“If you pour your heart into your work, or into any other worthy enterprise, you can achieve dreams others may think impossible. That’s what makes life rewarding.” (Schulz 10) Current chairman and CEO of Starbucks, Howard Schultz, has built his foundation on this idea. His vision is to inspire others to pursue their dreams as well as inspire leaders to aim high. In other words, he wants leaders to surround themselves with “winners” and by doing this these leaders will have a more gratifying victory in the end. Schultz’s main goal is to “reassure people to have the courage to persevere, to keep following their hearts even when others scoff. Don’t be beaten down by naysayers. Don’t let the odds scare you from even trying.” (Schulz 7) Growing up poor in the projects, Schulz truly believes with hard work and determination – one can achieve their dreams and be successful.
Howard Schulz became CEO in 1987 – he began as an entrepreneur and persuaded investors to believe in his ideas for the company. Over a span of about ten years, Starbucks began with six local stores and less than 100 employees to a national corporation with more than 1300 stores and 25,000 employees. For Starbucks, it was not just about making a profit and growing – it was about creating something different than ever before. “It’s living proof that a company can lead with its heart and nurture its soul and still make money. It shows that a company can provide long-term value for shareholders without sacrificing its core belief in treating its employees with respect and dignity, both because we have a team of leaders who believe it’s right and because it’s the best way to do business.” (Schultz 5) This is Starbuck’s main vision as a company and they believe by following these core values their company will have success.
Schulz is a great example of using inspired vision from the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership. (Kouzes and Posner 19) Schultz encourages others to have big dreams and to not be afraid of failure. His clear vision is seen through people around him and his passion then gets others to believe these ideas. Schultz believes that the best way to inspire loyalty and trust in customers is by word of mouth, patience, and discipline. The most powerful brands are built based on strength of human spirit and heart not on advertisements. (Schulz 248) Another leadership style used by Schulz is Servant Leadership Theory. “Every one of them is an individual who needs both a sense of self-worth and the financial means to provide for personal and family needs.” (Schulz 138) To Schulz, it is crucial that all of his employees feel extremely valued and worthy. Starbucks creates an environment for all employees to grow and prosper at any level position. They are given the opportunity for success because they are valued and feel appreciated by the company.
Like any CEO of a company, Schulz encountered conflicts while implementing his vision for Starbucks. Schulz was a determined young entrepreneur when he started and his first plan of action was for the fast growth of the company. His first conflict occurred when he took over the company – he realized that it wasn’t possible to sustain a certain high level of earnings and build the foundation needed for fast growth. Thus, the company lost money for a few years. He realized the foundation of the company is needed for fast earnings. (Schulz 141) Schulz’s major conflict as a strong-minded leader was restraining himself. In other words, he had difficulties allowing other’s ideas to develop before passing judgement. Schulz was so captivated by his own vision that sometimes he would crush other people’s ideas that didn’t match up with his vision. (Schulz 205) Schulz changed his mind set to try to compromise and use other’s ideas in the company. “When visions are shared, they attract more people, sustain higher levels of motivation, and withstand more challenges than those that are singular.” (Kouzes and Posner 104)
“In those early days, as I worked to build trust, I began to envision the kind of company I ultimately wanted to create. Fostering an atmosphere in which people were treated with respect wasn’t something I considered an intriguing option; it was essential to the mission of Starbucks. We could never accomplish our aims unless we shared a common vision. To attain that ideal, we needed to create a business that valued its people, that inspired them, that shared its rewards with those who worked with us to create long-term value.” (Schulz 106) Schulz measures the success of Starbucks based on these values. He believes a company that includes a common vision and creates value is crucial to its success. As mentioned in the autobiography, “You have to enlist others in a common vision by appealing to shared aspirations.” In other words, the shared inspirations inspire the company’s values which therefore led to Starbuck’s success.
Like Howard Schulz’s vision – the main goal of my vision is to inspire others. I really do believe it is important for others to believe in the leader’s visions for an organization. Being an inspiration to others is something Schulz believes leads to company to success. “If you’re building an organization, you realize that you can’t do it alone.” (Schulz 83) I agree with Schulz’s idea that teamwork is needed for the company’s success. Working together brings together new ideas as well as creativity. I also find the Servant Leadership theory to be a useful leadership style. I think it is important to value your employees and take care of their needs to make them feel appreciated. Without your employees, your organization is limited for growth and prosperity. At thirty-four years old, the company was officially Schulz’s. He stated, “what would keep me on track was not the size of my holdings but the heartfelt values and commitment to building long-term value for you shareholders.” (Schulz 98) Schulz’s passion for the company is something that I want to continue in my business ventures in the future. I think passion leads to success. I think a leader’s passion can bring together an organization to be the best that I can be.
I think I would have many critiques for Howard Schulz in the beginning but as he grew as the CEO of a company he overcame and gained leadership skills needed to be successful. At first, he wasn’t able to share his visions – he was strong-minded and was unsure if sharing his visions with others was the way to go. He then learned that sharing his vision and making the company into a team that “success is sweetest when it’s shared.” (Schulz 337) I measure success by the amount of positivity found in a work environment. I believe positivity is the most important way a group of people can work efficiently as a team. That brings me to my next point about teamwork. “Collaboration is sustained when you create a climate of trust and facilitate effective long-term relationships among your constitutes. You have to promote a sense of mutual dependence-feeling part of a group in which everyone knows he or she needs the others to be successful. Without that sense of “we’re all in this together,” it’s virtually impossible to keep effective teamwork going.” (Kouzes and Posner 239) I feel that once teamwork is established in the organization – ideas are brought together and the company can then become a powerhouse. With teamwork and positivity, there really is no competition for the company. These two elements combined keep all employees from all different levels on the same page. It creates job satisfaction for everyone when all employees are committed to being passionate about their work as well as bouncing ideas off of each other to bring success to the company.
Two things I learned that stood out to me were when Schulz spoke about how Starbucks planned to build a big business on a foundation of small business values. (Schulz 277) I think that is a great concept to follow. I think that is something all big businesses should attempt to follow in order to maintain the company’s values. I also gained knowledge about how significant it is to have passion for what you’re doing as a someone in the business world. To be successful, it is not all about the money but instead the passion, commitment, and enthusiasm of a dedicated group of people. The dedication of the people to the company will lead the company to success.
In conclusion, Howard Schulz has created a clear and precise vision for Starbucks. It really is an inspiration to others. He started off living in the projects and poor to really showing people that if you believe and are passionate to succeed you actually can. He used his determination to benefit and add value to the company. He strengthened a company and got people to believe in what he believes in. I think that is the ultimate goal at the end of the day – for your passion to inspire other people’s passions for the company. Therefore, if everyone in the company is on the same page- the company will have great success.
Kouzes, James M., and Barry Z. Posner. The Leadership Challenge: How to Make
Extraordinary Things Happen in Organizations. 5th ed. 2012. Print.
Schultz, Howard, and Dori J. Yang. Pour Your Heart into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One
Cup at a Time. New York, NY: Hyperion, 1997. Print.