Essay on Value-Driven Organizations

Lack of leadership has proven to be one of the leading causes of companies not meeting their targets, and that's where Welch's four principles of establishing Mission and Values, applying Candor, implementing Differentiation, hearing the Voice of the team and rewarding accordingly have become very useful in building a strong leadership foundation. In my recent work assignment, I didn't feel I had many good examples to follow. Therefore, to delve into options of how to affect my teams' culture and support, my company's goal has led me to understand the difference between managing and leading. In this paper, I will review my leadership attributes, including any weaknesses, and study the opportunities for improvements to building a platform for effective leadership.

The Starbucks mission statement (“Our Starbucks Mission Statement,” 2011) comprises two important elements (a) an overarching statement of purpose, and (b) a set of “guiding principles” that interpret the meaning of the mission statement relative to six important aspects of the company’s business model (See Appendix for a complete description of the Starbucks mission statement). The overarching mission statement – “To inspire and nurture the human spirit one person, one cup, and one neighborhood at a time” – explicitly conveys the firm’s intent to extend its global presence

* The organization has strong ethical values and an ethical mission statement as follows, 'Starbucks is committed to a role of environmental leadership in all facets of our business.'

Starbucks was bought out by current CEO Howard Schultz in 1987. Since then, Andrew Harrer (2012) reports the company has grown to operate over “17,244 stores worldwide” (para. 1). Fortune (n.d.) reports in its yearly 100 Best Companies to Work for that Starbucks employs “some 95,000 employees”. From only a handful of stores in 1987 to a billion dollar franchise today, the success of Starbucks is due in great deal to their corporate culture, specifically how employees, or as Starbucks calls them, partners are treated. Joseph Michelli (2007) echoes this sentiment, “A great cup of coffee is only part of the Starbucks success equation” (p. 767).

Gain Team Member & Customer Commitment: When an organization and its team members unite around a shared set of values, they become more flexible, less hierarchical, less bureaucratic, and they develop an enhanced capacity for collective action. When employees not only share similar values – but also a similar vision – the performance of a company is enhanced. Shared values build trust. Trust is the foundation on which relationships are established, both with team members and customers alike. Values-based leadership is a way of making authentic decisions that build the trust and commitment of employees and customers.

Starbucks celebrates 40 years with 17,000 stores in more than 50 countries (Goals & Progress, 2010). Starbucks thrive on their values as a company to improve the lives of people who grow their coffee, neighborhoods where the company does business, and they care for the environment (Goals & Progress, 2010). Starbucks strives to incorporate good business practices and ethics across the globe not only for the enhancement of the company but also for the enhancement of the stakeholders and the communities the company impacts. Starbuck’s mission statement is “to inspire and nurture the human spirit. As said by Howard Schultz, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, in the 2010

Describe how alignment between the values of an organization and the values of the nurse impact nurse engagement and patient outcomes.

Prior to this class, I have recognized that my leadership skills weren't the strongest, but I knew what my values were. Personally, I exhibited the following values: accountability, hard working, independence, reliability, punctuality, determination, and openness to new experience. I conclude that these values are my greatest assets as they allow me to focus on my goals whether they be short or long-term. As a result, these values would lend themselves to my working styles which give me the drive and motivation to accomplish whatever I set out to do.

As a person I believe I have strong values and have made right choices in my life. I am a very honest and dependable person that makes a positive impact at home and the workplace. We gain out outlook on values from day one starting with our parents and on up to role models and our environment. These values can change depending on outside factors and events in our lives. Values help us differ from right and wrong and help us with decisions every day. One of the biggest venues for values is in the workplace where we face challenges and obstacles all the time. Working with others and on team’s present challenges where our values come into play on how we work cohesively.

An essential component of leadership is to articulate and exemplify the organization's core values. These values must be clear, compelling, and repeated. The leader must both "walk the talk" and inspire his/her colleagues within the organization to also live these values. Values are at the core of individual, group or organizational identity. Values are relatively enduring conceptions or judgments about what is considered to be important to an organization. Agreement between personal and organizational values result in shared values which constitute the benchmarking of a successful business practice.

Starbucks advertises two essential mission statements. First and foremost, it strives to “establish [ourselves] as the premier purveyor of the finest coffee in the world while maintaining our uncompromising principles while [we] grow(s).” (Starbucks) Reflective of its mission, Starbucks bases its strategic campaign and communications on six indispensable philosophies; structuring a pleasant work environment in which employees are treated with “respect and dignity,” incorporating diversity in all business aspects, purchasing, roasting and delivering fresh coffee, retaining satisfied customers, giving back to the community and environment, and developing

An effective leader needs to be genuine and true to the values he holds. If the leader is not honest with those he interacts with, they will not trust him for long. Being clear about values allows the leader to help establish a solid setting for the community to build upon. Strong leaders demonstrate the following values: being trustworthy, caring, focused, flexible, direct, knowledgeable, and approachable. By having a foundation that focuses on the importance of education an instructional leader can focus on clarity and purpose. Through having this clarity of focus, a leader is further prompted to be a lifelong learner (Robbins, 2009).

Starbucks is one of the top leading coffee sellers in the world. With more than 17,000 stores in more than 55 countries, Starbucks has created the ultimate brand and coffee shop (Ferrell, Fraedrich, & Ferrell, 2015). Building Starbuck’s name was a process performed by the founder Howard Shultz that focused on quality ethics and good coffee. One of the main aspects of Starbuck’s culture is its mission. Starbucks brand has been ranked number 16 in the Fortune’s one hundred companies to work for because of its honorable, ethical back-round (Lemus, von Feigenblatt, Orta, & Rivero, 2015). However, like all businesses, Starbucks has encountered some ethical issues along the way of their success.

Starbucks is an American multinational corporation that is arguably considered as the best coffee house in the globe in terms of global performance. The company has for a long time considered CSR as an important part of its operations and currently, it adopts an Anglo-American model of corporate social responsibility. This is an approach to CSR that maintains close links between shareholder interests with the operations of the organization. The company ensures that its CSR initiatives are appropriately audited so that it is able to learn of its CSR performance and not as an effort of complying with legal regulations and this is what makes the strategies adopted by the company very relevant. The corporate social responsibility codes that are derived from Starbucks’ Anglo American model have contributed to great product development by the company, efficient production and quality customer service. All these have been made possible through the company’s Corporate Governance Codes . At starbucks, the codes have provisions for the code of conduct which acts as guidelines as to how the employees at the organization behave. The code of conduct guides the entire organization including the board of

Corporate culture is a key component to the success of Starbucks. When looking at the seven dimensions of corporate culture (fn textbook pg 338) Starbucks emphasizes Team and People Orientation along with Innovation and Risk-Taking and pose less emphasis on a competitive environment or an outcome oriented approach. (see appendix c) In order to ensure a strong corporate culture Starbucks utilizes innovative and simple ways to ensure the key values are deeply held and widely shared. (fn) By visiting up to 40 stores weekly by the CEO Richard Schultz, creation of Starbucks Broadcast News to convey company news, or administering an “attitude survey” every 18 months to all employees they ensure the company and its partners (employees) are connected. (fn textbook)