Starbucks Coffee Essay Example for Free

Starbucks Coffee Essay I. Strategic Problem: How can Starbucks Coffee Corporation continue to provide exceptional employee benefits package while pursuing a globalization strategy? II. Analysis of the Problem: A. Company Background and History: 1. Founders. a. Starbucks began in 1971 when three scholars-English teacher Jerry Baldwin-history teacher Zev Siegel, and writer Gordon Bowker- opened a store called Starbucks Coffee, Tea and Spice in the touristy Pikes Place Market in Seattle. b. The inspiration and mentor for the Starbucks venture in Seattle was a Dutch immigrant named Alfred Peet, who had opened Peets Coffee and Tea, in Berkeley, California, in 1966. c. Starbucks Coffee at this time stood for making top-quality, fresh-roasted, whole-bean coffee which was its differentiating feature. d. The company was created to build clientele in Seattle that would appreciate the best coffees and teas. e. Baldwin and Bowker key mission for their business was to maximize the quality of the coffee. The company purchased the finest Arabica coffees and put them through a meticulous dark-roasting process to bring out their full flavors. f. In 2000, Howard Schultz transitions from chairman and CEO chief global strategist; Orrin Smith is promoted to president and CEO. 2. Starbucks and Howard Schultz. a. In September 1992, Howard Schultz was hired at Starbucks. b. Schultzs 1983 trip showed him that there was much more to the coffee business than just providing quality beans. On his trip to Milan, Italy he had a revelation which made him see going to Starbucks should be an experience, a special treat, a place to meet friends and visit. c. Howard Schultz presented his great idea to expand Starbucks to a retail business. They feared that providing drinks would hurt them because it could hurt the integrity of Starbucks mission as a purveyor of fine coffees. d. In April 1984 , Starbucks opened its sixth store which was the first of the companys stores designed to sell beverages, and it was the first one located in downtown Seattle. The sixth store did well with the espresso bars but Baldwin felt that they were coffee roasters and their debt was too high to divest into the restaurant business. e. Schultz left Starbucks left in 1985 to start his own company. f. In March 1987, Howard Schultz, president and CEO, took Il Giornale Coffee Company to form Starbucks Corporation. B. Overview of Retail Industry 1. Financial Situation and Performance. a. Starbucks goal is to become the leading retailer and brand of coffee in each of its target markets by selling the finest coffee and related products, and by providing superior customer service. b. Company-operated retail stores accounted for approximately 85% of net revenues during fiscal 2003. c. Specialty Operations accounted for approximately 15% of net revenues in fiscal 2003. d. Starbucks went public on June 26, 1992 at $17 per share, or a split adjusted price of $1. 0625 for the companys four subsequent 2-for-1 stock splits (wwww. starbuckscoffee. com). e. Comparing Starbucks financial ratios to that of the Industry can give us a general perspective of Starbucks financial strength. This could also give some indication of stock price performance. Most of Starbucks ratios are in line with the industry average, but there are a few that could explain the poor stock performance recently experienced. Starbucks price to earnings ratio is well above the industry average, but this could be due to its relative high growth it has experienced. Return on equity is well below the average for the industry, and this could be an area of concern. This suggests that the investment made by shareholders in the firm has not produced a decent return when compared to the industry average. Starbucks gross margin is also below the average for the industry, suggesting that it is not able to cover its operating expenses as well as other firms in the industry. C. Management Practices and Philosophies 1. Howard Schultz and Benefit Program a. Schultz wanted to build a company that really valued their employees and would gain from their contribution towards the company b. In late 1988 part-timers working 20 or more hours were offered the same health coverage as full-time workers. c. Starbucks paid 75 percent of an employees health care premium; the employee paid 25 percent. Starbucks extended its health coverage to include preventive care, crisis counseling, dental care, eye care, mental health, and chemical dependency. d. In 1995, Starbucks implemented an employee stock purchase plan. e. Schultz believed that if you treat your employees well, that is how they will treat your customers. 2. Workplace Environment a. Store employees were paid around $9-$12 an hour. b. The turnover rates for Starbucks baristas ran about 65 percent. c. Starbucks turnover for store managers was about 25 percent. d. Schultzs approach to offering employees good compensation and a comprehensive benefits package was driven by his belief that sharing the companys success with the people who made it happen helped everyone think and act like an owner, build positive long-term relationships with customers, and do things in an efficient way. D. Products and Services 1. Customer Service a. Employees were trained to go out of their way, and to take heroic measures if necessary, to go out of their way, and to take heroic measures if necessary to make sure customer were full satisfied. b. The theme was Just say yes to customer requests. Baristas made sure that customers got what they wanted. Shultzs rationale was that if you treat your employees well, that is how they will treat customers. 2. International Expansion a. Starbucks created a new subsidiary, Starbucks Coffee International, to orchestrate overseas expansion and begin to build the Starbucks brand name globally via licensees. b. Starbucks Coffee International division was only marginally profitable, with 2003 pretax earnings of only $5. 5 million on sales of $603 million. c. International journey began in 1966 when the first Coffeehouse in Tokyo opened. d. Starbucks Coffee has existing partnerships with 38 countries abroad. There are more than 1500 coffeehouses in 31 markets outside North America. 3. Local Stores. a. The company sites location track record was so good that as of 1997 it had closed only 2 of the 1,500 sites it had opened; its track record in finding successful store locations was still intact as of 2003. 4. Product line at Starbucks a. Starbucks CDs, initially created from the Capitol Records library, initially created from the Capitol Records library, provided a significant seller and addition to the product line. b. In the fall of 2003 Starbucks, in partnership with Bank One, introduced the Duetto Visa card, which added Visa card functionality to the reloadable Starbucks card E. Competition 1. Competition. i)Their competitors are not a threat because their market share is doing extremely well. III. Situational Analysis: A. Strengths, Weakenesses, Opportunites, and Threats: a. Starbucks, like many other companies had some strengths and weaknesses. One of the best strengths that a company can have is a CEO who is not afraid to take a chance and try knew things. Before Shultz came over to Starbucks the company did not have any plans of major growth or product expansion. Companies should always have knowledge of what they are selling and that is what Starbucks did. They knew everything that there was to know about coffee and if they didnt they would find out. Starbucks always prepared all of their managers and employees by sending them to training seminars and classes to learn how to roast the perfect bean, brew the perfect cup and how to serve each customer correctly. Starbucks believed in quality of its products and the character and location of its stores. b. Companies all have strengths, but they also have weaknesses to. Weaknesses were very easy to see when the company was first put together. Baldwin and Bowker were very narrow-minded and had no desire to expand the company very far. The two were also afraid to try knew things such as starting an Espresso bar and a sit in area where people can sit around, talk and make new friends. Though after Shultz took over the company, it seemed as though the weaknesses started to dissolve and the opportunities began to grow. c. Shultz took advantage of the opportunity to expand the company into new areas and markets. Entering new markets brought forward the idea of creating new product lines. d. They started by selling bakery good at the espresso bars and along with selling their beans, they began to sell their Starbucks Barista home espresso machine. Opening the Espresso bar also enabled them to see the CDs that the company played while customers sat and drank. Partnering with Dreyers and Pepsi enabled Starbucks to put their name on ice cream products and the cold beverage market by creating the bottled Frappuccino. This enables the company to earn an additional profit. e. Expanding too fast is one of the most important threats that Starbucks may encounter. Opening all these new stores at such a drastic rate can cause the company to endure major debt. Debt can cause a series of chain reactions leading to lower wages, cutting benefits, closing stores and laying off workers. These are not major threats now, but at an uncontrollable rate, this is one of the main threats that can really affect the future of Starbucks Coffee. IV. Strategic Alternatives: a. Class or program that breaks down the Starbucks Coffee lingo b. Diversity Training programs c. Discontinue joint ventures. d. More Opportunity for Community Involvement Initiatives e. Reconsidering Store Placement V. Evaluation of Alternatives: A. A lot of the customers do not understand the names of the Italian drinks, names of cups, and origin of coffee beans so this class would be give the baristas drink makers an opportunity to learn how to explain the language of the company better. The directors of the board will probably not be content with this idea because it would add an extra expense to implement the program but it would benefit the employee and the customer in the long run. B. Starbucks is all about embracing diversity so this program would encourage exposure to other cultures and an opportunity to learn from others in order to broaden horizons. Starbucks tries to hire all different races so that it will create an eclectic atmosphere in each of its stores. C. Joint ventures can hurt the company imagine because less regulation of your product/service will possibly ruin your image with your shareholders and customers. D. Although, community involvement is encouraged at Starbucks it is not required. They should implement a program that lets all the partners get together once a month and go out and possibly clean up a park in the local community, for example. As a partner, I feel that this program will give each partner an opportunity to get closer to their fellow co-workers as well as making a difference in the community. Not all partners will be excited about spending time with others because they might have other plans or just like to go to work and not spending quality time outside the store. E. They need to reanalyze the density of each store in order to make sure that the closeness of the stores is not taking away from the profit of the other stores. Having more stores means more overhead cost being used because you need to supply each store with all the products. Spread out the stores so that they are not competing with each other, so that will adhere more profit. More store location could possibly mean more revenue coming into the company and the cost of invested into the store will be obtained in a small time frame so it would not be a loss. VI. Recommendations: ?In order for Starbucks Coffee Company to continue its success it must find more innovative ways to provide superior customer service. Starbucks Coffee is known for its exceptional service provided by its baristas. The baristas are content when they are continued to be given a benefit package. Although the benefit package is quite nice, Starbucks needs to find different ways to continue to motivate its employees and the incentives will vary depending on location. Although monetary incentives are a big plus they only motivate employees for so long. Employees enjoy awards that recognize their exceptional contribution, gift certificates, and feeling part of a team that becomes their family away from home. VII. Operational Problems and Recommendations: 1)A lot of the customers complain in the price of the products and drinks. Most of the pricing of the products depends on how the economy is doing. Recently, last year there was a . 10 cent increase due to increase in milk and price of coffee beans. The company had to raise their price in drinks in order to compensate the increase in price of their products. 2)The company should change advertising channels. Most of the companys advertisement is by word of mouth because customers are very content with the product or service. VIII. Conclusion: Currently Starbucks Coffee Corporation is a public company that has been highly profitable while maintaining international market share. As growth both domestically and globally are undertaken the companys image will continue to flourish. The company needs to be aware that as it grows domestically and internationally it takes on more responsibilities. The benefit package it offers to its employees is quite remarkable but at the same time be aware that each county has different political and cultural barriers. As the company keeps expanding, it will need to take several precautions that will prepare them for any financial scares.

Identity in Sylvia Plaths The Bell Jar Essay -- Plath Bell Jar Essays

Identity in The Bell Jar      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   A sense of individuality is essential for surviving the numerous emotional and physical obstacles encountered in daily life. A unique identity is perhaps one of the only true characteristics that defines an individual and is definitely a key principle for understanding and responding to one's atmosphere. In the "Bell Jar," Esther battles not only a deteriorating mental stability, but also a lack of a sense of individuality. Esther is a young, sensitive and intelligent woman who feels oppressed by the obvious social restrictions placed upon women, and the pressure she feels regarding her future. Undoubtedly these emotional burdens result not only in Esther's social and intellectual isolation, but also her impending mental breakdown. Clearly, Esther is deeply troubled by the hypocritical and often vicious world encompassing her, and feels overwhelmed and powerless to break free of her inner world of alienation. Instead of firmly establishing a genuine sense of self , Esther adopts and scrutinizes the images and personalities of the women in her life, which neither fit nor reflect her legitimate character.    Throughout the novel Esther is faced with numerous possibilities regarding her future aspirations. Although she is an extremely perceptive and bright woman, Esther has no sense of imminent direction, and instead imagines herself becoming and achieving an abundance of successes simultaneously. Upon meeting her boss, Jay Cee, Esther is immediately impressed with her flourishing balance of a career and marriage, and begins to imagine herself attaining similar achievements:    "I tried to imagine what it would be like if I were Cee...Cee, the famous editor, in an office full of p... ... The Feminine Identity. Twentieth Anniversary Edition. New York: Norton, 1983. Nizer, Louis. The Implosion Conspiracy. New York: Doubelday, 1973. Plath, Sylvia. The Bell Jar. 1963. London: Faber, 1966. ---. The Journals of Sylvia Plath. Ed. Ted Hughes and Frances McCullough. 1982. London: Anchor-Doubleday, 1998. Radosh, Ronald, and Joyce Milton, eds. The Rosenberg File: A Search for the Truth. 1983. New Haven: Yale UP, 1997. Rich, Adrienne. "Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existence." Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society 5 (1980): 631-60. Rep. In Adrienne Rich's Poetry and Prose. Ed. Barbara Charlesworth Gelpi and Albert Gelpi. New York: Norton, 1993. 203-24. Stevenson, Anne. Bitter Fame: A Life of Sylvia Plath. London: Viking-Penguin, 1989. Wagner-Martin, Linda. Sylvia Plath: A Biography. New York: Simon, 1987.

To Be a Successful Learning Team

To Be Successful Learning Team Foundations of University Studies/ GEN/195 Laura Elsner 1/2/2013 To Be Successful as a Learning Team Cooperation and communication are the main ingredients when it comes to a successful learning team. Effective team management is a vital part of becoming a successful learning team. â€Å"Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage (Thomas, E 2012) says it best. Just because we are successful on one project, does not mean failure will not revisit us. It is the trust and confidence that we put in to each other that makes failure obsolete.Being in a learning team at the University of Phoenix has really been a great experience. When working in a group, it is important to first get a feel for your group members. In our learning team, we are extremely lucky that we get along and gel great together. When working in a team, that is one of the most important pieces to this puzzle. Also, we have had an opportunity to get together for a non Univ ersity of Phoenix related activity and it has also given us a chance to get a feel for each other outside of the school type atmosphere.We felt that was a very important piece of the team bonding experience. We also understand that we all have different learning styles but luckily there not too far off from one another. When we first formed our group, we understood how much more important it is to get together and meet as opposed to trying to do a conference call with one another. We decided that at least once a week, we will meet at the Kalamazoo Public Library to do our learning team assignments so there is no confusion with what needs to be done and what our individual responsibilities are.Trusting your team members is another vital piece to the learning team puzzle. If you cannot trust the members of your learning team, it will be difficult for everyone to participate and it can also deter the group in whatever assignment that needs to be completed. Although, trust is earned and not given, every group member needs to understand that the most important thing is the completion of the assignment and every group member needs to pull his or her own weight. â€Å"Less ssertive team members will be encouraged by the atmosphere of trust in an effective learning team to take on a more directive, custodial role on occasions. The more assertive will learn that their success depends on the success of the entire team, and they will become more aware of the value of team work and joint effort in achieving goals† (Baker University Handbook, 2010 ). When assigning tasks to different group members in your learning team, you want to assign the tasks that will appeal to a person’s strengths.If you have a member that is not very familiar with a computer or someone that is not very proficient at typing, then you do not want to put that person in charge of typing your project. You want to try to cater to everyone’s strengths, while at the same time, working to strengthen some of their weaknesses. If you have the opportunity to choose your group members, it is important to choose people that you are able to get along with. Also, you want to try to bring some diversity to the group. Different people bring different things to the table, both good and bad.It is not always a good idea to bring someone in to your group because they are your friend or you like hanging out with them. Remember, the main goal of the learning team is to have maximum participation and most of all, completing the assignment, the right way. By understanding what you need to accomplish and the steps you need to take in order to accomplish your mission, working as a learning team can be extremely beneficial to all parties involved. â€Å"Those who want success should think like a planter.They should understand that having the right seed is an essential key to success, but they must also understand that the soil that they entrust to the seed is just as vital†¦ C an you honestly say the environment(s) you are in will yield the kind of harvest you are expecting? † (Thomas, E 2012). References https://twitter. com/EricThomasQuote http://www. bakeru. edu/images/pdf/AC_schools/Learning-Team-Handbook. pdf http://www. thegreatnessmind. com/2011/12/28/inspiring-quotes-from-eric-thomas-et-the-hip-hop-preacher-and-the-secrets-to-success/

How Insects Attract a Mate

If youve spent any time watching insects, youve probably stumbled on a pair of lady beetles or flies joined together in the throes of love. When youre a lone bug in a big world, finding a partner of the same species and the opposite sex is not always that simple. So how do insects find a mate? Love at First Sight—Visual Signals Some insects begin their search for a sexual partner by looking for or giving visual cues or signals. Butterflies, flies, odonates, and luminous beetles use visual signals most often. In some butterfly species, males spend much of the afternoon patrolling for receptive females. Anything that looks like a female may be inspected, especially if the object is a desired color and floats like a butterfly, to borrow a phrase from Muhammed Ali. Many species of flies perch in a place that provides a clear view of the area. The fly sits, watching for any flying object that might be a female. If one appears, he quickly takes flight and makes contact. If his quarry is indeed a female of his own species, he escorts her to an appropriate place for mating—perhaps a leaf or a twig nearby. Fireflies may be the most famous insects that flirt using visual signals. Here, the female sends the signal to lure a male. She flashes her light in a specific code that tells passing males her species, her sex, and that she is interested in mating. A male will reply with his own signal. Both male and female continue to flash their lights until they have found each other. Serenades of Love—Auditory Signals If youve heard the chirp of a cricket or the song of a cicada, youve listened to insects calling for a mate. Most insects that make sounds do so for the purpose of mating, and males tend to be the crooners in species that use auditory signals. Insects that sing for a partner include Orthopterans, Hemipterans, and Coleopterans. The best-known singing insects must be the male periodical cicadas. Hundreds or even thousands of male cicadas congregate in an area after emerging and produce an ear-splitting chorus of song. The cicada chorus usually includes three different species, singing together. Remarkably, the females respond to the song and are able to find mates of the same species from within the chaotic choir. Male crickets rub their forewings together to produce a raspy and loud song. Once he lures a female close to him, his song changes to a softer courtship call. Mole crickets, which are ground dwellers, actually construct special entrance tunnels shaped like megaphones, from which they amplify their calls. Some insects simply tap on a hard surface to produce their love calls. The death-watch beetle, for example, bangs his noggin against the roof of his tunnel to attract a mate. These beetles feed on old wood, and the sound of his head tapping resonates through the wood. Love Is in the Air—Chemical Cues French naturalist Jean-Henri Fabre discovered the power of the insect sex pheromones quite by accident in the 1870s. Male peacock moths came flitting in the open windows of his laboratory, landing on the mesh cage of a female. He tried to fool the males by moving her cage to different locations, but the males always found their way back to her. As you might suspect from their plumose antennae, male moths search for suitable female mates by sensing sex pheromones in the air. The female cecropia moth emits a scent so powerful it attracts males from miles around. A male bumble bee uses pheromones to lure a female to a perch, where he can mate with her. The male flies along, marking plants with his perfume. Once he sets his traps, he patrols his territory waiting for a female to land on one of his perches. Unmated Japanese beetle females release a strong sex attractant, which quickly draws the attention of many males. Sometimes, so many male suitors appear at one time that they form a crowded cluster referred to as a beetle ball.