There have been a number of different coffee destinations to go to over the years, but there may hardly be few who have come close to competing with Starbucks. This has been because of the implementation of the company policies which have focused on the needs and requests of the consumer over the years. Many people still go to the coffee place not because their recipe for the coffee is out of the world but because the staff that interacts with the customer is quite hospitable towards that most important segment of the business. Here, we are going to highlight most of the company’s characteristics which have made the company such a success as to have chains of the coffee shop worldwide.
Introduction
Starbucks may not always have been an organization which enjoyed success but the factor which makes it successful today is that it had the courage to learn from its mistake and fix the issues when there was time for a change in management. Somewhere around the year 2007, the organization was extending its reach far and wide and with that success, the main focus of its people shifted away from the needs of the consumer towards expansion on a global scale. It was in 2008 that the company was taken over by CEO Howard Schultz. Schultz made essential changes to the structure of the organization in such a way that the focus of the employees shifted towards the experience of the consumer.
Structural Frame
When it comes to discussing the leadership with the perspective of the structural framework at the company, Starbucks does not follow a single model of the organizational structure rather the company’s structure is a hybrid of a number of different individual configurations. The essential features of the structure are that for one, there is a functional layout which means that the employees are divided into various departments including the human resources, the finance, operational and the IT departments. This structure is most prominent mostly at the top tiers and more specifically at the company headquarters. (Meyer, 2015)
The company also makes divisions of its various segments on the basis of the geographical location of each franchise and as of now, the company has three major distributions being America; Europe, Middle East, Russia and Africa and China and the Asia Pacific. Other aspects of the company’s structure include the divisions of their human resource and their functions on the basis of the products that the company sells and also on the basis of various teams. (Meyer, 2015)
The structuring of the Company in the way it now exists serves a number of benefits and makes it easier for the company to climb one ladder after the other in success and revenue goals. Right alongside the structure of the organization, the company’s CEO also paid a great deal of attention to putting in place management controls so that the Company could function without any major glitches. A decision was also reached to appropriately train the customer service personnel in accordance with the goals that had been laid down by the company in regards to catering to the needs of the customer. (Flamholtz and Randle, 2007)
As for the coordination in between the personnel of the organization, the front line managers are in charge of the supervision as well as the coordination of activities amongst the employees of the company. For instance, Wnyne Maxwell and Jenny Wangner are the managers of the coffee shop in Texas, and they fall in the ranks of first line managers in the Company’s hierarchical system. These managers take care of the progression of day-to-day tasks at their respective stores, hire the staff that is to operate the store as well as handle the routine duties. Alternatively, the top and the middle managers at the company expend most of their time in the supervision of their respective subordinates. (Griffin, 2007) Seeing the same coordination of activities, we could say that the coordination mechanism used by the company is that of Direct Supervision.
Because of the very complex structure where the chains of command overlap and there is consistent coordination in between the heads of the various departments, it has become possible for the CEO to point out the weaknesses in the various parts of the company and use the same human resources to fix those worries and achieve excellence. It is because of the roles and responsibility being assigned in the way that they are that things get done in timely manner and such a huge network of offices, and Starbucks franchises are functioning without major disturbances.
Human Resources Frame
There are many people who find it very useful to work at Starbucks part-time, and almost all would agree that the work that is required of them in no way lacks in the challenge. This is why some of the employees may be overwhelmed to be working for the prestigious company while others enjoy the challenge that comes with. (AOL.com, 2016)
The Company also has a number of policies in the store which it effectively employs to keep the employees motivated and committed to the work that they are entrusted with. With most of the employees, the job security never seems to be a concern, and ever the pay is reasonable and good enough to get by on. The employees are also provided with health insurance policy, and there are other similar benefits which are meant to spike performance and satisfaction at work. The monetary benefits serve as the intrinsic values which motivate all of the employees alike.
There are also sources of motivations which are specific to a particular type of employees, and these values include the challenge that the employee faces at work and also the organizational culture that provides its people with a sense of belonging and respect towards one another. These are all conditions which keep many of the employees motivated but what’s peculiar is that there are also a few who would find these conditions as more of a headache than a thrill.
Another reason why the people of the organization work well with the organization is because there is huge diversity within the workforce and the same diversity of race, religion, ethnicity and culture are particularly encouraged by the fact that all of the partners at the company also follow the same principle of multiplicity. The qualities of diversity and of inclusion have been made an effective part of the company’s culture, and every employee is taught to appreciate and live peacefully with these qualities. Because of the same respect and inclusion, the managers and the suborders have a two-way relationship where ideas and feedback are sought from both ends. (Starbucks Coffee Company, 2016)
Employees are extended the ability to participate in business because within the company; there are various training programs which tell each employee the exact ingredients to us in the making of the coffee. Despite these specifications, however, every employee reserves the discretion to sway from the behavior they have been guided upon and also to share their ideas as well as their suggestions on the matter of how operations could be carried out. (Storey, Wright, and Ulrich, 2009, p.351) Employee coordination is another phenomenon which is critical to business success and at Starbucks; this coordination is achieved by integrating them into the culture of the organization and teaching to treat each other as family. The environment of mutual respect and inclusion also depart the same values of joint coordination.
Political Frame
At the company, the name and face most recognized is that of the CEO Howard Schultz. There are also a number of senior vice presidents who are in positions of power in the different geographical divisions of the company and it is from these people that power mostly flows downwards. (Starbucks Newsroom, 2016) Formal power aside, the Company gives its employees the ability to be the decision makers and even though the CEO is Howard Shultz, the employees of the company are the ones who enjoy the informal power because the majority of the decisions are made and implemented at the front line.
Authority and power are two concepts which are both successful when they move in parity with one another because without authority to make decisions, the power to make those decisions is never accepted, and authority has no use where the person does not exercise the power to make effective decisions. At Starbucks however, there is not much parity in between these two qualities yet, the organization is still operating effectively. With formal authority, the power of making decisions is existent, and that power is accompanied by authority of being the CEO or a Senior Vice President. Here, these concepts can be seen as similar to one another. The company also gives power to its employees to partake in important decision making and even though there is no authority with employees to do the same, the decisions that they make are still valued and respected.
The formal channels of communication at the company are no different to those of any other company’s which mostly comprise of internal letters, office memorandums and e-mails and these channels of communication are further supplemented by informal channels like grapevine and various company newsletters.
The major conflicts that the Company has are mostly with its competitors, and there remains constant struggle to take over the market share in any part of the world. This conflict since it arises in the form of competition presents the Company with a challenge to do better and to improve its services so that it remains in charge of a major portion of the market. This conflict is, therefore, more productive than it is reductive for the Company’s morale.
Symbolic Frame
The Starbucks Coffee Company attaches a great deal of value to the symbols that we seem to observe in their paperwork and their marketing campaigns, and these symbols are used by the company personnel to derive a sense of identity. The most famous symbol that could be associated with Starbucks is that of a seductive woman who could be seen on ever coffee mug and napkin given out by the Company. This symbol intends to draw people into the business because the woman has a full head of hair which covers her naked breasts and she wears a crown on top of her head. To women, this symbol is a representation of power and for men; it carries a certain degree of sex appeal. (Revealing Truth Today, 2012)
Many say that there is a hidden meaning behind that logo which is not very modest like the logo itself, and there have also been revolving, different controversies about the Company’s choice of that symbol. There is certainly a secret message there which the company wants to share with the customers. The best case scenario about the symbol is that it points towards the allures of female sexuality, something that we could take from the position on which the woman sits on the cup. (Christain Centered Mall, 2016)
This is all evidence which says that yes, there is impression management by the company, and this impressions management has been intended for a wide audience but the customer in particular.
Recommendations
We have seen that the structure of the Organization works well in its favor, but we also see that there are a number of hierarchical levels in the Company, something which is unreasonable for a company where most of the decision making is encouraged to be segregated at the front line of the employees. So if the Company does say that the employees have the power to make decisions, the organizational structure should be flatter. Also, we have seen that the employees have sufficient extrinsic and intrinsic values to motivate them at work; it might still be a good idea to build a certain degree of goal congruence where the employees could consider the success of the Company as their own. The sources of formal and informal authority also seem to work, but it may also be useful to give some of the power and authority to the middle tier management so that they could also appreciate their roles more. Finally, the controversy which relates to the Starbucks logo requires a change of the symbol, into something more modest.
Conclusion
Starbucks is a successful Company and a good role model to follow, but that means that as we adopt the strategies that are the reasons for the organization’s success, we should also make note of the mistakes that it seems to be making and improve upon them to create a better example to follow.
Bibliography
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