Brand Autopsy

Every October when I was at Starbucks, we would introduce the upcoming Holiday promotion at day-long rah-rah events throughout North America. At each event a Starbucks executive would deliver a “State of the Business” speech and the luckiest cities were those that had Howard Schultz deliver the speech. Howard would always speak from his heart and not from the script provided to him. Starbucks partners (employees) in attendance would be mesmerized by his passion for the meaning/purpose of Starbucks.

Afterwards, there would be a steady stream of Starbucks partners patiently waiting in line to touch the person and persona guiding the vision of Starbucks. Those are images I will never forget.

I was able to relive those fond memories by listening to Howard deliver his opening comments (via an archived webcast) at the recently held Starbucks Annual Shareholder’s Meeting in Seattle. (The archived webcast is archived and available for viewing until March 7.)

In his opening comments, Howard oozes passion for everything Starbucks and his speech melted the heart of this crusty, old school Starbucks partner. You can listen to Howard’s inspirational comments for yourself …

Speech Log
0:00 | The Scope of the Starbucks Business
11,000 stores in 37 countries … 125,000+ employees … 40 million weekly customers … 5 new stores open a day around the world … 300 new employees are hired each day

01:39 | Howard Muses on the Glory yet Gory Days
20th Anniversary of Il Giornale … challenges in making payroll and paying vendors … Howard’s “come to Jesus” meeting with his wife’s father

04:52 | Transformational Periods in the History of Starbucks
In 1991, Starbucks made the uncommon decision of offering full-time and part-time employees stock options and comprehensive health insurance. Howard’s money quote, “You cannot build long-term value for shareholders of first you do not build value for your people.” In 1996, Starbucks began dreaming of a much bigger company after their successful, albeit difficult, international expansion into Tokyo, Japan.

08:21 | “The Starbucks Effect”
Howard talks about how the company is preserving the core business, stimulating progress, and enhancing the customer’s experience all the while not violating the trust and respect of customers around the world.

10:34 | The Universal Appeal of Starbucks
Howard Schultz is at his inspirational best here. He closes his talk by eloquently and passionately explaining the Starbucks difference. This is powerful stuff to hear and it sums up my deepest, most heartfelt emotions for the company that has meant so much to me. I may take a few jabs at the company on this blog, but I do so with a loving and caring heart because I cannot imagine where my life would be without my time spent working inside Starbucks.