Britain leading one of the world’s best-known consumer-product companies, Lysol maker Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC.
When Mr. Narasimhan took over the Slough, England-based company in 2019, it was suffering from high turnover among senior executives, volatile sales growth and narrowing margins. Reckitt had also grappled with a cyberattack, failed innovations and manufacturing disruptions while once strong sales at its consumer health arm were slowing.