Page 157 - The Starbucks Experience

PRINCIPLE 4

Although it’s nearly impossible to act quickly enough in a
world of instant messaging and mass e-mailings, Starbucks
leadership swiftly addressed the misinformation in Sergeant
Wright’s e-mail in hopes of averting lasting damage to the
brand. Ultimately, Starbucks efforts led to a retraction e-mail
from Sergeant Wright. In it he stated,
“Almost 5 months ago I sent an e-mail to you. . . . I heard
by word of mouth about how Starbucks said they didn’t sup-
port the war and all. I was having enough of that kind of talk
and didn’t do my research properly like I should have. This
is not true. Starbucks supports the men and women in uni-
form. . . . So I apologize for this quick and wrong letter I sent
out to you. Now I ask that you all pass this e-mail around to
everyone you passed the last one to.”
The reputation of a business or brand can be seriously
142 affected by rumors, half-truths, and misinformation. Before
errant information gains momentum, leaders urgently need
to find ways to communicate the whole truth to set the record
straight.
On the flip side, in order for a business to maintain the
trust and credibility of its key constituencies, senior managers
must be willing to take full and immediate responsibility
when errors do occur.
On September 11, 2001, Midwood Ambulance Service
employees responded to the terrorist attack on the World
Trade Center in New York City. Shortly afterward, an e-mail
surfaced, which reported,
“My family owns an ambulance service in Brooklyn, NY.
. . . My uncles were at ‘Ground Zero’ during the attack, to
help the victims. They donated their time to help with this
crisis, as many New Yorkers did. A great number of people