Environmental Mission, Vision and Values of the Starbucks Corporation

Introduction

Based in Seattle, Washington, Starbucks Corporation is the largest retail coffee company in the world. As the largest coffee company in the world, the environment is an important and ongoing concern of the organization. Starbucks understands this social responsibility and the organization’s impact on the environment and continuously takes steps to minimize any and all impact on the environment. An environmental mission statement was adopted by the organization in 1992. After Starbucks Corporation became a publicly traded company an environmental committee as well as a Green Team was instituted at the corporate level. “Starbucks had an Environmental Committee that looked for ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle waste, as well as contribute to local community environmental efforts. There was also a Green Team, consisting of store managers from all regions.” (Thompson and Gamble, 1999)

Starbucks Corporation Background

Starbucks Corporation is a retail organization that purchases and serves coffee and espresso beverages, coffee beans, desserts and coffee related products. Packages of whole bean and ground coffee can also be found at specialty stores and supermarkets nationwide. Starbucks also has another venture, a subsidiary called the Tazo Tea Company, where a line of teas are made and sold at their retail locations as well as supermarkets and specialty stores.

Essential Components of the Strategic Management Process

Five essential components of the Strategic Management Process and they include: Developing a strategic mission and vision, setting objectives, creating strategies to achieve objectives, implementing and executing the strategy, and evaluating and correcting any errors. In light of the Starbuck Corporation’s strategy of social awareness and responsibility to the environment, the following components of the strategic management process should be analyzed in light of their new strategies: Starbucks Corporation should include a statement about environmental responsibility within the vision statement, adding to the existing statement. The vision statement is clear and concise, although vague, as it does not name the principles that the organization adheres to, even in brief. (As a rule, vision statements can be up to two pages, maximum).

Starbucks Mission Statement does not need any revising at this time.

Although working with the environment may be one of the principles that are followed, and such an important attribute of the organization that it warrants mentioning.

Objectives should evolve with the changing needs of the environment and the public’s perception of how the environment should be treated. As the organization evolves other components within the strategic management process that would need to be reviewed include any and all objectives (short and long-term), the strategies that would be used to achieve said objectives. For example, Charles Schultz, Founder and CEO of the organization, believes that Starbucks is getting away from its main objective of being all about the coffee and losing focus. “In a memo to his management team, he questioned why the stores are selling books and magazines and CDs. He complained that when you walk into a Starbucks, it doesn’t even smell like coffee anymore. Schulz wants the company to slow down, concentrate on its core business and serve its core customers. It’s all about the coffee.” (Daniels, 2007). Starbucks Corporation may want to instill new and fresh objectives to the organization, and focus on what they do best: coffee. After considering new objectives, the management team must then strategize to reach any new goals and implement the new strategies. New objectives of the organization could be to scale back the retail areas of the stores and gain a new focus on environmental issues.

The effects of Starbucks relatively new strategy of being “Green” will ultimately have positive implications on the leadership and culture of the organization. Leadership will have a strategic mindset that any and all strategies must work with the environment, not against it. Strategic mindset relies on a constant information flow that allows for changes in attitude through making informed decisions based on updated information. Strategic mindset not only involves short-term thinking, but long-term thinking as well. Executives need to “…maintain a strategic perspective to effectively challenge and correct the path of their organizations based on new events.” (Oser, n.d.).

The organizational culture will strive to keep true to its mission and vision statements and employees will thrive within the culture because the mission and vision statements are the truth, not some words put together