Brand Course for International Students
Organizing is an important task of managers. Once the organization’s goals and plans are in place, the organizing function sets in motion the process of seeing that those goals and plans are pursued. When managers organize, they are defining what work needs to get done and creating a structure that enables work activities to be completed efficiently and effectively by organizational members hired to do that work. As Starbucks continues its global expansion and pursues innovative strategic initiatives, managers must deal with the realities of continually organizing and reorganizing its work efforts.
Structuring Starbucks
Like many start-up businesses, Starbucks’ original founders organized their company around a simple structure based on each person’s unique strengths: Zev Siegl became the retail expert; Jerry Baldwin took over the administrative functions; and Gordon Bowker was the dreamer who called himself “the magic, mystery, and romance man” and recognized from the start that a visit to Starbucks could “evoke a brief escape to a distant world.” As Starbucks grew to the point where Jerry recognized that he needed to hire professional and experienced managers, Howard Schultz (now Starbucks’ chairman, CEO, and president) joined the company, bringing his skills in sales, marketing, and merchandising. When the original owners eventually sold the company to Schultz, he was able to take the company on the path to becoming what it is today and what it hopes to be in the future.
As Starbucks has expanded, its organizational structure has changed to accommodate that growth. Starbucks' success is credited, in part, to it's adaptive organizational structure, and the company prides itself on its "lean" corporate structure. Howard Schultz is at the top of the structure and has focused on hiring a team of executives from companies like Nestle, Procter & Gamble, Corbis, Microsoft, and PepsiCo. Schultz realized how important it was to have an executive team in place that had experience in running division or functions of larger companies, and that's what he focused on bringing in to Starbucks. These senior corporate officers include the following: six "C” (chief) officers, seven executive vice presidents, three group presidents, two managing directors, and several "partners". For instance, because technology is an important factor in Starbucks' growth strategy, Schultz created a chief technology officer position. All description of the team of Starbucks executives and what each is responsible for can be found on the company's website.
Although the executive team provides the all-important strategic direction, the “real” work of Starbucks gets done at the company’s support center, zone offices, retail stores, and roasting plants. The support center provides support to and assists all other aspects of corporate operations in the areas of accounting, finance, information technology, and sales and supply chain management.
The zone offices oversee the regional operations of the retail stores and provide support in human resource management, facilities management, account management, financial management, and sales management. The essential link between the zone offices and each retail store is the district manager, each of whom oversees 8 to 10 stores, down from the dozen or so stores they used to oversee. Since district managers need to be out working with the stores, most use mobile technology that allows them to spend more time in the stores and still remain connected to their own office. These district managers have been called “the most important in the company” because it’s out in the stores that the Starbucks vision and goals are being carried out. Thus, keeping those district managers connected is vital.
In the retail stores, hourly employees (baristas) service customers under the direction of shift supervisors, assistant store managers and store managers. These managers are responsible for the day-to-day operations of each Starbucks location. One of the organizational challenges for many store managers has been the company’s decision to add more drive-through windows to retail stores, which appears to be a smart strategic (move since the average annual volume at a store with a drive-through window is about 30 percent higher than a store without one. However, a drive-through window often takes up to 4 people to operate: one to take orders, one to operate the cash register, one to work the espresso machine, and a “floater” who can fill in where needed. And these people have to work rapidly and carefully to get the cars in and out in a timely manner, since the drive-through lane can get congested quickly. Other organizing challenges arise any time the company introduces new products and new, more efficient work approaches.
Finally, without coffee and other beverages to sell, there would be no Starbucks. The coffee beans are processed at the company’s domestic roasting plants in Washington, Pennsylvania, Nevada, South Carolina, Georgia, and internationally in Amsterdam. There’s also a manufacturing plant for Tazo Tea in Oregon, and the company recently reached an agreement with Tata Global Beverages to set up a coffee roasting facility in India. At each manufacturing facility, the production team produces the coffee and other products and the distribution team manages the inventory and distribution of products and equipment to company stores. Because product quality is so essential to Starbucks’ success, each person in the manufacturing facilities must be focused on maintaining quality control at every step in the process. The roasting plant in Sandy Run, South Carolina, is a state-of-the art facility that’s also an example of the company’s commitment to green design. The plant has been awarded LEED Silver certification for new construction. And the newest plant in Augusta, Georgia, will also be built to LEED standards. Starbucks also has warehouse/distribution facilities in Georgia, Tennessee, and Washington.
People Management at Starbucks
Starbucks recognizes that what it’s been able to accomplish in due to the people it hires. When you have talented and committed people offering their ideas and expertise, success will follow.
Since the beginning, Starbucks has strived to be an employer that nurtured employees and gave them opportunities to grow and be challenged. The company says it is “pro-partner” and has always been committed to providing a flexible and progressive work environment and treating one another with respect and dignity.
As Starbucks continues its expansion both in the United States and internationally, it needs to make sure it has the right number of the right people in the right place at the right time. What kinds of people are “right’’ for Starbucks? They state they want “people who are adaptable, self-motivated, passionate, creative team players.” Starbucks uses a variety of methods to attract potential partners. The company has an interactive and easy-to-use online career center. Job seekers—who must be at least 16—can search and apply online for jobs in the home office (Seattle) support center and in the zone offices, roasting plants, store management, and store hourly (barista) positions in any geographic location. Starbucks also has recruiting events in various locations in the United States throughout the year, which allow job seekers to talk to recruiters and partners face-to-face about working at Starbucks. In addition, job seekers for part-time and full-time hourly positions can also submit an application at any Starbucks store location. The company also has a limited number of internship opportunities for students during the summer. But the company’s efforts don’t stop there.
The company's commitment to helping people in communities has led to various special hiring initiatives that focus on particular groups. For instance, Starbucks committed to hire at least 10,000 veterans and their spouses by 2018. More recently, the company has partnered with several companies, including CVS Health Corporation, Walmart, and Microsoft to hire at least 100,000 low-income individuals.
Starbucks’ workplace policies provide for equal employment opportunities and strictly prohibit discrimination. Diversity and inclusion are very important to Starbucks as the following statistics from its U.S. workforce illustrate: 64 percent of its total workforce are women and 33 percent of its total workforce are people of color. That commitment to diversity starts at the top. At one point, senior executives participated in a 360-degree diversity assessment to identify their strengths and needed areas of improvement. Also, an executive diversity learning series, including a full-day diversity immersion exercise, was developed for individuals at the vice-president level and above to build their diversity competencies.
Although diversity training is important to Starbucks, it isn’t the only training provided. The company continually invests in training programs and career development initiatives: baristas, who get a “green apron book” that exhorts them to be genuine and considerate, receive 23 hours of initial training; an additional 29 hours of training as shift supervisor; 112 hours as assistant store manager; and 320 hours as store manager. District manager trainees receive 200 hours of training. And every partner takes a class on coffee education, which focuses on Starbucks’ passion for coffee and understanding the core product. In addition, the Starbucks corporate support center offers a variety of classes ranging from basic computer skills to conflict resolution to management training. Starbucks’ partners aren’t “stuck” in their jobs. The company’s rapid growth creates tremendous opportunities for promotion and advancement for all store partners. If they desire, they can utilize career counseling executive coaching, job rotation，mentoring, and leadership development to help them create a career path that meets their needs. One example of the company’s training efforts: When oxygen levels in coffee bags were too high in one of the company’s roasting plants (which affected product freshness), partners were retained on procedures and given additional coaching. After the training, the number of bags of coffee placed on “quality hold” declined by 99 percent. Then, on one day in February 2008, Starbucks did something quite unusual—it closed all its U.S. stores for three-and-a-half hours to train and retrain baristas on espresso. A company spokesperson said, “We felt this training was an investment in our baristas and in the Starbucks’ experience.” The training, dubbed Perfecting the Art of Espresso, was about focusing on the core product, espresso, as well as on the customer experience. Feedback was quite positive. Customers said they appreciated the company taking the time to do the training and felt it had resulted in a better customer experience. The company also embarked on a series of training for partners to find ways to do work more efficiently. A 10-person “lean team” went from region to region encouraging managers and partners to find ways to be more efficient.
One human resource issue that has haunted Starbucks is its position on labor unions. The company takes the position that the fair and respectful “direct employment relationship” it has with its partners—not a third party that acts on behalf of the partners— is the best way to help ensure a great work environment. Starbucks prides itself on how it treats its employees. However, the company did “settle a complaint issued by the National Labor Relationship Board that contained more than two dozen unfair labor practice allegations brought against the company by the union, Industrial Workers of the World. This settlement arose from disputes at three stores in New York City Then, in 2011, a strike by partners in Chile—which is the only country where the company has a sizable union presence—over low wages led baristas in other countries to call for a “global week of solidarity” in support of the strikers. The Chilean workers eventually abandoned that strike without reaching an agreement with the company. As Starbucks continues to expand globally, it will face challenges in new markets where local labor groups and government requirements honor collective bargaining. And Starbucks realizes it needs to be cautious so that its “we care” image isn’t diminished by labor woes.
Questions
1. What types of departmentalization are being used? Explain your choices. (Hint: In addition to information in the case, you might want to look at the complete list and description of corporate executives on the company’s Web site.)
2. What examples of the six organizational structural elements do you see discussed in this case? Describe.
3. Starbucks has said its goal is to open 10,000 new stores globally by 2019. In addition, the company has set a financial goal of attaining total net revenue growth of 10 to 13 percent and $30 million in annual revenue by 2019. How will the organizing function contribute to the accomplishment of these goals?
4. Starbucks has said that it wants people who are “adaptable, self-motivated, passionate, and creative team players.” How does the company ensure that its hiring and selection process identifies those kinds of people?
5. Which of the company’s principles affect the organizing function of management? Explain how the one(s) you chose would affect how Starbucks’ managers deal with (a) structural issues; (b) HRM issues; and (c) issues in managing teams.
(Hint: The Principles can be found on the company’s Web site)
The company’s six Guiding Principles
l Provide a great work environment and treat each other with respect and dignity.
l Embrace diversity as an essential component in the way we do business.
l Apply the highest standards of excellence to the purchasing, roasting, and fresh delivery of our coffee.
l Develop enthusiastically satisfied customers all of the time.
l Contribute positively to our communities and our environment.
l Recognize that profitability is essential to our future success.
星巴克—组织
组织活动是管理者一项重要的任务。一旦组织的目标和计划确定下来，组织功能就体现在实现这些目标和计划的过程中。当管理者从事组织职能时，他们得先确定哪些工作需要完成，并且创建一个组织结构使得从事这项工作的组织成员能够有效率、有效果地完成任务。星巴克一直以来致力于全球的扩展，并且追求解决问题的创新战略方案，因此管理者必须直面持续组织并重新组织其工作的现实问题。
星巴克的组织结构
和许多刚创办的企业一样，星巴克创始人用一个简单的组织结构将具有不同独特优势的员工聚集到一起，例如杰夫•西格(Zev Siegl)成为了零售专家，杰里•宝威(Jerry Baldwin)则从事行政管理工作，而笑称自己为“神奇、神秘并浪漫”的戈登•鲍克(Gordon Bowker)则是一个梦想家，并从一开始就认识到来到星巴克的顾客需能够拥有“唤起人们到遥远的世界的片刻解脱”的体验。当星巴克的成长使得杰里认识到需要雇佣专业并有经验的管理者时，现为公司董事长、首席执行官和总裁的霍华德•舒尔茨加入了星巴克，他为星巴克带来了销售、营销和制造领域的技能。因此当创始人最终将星巴克出售给他时，他才能够将星巴克变得像今天那样成功，并在将来成为他所期望的那样。
随着星巴克的不断扩张，它的组织结构也不断变化以适应其扩张。星巴克的成功部分归功于它的适应性组织结构，该公司以它精益的组织结构为骄傲。如今霍华德•舒尔茨位于公司的顶层，一直致力于从像雀巢、宝洁、Corbis、微软和百事这样的公司中雇佣它的高层管理团队。舒尔茨意识到，拥有一支在运营大公司事业部或职能方面经验丰富的执行团队是多么重要，而这正是他致力于引入星巴克的原因。这些高级公司官员包括：六位“ C”（首席）官员，七位执行副总裁，三位集团总裁，两位常务董事和几位“合伙人”，例如，技术是星巴克成长战略中的重要因素，舒尔茨创建了首席技术官职位。有关星巴克高管团队的详细描述以及每个人负责的事项都可以在公司网站上找到。
尽管高层管理团队指明了公司发展的重要战略方向，但是所有星巴克的实际工作需要在星巴克服务中心、区域办公室、零售商店和烘焙工厂里完成。星巴克服务中心为公司各项业务提供会计、财务、信息技术、销售和供应链管理等支持和帮助。
区域办公室负责指导区域零售商店的业务并在人力资源管理、设备管理、会计、财务管理和销售管理方面为其提供服务支持。而区域办公室和各个零售商店的关键连接点是区域经理，他们每人负责指导8-10个星巴克商店，一般负责指导的商店不会超过12个。由于区域经理需要经常外出到零售店工作，因此大部分人都会使用移动技术以延长他们在商店的工作时间，同时时刻与区域办公室保持联系。这些区域经理被称为“公司中最重要的人”，因为星巴克的愿景和目标正是通过他们在星巴克商店付诸实施。因此，保持区域经理的联系至关重要。
在零售商店里，招待员在轮班主管、助理商店经理和商店经理的指导下为顾客提供服务。这两位经理负责星巴克零售店的日常事务。然而现在很多商店经理都面临着新的挑战，因为星巴克公司决定开设方便驾驶员购买的窗口式分店。这似乎是一个机智的战略，因为这一形式的分店年平均客流量要比普通的分店高30%。然而，窗口式分店需要4个员工协同操作：一个人负责点餐、一个人收取现金、一个人煮咖啡、剩下的一个人在任何需要的时候提供帮助。这4个人必须迅速、仔细地工作，他们需要及时地引导车辆进出，否则汽车通道会很快堵塞。每当公司推出新产品和新的、更有效的工作方法时，就会出现其他组织挑战。
显而易见：没有咖啡和其他饮料出售，就没有星巴克。星巴克的咖啡豆由位于国内的华盛顿(Washington)、宾夕法尼亚州(Pennsylvania)、内华达州(Nevada)、南卡罗来纳（South Carolina）、格鲁吉亚（Georgia）和国外的阿姆斯特丹(Amsterdam)烘焙工厂进行加工。俄勒冈州还有一家泰舒茶制造工厂，该公司最近与Tata Global Beverages达成协议，在印度搭建咖啡烘焙设施。每个制造工厂中，生产团队负责制造咖啡和其他产品，而分销团队则负责管理库存以及将产品及设备分销到各个店面。由于产品的质量是星巴克成功的关键，因此每位烘焙制造工厂的员工必须在生产过程中聚焦于持续质量控制。位于南卡罗来纳州（South Carolina）桑迪润（Sandy Run）的烘焙厂是一家最先进的工厂，也是该公司致力于绿色设计的一个例子。该工厂已获得新建筑LEED银级认证。位于佐治亚州（Georgia）奥古斯塔（Augusta）的最新工厂也将按照LEED标准建造。星巴克还在佐治亚州，田纳西州和华盛顿州设有仓库/经销设施。
星巴克的人事管理
星巴克认识到，目标能够实现有赖于所雇佣的员工，当你拥有才华横溢且忠诚的人提供他们的想法和专业技能时，将会取得成功。
从公司创立开始，星巴克就致力于培育员工，给他们提供成长和接受挑战的机会。公司称之为“预伙伴”，并且公司始终致力于给员工提供宽松和有利于进步的工作环境，给予员工尊重和尊严。
由于星巴克在美国和全球市场上持续扩张，它必须确保在合适的时间及合适的位置上有合乎数量的合适的人。那么，对于星巴克，哪一类人是合适的呢？星巴克说，他们想要“具有适应性、能自我激励、热情、富有创造力的团队成员”。因此星巴克采取了一系列方式来吸引潜在的合作伙伴。公司已有一个交互的、易于使用的在线职业中心。年龄超过16岁的求职者能够在线搜索和申请公司服务中心（位于西雅图(Seattle)）和公司位于任何地方的区域办公室、烘焙工厂、店面管理及招待员的职位。同时星巴克在美国全年进行招聘，这使得求职者能够面对面地与招聘人员进行沟通。另外，应聘兼职或全职招待员的应聘者可以在星巴克的任何一个店面提交申请，并且公司也为学生提供暑期实习机会，然而公司的努力并不止于此。致力于帮助社区人们的承诺使公司采取了针对特定群体的各种特殊招聘计划。 例如，星巴克承诺在2018年前雇用至少10,000名退伍军人及其配偶。最近，该公司与包括CVS Health Corporation，沃尔玛和微软在内的多家公司合作，雇用了至少100,000名低收入人士。
星巴克为员工提供公平的就业机会，并且反对歧视。多元化和包容性对星巴克很重要，来自美国本地的数据表明：64%的员工是女性和33%是有色人种。对多元化的承诺始于高层，高层管理者参与了360°多样化评估来鉴定员工的优势及需要改进的地方。公司还为副总裁级别以上的人设立了管理多样化学习系列讲座，包括全天多样化浸入式练习，以训练其多样化能力。
尽管多元化培训对星巴克很重要，但它并不是唯一提供的培训。星巴克一直为员工的培训和职业发展进行投资，星巴克的每位招待员都有一本《绿围裙手册》，以敦促他们成为机智、体贴的服务员，他们有机会接受23小时训练；而值班长需要另外再接受29小时培训。助理店面经理则需要接受112小时培训，店面经理320小时，区域经理200小时。并且每位合作伙伴需要参加有关咖啡教育的课程，该课程阐述了星巴克对咖啡的热情，以及星巴克对核心产品的理解。另外，星巴克服务中心提供一系列的培训，从基本的电脑技能到应对冲突再到管理技能的培训。星巴克的合作伙伴并不局限于他们的工作，星巴克公司的快速发展为他们提供了很多晋升和提拔的机会。只要他们愿意，他们可以利用职业咨询服务，高管教练，工作轮换，指导和领导力发展来帮助他们创造出适合他们需求的职业路径。以下是星巴克培训的一个例子：如果某个烘焙工厂咖啡袋的氧气含量过高（影响产品的新鲜度），该合作伙伴将接受额外的培训，培训之后，其不合格率下降了99%。之后，在2008年2月的某一天，星巴克做了一件非常不寻常的事——它关闭了所有美国星巴克门店三个半小时，去培训与再培训咖啡师。公司发言人说：“我们认为这次培训是对我们咖啡师和星巴克体验的投资。”这项名为“完美咖啡艺术”的培训专注于核心产品，浓缩咖啡以及客户体验。客户反馈非常积极，他们对公司花时间进行培训表示赞赏，认为这样可以带来更好的客户体验。该公司还为合作伙伴开展了一系列培训，以便找到更有效地开展工作的方法。以鼓励管理者和合作伙伴寻求更有效率的方法，10人“精益团队”从一个地区发展到另一个地区。
然而星巴克人力资源问题使它一直备受劳动联盟的关注。公司采取的立场是：与合作伙伴建立公平和尊重的“直接雇佣关系”，而非代表合作伙伴的第三方，这是创造良好工作环境的最佳途径。星巴克一直以它对待员工的方式为骄傲。然而最近公司“解决了由国家劳动关系委员会发布的投诉，该投诉包含24个由世界行业劳动者联盟提出的对星巴克不公平劳动措施的指控，这些指控主要来源于纽约的3个店面。之后，在2011年，智利的合作伙伴罢工，这是该公司拥有相当规模的工会存在的唯一国家，低工资导致其他国家的咖啡师呼吁“全球声援一周”以支持罢工者。智利工人却未与该公司达成协议最终放弃了罢工。随着星巴克继续在全球范围内扩张，它将面临当地劳工团体和政府要求集体谈判的新的市场挑战。而星巴克意识到它需要更加谨慎，以便它的“我们关心”形象不会因劳动困境而受到影响。
问题
1. 星巴克采取的是什么部门划分方式?说明原因。
（提示：除了案例中的信息，你还需到星巴克的官方网站查阅公司的高层管理人员的完整列表和描述）
2. 在案例中，涉及组织结构设计六要素的例子有哪些？请描述。
3. 星巴克表示，其目标是到2019年在全球开设10000家新店。此外，公司设定了财务目标，到2019年实现总净收入增长10-13%，年收入达到3000万美元。管理者将如何进行组织以完成这些目标？
4. 星巴克说过，他们想要“具有适应性、能自我激励、热情及有创造性的团队成员”，公司怎么确保他们的招聘、筛选过程能识别出这种人？
5. 星巴克的哪一个指导原则影响管理的组织职能？解释你选择的原则是如何影响星巴克的管理者处理：（a）结构问题；（b）人力资源问题；（c）管理团队的问题。
（提示：指导原则可在星巴克官方网站上找到）
公司的六项指导原则
1. 提供优质的工作环境，并创造相互尊重、相互信任的工作氛围
2. 秉持多元化经营的重要原则
3. 采用最高标准进行咖啡产品的采购、烘焙和保鲜运输
4. 永远以高度热忱的服务满足顾客的需求
5. 为我们的社区和人居环境做出积极贡献
6. 明确利润增长是公司未来成功的重要保障