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Venture Scape Strategy 2

OGL 355 Leading Innovation and Change
Group 2
Nick Barbarossa [REDACTED]

About the organization: Starbucks

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The organization our group chose is a world renowned coffee chain, Starbucks. Like many

organizations with a dream, there comes a number of new ideas and conflict that arises as a

result. Starbucks was founded by Howard Schultz in 1971, with his vision, Schultz has been able

to create a “third place” for people across the globe, a home-away-from-home if you will.

Bringing people together over a cup of coffee, and nurturing the human spirit through a cup of

coffee has always been the reason Starbucks has been successful throughout the years. From

ethically sourcing their coffee, to giving partners (employees) investments in the company as a

part of their benefits package, Starbucks seems to be doing everything right. As of recently, a

number Starbucks partners have been attempting to unionize, for many reasons, from pay to lack

of cohesive management practices, they all have one thing in common, creating a better future

for Starbucks. Our focus audience is the Starbucks partners, the primary workforce of the retail

employees that as of recently are unionizing. This journey challenges the company to enter a

(re)Dream stage and rethink the way they run their retail stores.

Types of ceremonies

The types of ceremonies needed to rally travelers is something Starbucks has succeeded at

before, a summit. A summit is where everyone gets together to hear ideas from the executive

leadership, share ideas, and ask questions to better the experience for all partners. In the past,

(now former) CEO Kevin Johnson and the board of directors, along with each area’s

management teams got together in a big open floor plan setting, enjoying a cup of coffee

together and getting reinspired on the company’s vision, “to inspire and nurture the human spirit,

one person, one cup, and one neighborhood at a time.” (Starbucks, 2022) These ceremonies have

proven to be successful in growing the company and helping the company enter their (re)Dream

stage. For this particular journey of unionizing, it's time for the executive leadership of Starbucks
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to allow the tables to be turned and have their partners to lead a summit and show them why

unionizing is beneficial for the company and their future. The opportunity for partners to

persuade the executive leaders of the company is no easy feat, so they must follow the steps

necessary to gain support for their dream.

Types of speeches

The partners of Starbucks have gone through the trials and tribulations of working tirelessly

through the pandemic all while being continuously short staffed like many others. The partners

are exhausted and have been fighting for much longer than they realize. With major changes

coming to the company soon, there is a sense of complacency that could settle in with the

partners to accept these new changes and to give up the fight. It is at this point that the partners

must pull together and climb once again, so they can fight yet again.

A progress speech could really help partners see how far they have come and the changes that

are being made with just a handful of stores unionizing. By showing the partners the progress

they have made in just a few short years could re-spark the fire within to continue to fight for

what may seem like “insurmountable vista”. Show partners what they have accomplished and

what could be accomplished if they maintain this energy and enthusiasm to keep fighting.

“...only through persistent effort can travelers close the gap between what is and what could be”

(Duarte & Sanchez, 2016).

Types of Stories

Starbucks partners need a story to help them remember what they have gone through so far. As

they are in the climb stage, it makes sense that we give them an “endure the struggle” story, this

will also mesh well with the struggles they’ve experienced during the pandemic. What story
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should the partners use? The most impactful and relevant story for Starbucks partners would be

the story of Starbucks’ first union in Buffalo. This story is about a movement of Starbucks

partners who began talking about unionizing in 2019 (Vox, 2022). At the time there wasn’t much

leverage that partners had to make change happen. It was only after COVID that they were able

to start progressing. Even then, their movement was threatened on multiple fronts. Ultimately,

they won out and reached their goal of unionizing, since then over 200 stores have unionized.

Types of Symbols

Whether a store decides to join a union or not, Starbucks partners will need a symbol that

embodies the work that has gotten them as far as they have and can serve as inspiration to keep

moving forward. Such a symbol should be an artifact “from earlier times when your team

struggled and endured to the finish”(Duarte & Sanchez, 2016). While not every store will join a

union, it is undeniable that the onset of COVID which catalyzed the union movement, is what

brought Starbucks to this current point in history. It is what brought founder Howard Schultz

back as interim leader. As such, they should have a symbol that stands for that time as a reminder

of the fight that’s been fought, and the dedicated, capable people that decide to be Starbucks

partners. The symbol that best conveys this is the Starbucks pro-labor logo.The logo itself

borrows from the design of the Starbucks logo from 1992 to 2011: the specific shade of green,

the circular design, the circle within a circle border. What is different is that the text “Starbucks

Coffee” is replaced with “Starbucks Workers Union”. The siren has been replaced with the

solidarity fist holding a shaker. As for auditory symbols, they have the slogan “‘partners’

becoming partners” which can be seen as motivating and a reminder of what they're working

toward. This slogan is a reminder for partners to remember what it is “#tobeapartner.”

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Resources:

Culture and values. Starbucks Coffee Company. (n.d.). Retrieved July 27, 2022, from

https://www.starbucks.com/careers/working-at-starbucks/culture-and-values/

Duarte, N., & Sanchez, P. (2016). Illuminate: Ignite change through speeches, stories,

ceremonies, and symbols. Portfolio Penguin.

Molla, R. (2022, April 2). How a bunch of Starbucks Baristas built a labor movement. Vox.

Retrieved July 27, 2022, from https://www.vox.com/recode/22993509/starbucks-

successful-union-drive