Corporate Culture at Starbucks
At its most basic, corporate culture is the personality of an organization or simply how things are done around there. However, in a broader sense it refers to 'the moral, social and behavioral norms of an organization based on the beliefs, attitudes and priorities of its members.' It determines how employees think, act and feel. Every organization has a different concept about the kind of culture that it should have, therefore cultures across organizations may differ despite of having certain common elements1. However common to all organizations is the essential need of fostering a sense of family so that employees do not feel that their work is isolated from other parts of their lives. In fact the culture of an organization should be able to provide its employees with a feeling that their work and personal lives are integrated and this fact is considered and understood by their organization. The culture of a corporation is known to affect it's employee's sense of well being and health along with motivating them to go to work. It is in the best interests of employers, in fact it is their responsibility, to ensure that their employees are being provided with a healthy atmosphere to work in. In the words of Michael Duffy, CEO of OpenPages, it is extremely important to first 'capture people's hearts2. Similarly when any Starbucks' executive is questioned about the key to Starbucks' success, they unequivocally say it's their employees. According to Dave Pave, the company's executive vice president, Starbucks is not about selling just a cup of coffee but it's about selling an entire experience which would make their customers want to come back. This Starbucks experience, as they believe, is heavily dependent on their frontline employees. It is the attitudes and abilities of these people, who greet and serve more than 30 million customers per week globally, that actually makes Starbucks a success3. In 1971, three atypical business men founded
Cited: 1. Smalley, Kate "Considering the Importance of Corporate Culture" ManagerNewz. 2006 WebProNews 2 5. Graham, Lowe. 'What is a Good Job ' Employment Relationships. 2001 Renouf Books 6 7. Cleese, John "Performance Matters" The Importance of Praise. 2008 Carltons Training 8 January 16, 2001.