The Starbucks Experience
5 Principles for Turning Ordinary Into Extraordinary
By: Joseph A. Michelli
Published: 2007
Format: hardcover, 208 pages
ISBN-10: 0071477845
ISBN-13: 9780071477840
Publisher: McGraw-Hill Professional
"From its humble origins to a name that is synonymous with coffee, Starbucks is one of the great growth companies of our time", writes founder of The Michelli Experience, Joseph A. Michelli, in his idea packed and business lesson filled book The Starbucks Experience: 5 Principles for Turning Ordinary Into Extraordinary. The author describes the the inner workings of Starbucks and how they not only revolutionized the coffee business, but also how they changed the standard rules of management forever.
Joseph Michelli examines the principles that former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz applied to turn his vision into reality. Howard Schultz envisioned transforming the typical American coffee experience from the ordinary to the extraordinary. In order to achieve this bold idea, Starbucks would not only have to change their own internal company culture, but make a dramatic impact on the very fabric of American culture itself. According to the author, that to create these landmark changes, Starbucks developed the following five leadership principles:
* Make it your own
* Everything matters
* Surprise and delight
* Embrace resistance
* Leave your mark
Joseph A. Michelli (photo left) understands that Starbucks is a very unique company that simply dominates its specific market niche. Unlike many other large growth oriented corporations, Starbucks has not gone the franchise route. The author points to the core values of the company that have fueled its growth and continuing customer loyalty. The Starbucks secret is in creating the extraordinary coffee experience. To achieve this goal, the company maintains its unique company culture where employees are empowered and engaged. The company passes the values of empowerment, entrepreneurship, quality, and service to its partners. Taken together, the Starbucks management principles, with their focus on both engaged employees and delighted customers, have provided a sterling example of conducting business the right way.
For me, the power of the book is how Joseph Michelli not only isolates the five guiding principles that made Starbucks an overwhelming success story, but demonstrates how those same principles can be utilized effectively by other companies. The author describes, in detail, the five core values that formed the foundation of the Starbucks success story. Joseph Michelli presents both the theory behind each principle, and the value in action as a guiding force for business success.
The book is an intriguing inside view of a company demonstrating that doing the right thing is also a good business practice. In a time when questionable ethics and practices have proven ineffective, the Starbucks model shows a clear alternative business model, that is both profitable and value driven. The author also points to how the Starbucks value based system can work for other organizations, regardless of their size or industry.
I highly recommend the very engaging and must read book The Starbucks Experience: 5 Principles for Turning Ordinary Into Extraordinary by Joseph A. Michelli, to anyone seeking insights into how and why Starbucks achieved industry dominance through empowering employees and providing an exceptional customer experience. The Starbucks concepts can be adapted readily to any organization through living the employee engagement and superior customer satisfaction values.
Read the insightful and very readable book The Starbucks Experience: 5 Principles for Turning Ordinary Into Extraordinary by Joseph A. Michelli, and learn how establishing values, and turning them into the company DNA, created profits and growth for Starbucks. Starbucks demonstrates beyond a doubt that value based companies are growing companies that find opportunities for new business ideas, and have a strong and sustainable bottom line.
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