Starbuck’s has been breaking the rules ever since it was brewed up in the mind of founder Howard Schultz, and it looks like they are doing so again. Many of Starbuck’s innovations have been product-related breakthroughs such as Frappuccino and adding Music CD’s to the store’s inventory. These have been profitable innovations, but the first time the company really challenged its success formula is when it added wireless internet connectivity. Now the company is opening dozens of “media bar” stores that will enable customers to listen to and burn custom CD’s while they slurp down that Venti no-foam non-fat caramel Latte. This is a dramatic entrée into a new success formula that speaks loudly of Starbuck’s commitment to reinventing itself.
How are they able to do this when other companies struggle with even small innovations? I think there are three key elements. The first is the company’s commitment to ongoing innovation. CEO Schultz has created a climate where innovations are valued and can come from anywhere in the organization. For instance, the idea for Frappuccino came from two store managers who were experimenting with a frozen coffee drink.
A second factor is that the identity of the company is sufficiently large that many different strategic directions are possible. Rather than narrowly define itself as a coffee bar, Starbucks sees itself as a “third place”—a destination where people can escape from the rat race and other troubles, relax and experience a sense of well-being and community. Music is a natural addition to the sense of leisurely self-indulgence.
The third element is passion. I think passion is the secret ingredient in every really great success story. Why? Because business is about people, and people are passionate to their very core. Employees who are passionate about the business will give more energy, more creativity and will be more productive than the norm. Customers can tell when passion is in the air—it’s infectious and they start to catch it too. Passionate customers inspire employees in a positive feedback loop. Passionate customers also breed new customers. Someone who is crazy about your business will tell their friends and very nearly drag them to your store. In practically every early morning meeting I attend, someone is drinking from a Starbucks cup and telling somebody how they “never miss their Starbucks run in the morning.”
How much passion do you have for your business? How much passion do your employees and customers have for your business? In my experience, passion is something that leaders must consciously nurture. And it’s rare. I mostly experience it in growing companies that are still in the Rapids. Most mature organizations feel dead and (gasp!) business-like to me. Yuck! I want to feel a buzz in the air, some excitement, and people who are really happy to be doing their job that day. I get that sense at Starbucks, at CiCi’s Pizza, and at Discount Tire. It’s missing at McDonald’s, Pizza Inn, and Firestone. I’ll pick the first three over the second three at every chance, and I’m betting that most of you do too.