"False Promises!" Howard Denounces Starbucks' Former Management!

According to Bloomberg reports, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz has further strengthened his influence over the company during his third tenure at Starbucks. In an April 15th video message to employees, Howard Schultz criticized the ineffective short-term decisions made by former management and condemned the false promises made by former management to employees.

Employee Feedback and Management Response

Yesterday, interim Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz discussed in a video message to employees the feedback he received from employees across the United States during recent video conferences. He expressed that from the meeting feedback, he could understand the employees' grievances over the past few years. Many short-term decisions by the former management had adverse long-term effects on the company, and multiple promises to employees were not fulfilled. Therefore, our first priority now is to reverse the current situation!

Although Howard Schultz did not elaborate in the video, he stated that he would make better long-term decisions that bring significant short-term benefits to employees, while also promising that all future commitments made to employees by the company would be fully honored.

Employee Concerns and Company Commitments

In the video, Howard Schultz also mentioned that the most feedback received in recent video conferences was about employees' desire for better training, reasonable working hours, and adjustments to salaries and benefits. Additionally, feedback was provided that multiple stores were facing issues with important machines such as ice makers and espresso machines being broken without funds for repairs, or repairs were requested but relevant personnel did not arrive on time. Therefore, we (Starbucks) will first address the main issues affecting the company, including personnel training, salary and benefits, and internal company management.

Leadership Changes and Market Reaction

Earlier, after former Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson announced his retirement, the Starbucks board decided to appoint Howard Schultz as interim CEO until a new successor is selected. On his first day back, Howard Schultz made the decision to stop stock buybacks and fired Starbucks' former Chief Legal Officer, Rachel Gonzalez.

The Chief Legal Officer had been managing stock buyback-related matters for the past year and earned $5.3 million during the entire buyback process. After her dismissal, current Starbucks board member Zabrina Jenkins will serve as interim Chief Legal Officer.

Facing Howard Schultz's forceful approach to reversing the situation after his return, various investors are concerned that these plans may squeeze profit margins. Consequently, Starbucks stock has been under pressure for several months and has continued to decline since Schultz's return. As of April 14th, Starbucks stock had fallen by 32%, compared to the S&P 500's decline of 7.8%.

Labor Relations and Future Direction

Facing the escalating labor union events, Howard Schultz did not directly mention solutions to related events in this employee video, but promised that he would oppose the "brilliant ideas" shared with him by partners.

At the end of the video, Howard Schultz said: "We still have a lot of work to do. Therefore, we must reformulate our plans. In addition to solving internal company problems, we also need to quickly enhance the experience for customers, partners, and third parties."

Image source: Internet

For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat official account: cafe_style)

For more specialty coffee beans, please add private WeChat FrontStreet Coffee, WeChat ID: kaixinguoguo0925

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473