THIS BOOK IS GOOD FOR: Business Knowledge, Inspiration, Motivation
LENGTH: 311 pages (moderate read: compelling stories, some financial statistics)
Howard Schultz, the charismatic author of “Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life without Losing Its Soul”, tells the compelling story of his return to Starbucks Coffee Company as CEO in 2008 to help right a spiraling company. When Schultz took the helm, he was faced with a number of challenges: declining coffee quality, dwindling profits, and escalating costs. The stock market crash of 2008 made a bad situation worse, and it seemed as though Starbucks was doomed to fail. Schultz writes the story through a transparently honest lens, giving a remarkable account of the determination, perseverance, and adherence to guiding principles that resulted in one of the most impressive company transformations to date.
LENGTH: 311 pages (moderate read: compelling stories, some financial statistics)
Howard Schultz, the charismatic author of “Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life without Losing Its Soul”, tells the compelling story of his return to Starbucks Coffee Company as CEO in 2008 to help right a spiraling company. When Schultz took the helm, he was faced with a number of challenges: declining coffee quality, dwindling profits, and escalating costs. The stock market crash of 2008 made a bad situation worse, and it seemed as though Starbucks was doomed to fail. Schultz writes the story through a transparently honest lens, giving a remarkable account of the determination, perseverance, and adherence to guiding principles that resulted in one of the most impressive company transformations to date.
Within “Onward” you will find:
- The importance of having strong principles and goals, both personally and in business
- Information about the inner operations of business and the unique challenges therein
- The spirit of community and power of collaboration
- The impact of being bold and shunning the status quo
- Interesting and compelling stories about the many lives Starbucks touches, from the customers to the partners (employees) to the coffee farmers
- Reassurance that no bad situation is permanent and that great change is possible, framed within an easily recognizable example
I had a very visceral reaction to this book. I felt swells of pride when reading about Schultz's travels to New Orleans and Rwanda, where he inspired the natives and promised that he would take care of them. I was overcome with sadness when he told of the death of Don Valencia, the creator of VIA single-serve coffee packets. I felt anger toward the nameless "Wall Street executives" and the journalists who doubted Starbucks' recovery. By the end of the book, I felt that as a customer Starbucks was just as much my company as it was Schultz's, and I understood the impact my purchasing decisions had on the entire organization.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CLICK HERE: Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life without Losing Its Soul
*NOTE: While I will be reimbursed a fee if you order the book from the link above, I have not been commissioned for or paid for the review of this book, nor do I own any equity in Starbucks. I promote the company and book because I truly and personally support it!
