You Can’t Force (or Fake) Connection

Starbucks is making decisions that alienate customers and employees alike

Photo by Eastman Childs on Unsplash

Last month, I facilitated an interactive working session for 30 people in Boston, and we wanted to make sure the group was well-fueled to keep the conversations going. My colleague called the Starbucks near her hotel the night before to see if we could get what we assumed was a simple request – a box of regular, a box of decaf, and a box of hot water with some tea bags to go. She was shocked to be told that she had to order through the app and, when she went to do so, there was no option for hot water or tea, just coffee. We were both perplexed and figured maybe it was a hiccup with this one store. I told her I’d take care of it since I lived locally, and got up a little early the next day to stop at my regular Starbucks because I knew the people who worked there and figured they would be much more helpful.

I walked in and immediately saw a friend behind the counter, so I was feeling confident that this would be a quick and easy request. He looked at me wide-eyed when I asked for something I’ve purchased countless times and said that it would take a minimum of 40 minutes to accomplish. Apparently, Starbucks recently put in new machines that don’t allow for easy brewing – everything is made individually, and the machines are too slow to keep up with a simple demand of a group coffee order.

Starbucks’ new CEO has been very public in his comments about needing to reclaim the company’s original purpose and their plan to recraft stores to cultivate more connection. But in their haste to manufacture “connection,” they’re implementing systems and processes that do the exact opposite. Here I was, a longtime customer trying to bring their product to dozens of other people – something that any brand looking to connect with customers should want – and yet, I was being told that it was impossible.

Later that day, my friend from behind the counter texted me with baffling news. Just hours after I saw him, their team was informed that their store along with the only other one close to my neighborhood would be closing just 36 hours later. These two stores were roughly a mile apart in different directions, and each were located in very dense urban areas. They served different clientele and were always busy, so poor financial performance couldn’t possibly have been the reason for their closure.

In fact, the whole reason for their closure was based on a series of decisions made over the last several years by a corporate office more than 3,000 miles away, and made by people who have no understanding of the local market or concept of what it takes to cultivate community in Boston. It’s a stark reminder that, no matter how well intentioned you may be, your systems, operations, and processes can work against you and take your organization down.

The Starbucks where my friend worked was relatively small, but for most of its existence, it still managed to provide space for guests like me to sit and enjoy our coffee while working or talking to a friend. Several years ago, the corporate office decided to overhaul the space, making it more of a “grab and go” spot and essentially eliminating the seating options. This remodel was met with skepticism and concern from the team that worked there, and they noted that this would fundamentally change the customer experience. Despite Starbucks’ corporate mandate to strip this store of its character, regular customers still maintained their relationships with baristas and there was a sense of loyalty and camaraderie when you walked in. Corporate headquarters implemented all kinds of changes – like the inability to brew more than one cup of coffee at a time – in the name of efficiency and customer focus. Stores were not consulted on these changes and there was no feedback loop to understand how their decisions were negatively impacting the customer experience. Headquarters threw curveball after curveball at this store for years, and the team still responded with grace, dignity, and, most importantly, humor to make customers feel welcomed.

So, if Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol’s statement about the restructuring is to be believed, it seems this revamp and the decisions handed down from above are exactly what precipitated the closure of this and similar stores.

“Our goal is for every coffeehouse to deliver a warm and welcoming space with a great atmosphere and a seat for every occasion. During the review, we identified coffeehouses where we’re unable to create the physical environment our customers and partners expect, or where we don’t see a path to financial performance, and these locations will be closed.”

And it seems that the CEO isn’t just focused on creating a particular type of physical environment to fulfill his vision, he’s also prescribing behavior that’s turning baristas into automated robots and making the whole customer experience even creepier (just in time for Halloween!).

Shortly before the announcement of store closures and corporate layoffs, Starbucks rolled out a new training manual for all baristas that mandated specific behaviors for engaging with customers, right down the tone of voice, scripted words, and eye contact that every team member must use. In their quest to foster human connection, they’ve eliminated each team member’s individuality and humanity, and have made customers feel like we’re a side character in The Stepford Wives.

Connection is not a checkbox, corporate mandate, or line item on a balance sheet that can suddenly turn your business around. It requires paying attention to culture and feedback, even if it’s hard to hear. Too often, organizations focus on their perceived business goals or feel-good marketing language, and ignore the actual hard work of shifting business operations, engaging employees, listening to customers, and revamping processes at their peril. Starbucks is a great example of the real dangers companies face when they claim to be creating connection, but go about it in a deeply transactional way.

What do you think? Are there ways you can foster greater connection in your own organizations that avoid the pitfalls that Starbucks has fallen into? I’d love to hear from you! Feel free to share in the comments or subscribers can reply to their emails to get in touch with me directly.