IND301A Industry Consulting Project

Starbucks has started its business operation in 1971 as a retailer of bean, and ground coffee, spices, and tea with a store in Seattle. Nowadays, it has expanded its business, it operates worldwide in 70 countries, with more than 24 thousand retail stores. The company operates in the food retail industry. The company goal is to grow under the highest quality standards using ethical practices. The company believes in treating its partners with high respect, and dignity. It is considered as a place for neighborhood gatherings, meeting friends, and families.  It offers a range of exceptional products, the customer is allowed to consume them in the store, or anywhere else. It offers more than 30 single-origin, and blends of coffees. It has a strong commitment to the environment, as it highly care for the planet through its regime of energy, and water conservation, green construction, and recycling ( Starbucks Corporation, 2017). The company believes in fostering thriving communities.

Starbucks organizational structure is classified as a divisional structure, as its business is divided according to the location, and the brand, as follows:

• Geographic divisions: Includes the Americas (US, Canada and Latin America), Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), Asia Pacific and China, and all other segments.
• Brand-based divisions: Each brand represents a division managed by the head of the division, including :
• Coffee, non-alcoholic beverages, food
• French pastries, and breads
• Nourishment juices, and foods
• Teas, herbs, roots and spices

On December 1, 2016, a new structure was announced to expand the president, and chief executive officer roles, and responsibilities. It has been effective since April 3, 2017. The following figure shows Starbucks new organizational structure. 

The new structure caused major changes, as it includes 35 senior vice presidents, and 12 executive vice presidents. It is a tall structure that represents high hierarchical (Dudovskiy, 2017). It is expected that the de-layering initiatives would take place to offer the coffee retailers the flexibility required to adapt faster to changes in the global marketplace.

I am considered as a consultant to the organization to examine the relationship between the cultural diversity, and the employee performance in Starbucks worldwide. 

References

Dudovskiy, J. (2017, April 14). Starbucks organizational structure: A tall and divisional . Retrieved from Research Methodology: https://research-methodology.net.

Starbucks Corporation. (2017, Oct. 31). Starbucks company profile. Retrieved from Starbucks Corporation: https://www.starbucks.com.