I've chosen the Starbucks Corporation on which to do my case assignment for the session. I first became interested in Starbucks while working on a paper for a previous marketing class. I became intrigued at the entrepreneurial spirit that such a large corporation had managed to maintain throughout its massive expansion. Starbucks corporation, unlike many of its now-defunct rivals, has done an outstanding job since its meager beginnings in 1970 with the execution of its strategic process; resulting in it currently owning 40% of the specialty coffee market and boosting annual sales exceeding $7 billion according to Burt Helm. Historic successes and recent turmoil within the company, including a near 40% decline in 2007 in profits (Sullivan 1), has once again piqued my interest in this American company.
For this first assignment, our tasks start with identifying the need for diagnosis, moving on to evaluating several organizational models that are used and have been developed for just such analysis, and finally determining if these models would be effective if used by Starbucks to determine its way ahead.
The importance of Diagnosis
In conducting research I found an interesting quote that I believe sums up the importance of the essential task analysis. "Knowing yourself is one of the most challenging and important tasks of your life. If you know who you are and what you want, you will have a better chance of figuring out how to achieve your own success, happiness and personal fulfillment" (Berkeley.edu, 1). One can easily substitute all personal references with a business perspective and ascertain the importance of analysis. If a business does not know who it is, it will not know what changes it needs to make in order to...
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Sullivan, Todd. 9 Jan 2008. Starbucks CEO Schultz: Too Little, Too Late? Retrieved 19 Jan 2008 from http://seekingalpha.com/article/59481-starbucks-ceo-schultz-too-little-too-late
Know Thyself. (n.d.). Berkeley.edu. Retrieved 20 Jan 2008 from http://atdpweb.soe.berkeley.edu/quest/knowthyself/KnowThyself.html
Falletta, S.V. (2005) Organizational Diagnostic Models: A Review and Synthesis. Retrieved 20 Jan 2008 from http://www.leadersphere.com/img/Orgmodels.pdf
A5 Consulting Group. 26 Jan 2004. Starbucks: "The Non-Coffee Treat". Fortune. Retrieved 20 Jan 2008 from www.carmean.net/papers/Starbucks%20Marketing.doc
Ardoin, Beth. 15 Apr 2000. A Diffusion Analysis of Howard Schultz's Pour Your Heart Into It. Retrieved 20 Jan 2008 from www.start-at-zero.com/papers/schultz.htm
In 2002, unexpected findings of a market research showed problems regarding customer satisfaction and brand meaning for Starbucks customers. The situation was unacceptable for a company whose overall objective is to build the most recognized and respected brand in the world. Starbucks was supposed to represent a new and different place where any man would relax and enjoy quality time, alone or with others. But the market research showed that in the mind of the consumers, Starbucks brand is viewed as corporative, trying to expand endlessly and looking to make lots of money. This huge gap between customers' perception and Starbucks' values and goals called for immediate action.
Shah, A. J., Hawk, T. F., & A, T. A. (2011). Starbucks' Global Quest in 2006: Is the Best Yet to Come. In A. A. Marcus, Management Strategy: Achieving Sustained Competitive Advantage (pp. c468-c495). New York: McGraw-Hill.
Starbucks not only shapes a defined importance on its product, the coffee, but also the relationships on its partners, its customers and its shareholders to create diversity, “to create a place where each of us can be ourselves” (Starbucks Coffee), to treat all related partners with dignity and respect at the greatest corporate level. In this sense, Starbucks involves its customers, its neighbors and is shareholders to participate in the community to “be a force for positive action—bringing together [its] partners, customers, and the community to contribute every day (Starbucks Coffee).
Schultz, H. (2011). Onward: How Starbucks fought for its life without losing its soul. New York: Rodale.
Starbucks Coffee, Tea, and Spice opened its first store in April 1971 in the Pike Place Market in Seattle, by owners who had a passion for dark-roasted coffee that was popular in Europe, but hard to find in the U.S. (Harrison et al., 2005; Venkatraman & Nelson, 2008). The company’s mission was to provide Seattle with the best access to dark-roasted coffee, and sought to educated customers about the product. As a matter of customer education and acceptance of the product, Starbucks grew and expanded into the successful domestic market it is today. Much of this success can be attributed to a focus on the total customer experience and s...
Schultz, Howard, and Joanne Gordon. Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life Without Losing Its Soul. New York: Rodale, 2011. N. pag. Print.
Starbucks is currently the industry leader in specialty coffee. They purchased more high quality coffee beans than anyone else in the world and keep in good standings with the producers to ensure they get the best beans. Getting the best beans is only the first part, Starbucks also has a “closed loop system” that protects the beans from oxygen immediately after roasting to the time of packaging. They did this through their invention of a one-way valve which let the natural gasses escape but keeping oxygen out. This gave them the unique ability to ensure freshness and extended the shelf life to 26 weeks. Starbucks isn’t only about the coffee, it’s also about a place where people can escape to enjoy music, reflect, read, or just chat. It is a total coffee experience. The retail outlet has been responsible for much of Starbucks growth and has contributed substantially to their brand equity.
Business was good, but it was not without its problems. There was the political upheaval in the Middle East, followed by further tension after then CEO Howard Schultz commented on growing anti-Semitism in the region. Their integrity came under fire when certain Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO's) accused them of purchasing coffee beans under questionable social and economic conditions. These situations, together with difficult economic times globally, meant that Starbucks was likely going to take a hit somewhere. Eventually, they shut down their Israeli operations altogether.
The structure of Starbucks business communication is exceptional. Rather you are in their store buying a Caramel Frappuccino®, visiting their website or watching one of their advertisements on television; as the consumer, the message is loud and clear. Pick up any newspaper and you are likely to find an article about the coffee giant. Starbucks pledges a commitment to their over 172,000 partners (employees) and the community. “We realize our people are the cornerstone of our success, and we know that their ideas, commitment and connection to our customers are truly the essential elements in the Starbucks Experience” (Starbucks, 2008).
With clear core values towards providing quality coffee, the best service, and atmosphere, Starbucks has enjoyed great success since it was founded 30 years ago. The company has being doing very well for last 11 years with 5% or more store sales increase, even with the rest economy still reeling from the post-9/11 recession. However recent research, conducted to Starbucks, have showed some concerns regarding company’s problem meeting customers’ expectations.
Introduction This paper will provide an argument for diversification to be presented to the board of directors for Starbucks. A strategy for diversification indicating the products and industries for diversification and how synergies may be gained. The identification and the discussion of the foreign market Starbucks should enter will be presented, along with the strategy it should use to enter the market. Challenges Starbucks may face in the foreign market will be discussed, as well as how it might respond strategically to minimize the impact of these challenges. Also, this paper will encompass a scenario when it would not make sense for Starbucks to diversify or expand into a foreign market, and how the company will create a business environment conducive to ethical behavior will be assessed.
Starbucks case study: background 1971-87; private company 1987-92. (1997). McGraw-Hill Companies. Retrieved March 20, 2007, from the McGraw-Hill Companies website: http://www.mhhe.com/business/management/thompson/11e/case/starbucks-1.html
Starbucks is a worldwide company, known for is delicious brews of coffee and seasonal varieties of tasty drinks for any occasion. Starbucks opened with two main goals, sharing great coffee with friends and to help make the world a little better. It originated in the historic Pike Place Market of Seattle, Washington in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl and Gordon Bowker. The creation of Starbucks’ name came from the seafaring tradition of early coffee traders and the romance evoked from Moby Dick. At the time, this individual shop specialized in the towering quality of coffee over competitors and other brewing services enabling its growth to becoming the largest coffee chain in Washington with numerous locations. In the early 1980s, the current CEO Schultz saw an opportunity for growth in the niche market. After a trip to Italy he brought back the idea of a café style environment of leisure and social meetings to the United States we now see in Starbucks locations today. Schultz ultimately left Starbucks to open his own coffee shop, Il Giornale which turned out to be a tremendous success. Fast forward a year later, Schultz got wind that Starbucks was going to sell all their components of Starbucks including their stores and factories, he immediately acquired the funds to buy Starbucks and linked both operations. Within five years he was able to open more than 125 stores starting in New England, Boston, Chicago, and gradually entered California. He wanted Starbucks to be a franchise system based on the mission of telling the truth and emphasize the quality,
Cummings, T. G. (2008). Organizational Development Diagnosis. Handbook of organization development (pp. 137-147). Los Angeles: SAGE Publications.
When I saw this discussion, I couldn’t help but think of Starbucks and the impact they’ve made throughout their 45 years of establishment. I worked with them for about 7 years and saw how unique they were from your everyday coffee and latte spots. A retail company with thousands of coffee shops in the US as well as in other countries, this particular retailer has been able to catch the eyes of all ages as well as locations throughout the world. For example, today college students utilize Starbucks locations to study rather than go to a nearby library. Starbucks is also known for its best coffee and espresso drinks (Latte or Frappuccino) and with one of its delicious espresso 's any student or just a person stopping in to enjoy its lounge area where there is free Wi-Fi is awesome! Starbucks lifecycle has made a 360 turn around and been revamped twice to accommodated the growing market. Customizing their brand to fit more in with everything and not just one thing. By doing this they’ve created multiple product lifecycles within their own lifecycle as a corporate company.