Last month, Starbuck's CEO Howard Schultz circulated an internal memo to his management team. He asked them to take a step back, look at the company and find ways to get back to the company's core beliefs that started their success.
I've been watching Starbucks' growth with a critical eye, especially after I read Schultz's book a couple years ago. The growth they were experiencing then, and still are, conflicts with those core values Schultz wanted to bring to Starbucks' customer - a quality cup of coffee and the simple experience around it.
You can decide on your own what you think of Starbucks. But the point -- that Schultz has hopefully drawn a line in the sand and said they must step back and reanalyze where they started and where they are now -- is key to understanding any business and how you can be the best to your customers. Because in the end, it's all about the customer and what you give them.
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