Page 193 - The Starbucks Experience

A Final Word

Starbucks is an excellent model of how a company can
become a learning institution. Starbucks leaders understand
the importance of taking feedback, both positive and nega-
tive, and disseminating it throughout the company for col-
lective education and adaptation.
You may want to jump right to the “surprise and delight”
aspects of your business, immediately discovering ways to
maintain a consistent, predictable, and comforting experience
for internal and external customers. You may examine break-
downs in product or service consistency and solicit input on the
“felt sense” that people have about you and your company.
You might work with your teams to discuss ways to playfully
delight one another or to add a “prize” when serving others.
Finally, why not champion a broader sense of social
involvement for your business? You will be offering your peo-
178 ple a chance not only to grow your company, but to grow
their communities and their personal legacy in the process.
You will expose ways to build your team while serving oth-
ers outside the physical confines of your business.
So where should you start? It is typically best to begin in
areas that are in concert with your passions and that are
likely to offer immediate gains. But when it comes to your
journey with the Starbucks Experience, where you start
matters less than when. What matters is that you take
action now.

Strike While the Coffee Company Ideas Are Hot
Often we get inspired by the ideas or practices of others, but
we fail to put those ideas into operation. Given that tendency,
I offer the following plan of attack for taking the Starbucks
Experience and unleashing its potential for your business today.