Starbucks: Case Study
Aims and Scope of the Study
This study will use the Unbounded Systems Thinking mode of enquiry in order to analyze the different strategic issues that are related to the competitiveness of Starbucks that focuses on the different external aspects, issues and factors, together with the internal capabilities of the company. It will focus on external drivers that are influencing the entire operation and performance of Starbucks in order to make more use of IT. Thus, it will also focus on analyzing the current situation and capabilities of the company and discuss the impact of Information Technology and Information System in Starbucks, by focusing the on the perspective of the customers, management, employees and other important shareholders. Above all, it will provide an overview of the different vital issues that are related to the system development.
Mode of Enquiry
Enquiry is considered as the action that involves the process of seeking for truth, knowledge or information that concerns something such as search, investigation as well as examination (Study Campus n.d.). There are different modes that are used for enquiry or for gathering information in order to know the truth about a specific situation such as: inductive-consensual enquiry, analytic-deductive, dialectic, multiple realities and unbounded systems thinking.
It is important to consider that the need for systems thinking is grounded in the understanding of the different problems as messes or uncultivated as well as apparently unrelated entities, rather like patches of weeds as well as wild flowers. Where in each of the entities are affecting the other aspects that results to a whole that is incapable of rigid definition as well as identification that is required by other enquiry methods. The said messes then resulted to emergence. Emergence is attributes that is considered as the functions of the whole, however, not clear or obvious at the individual component level (Study Campus n.d.).
Mitroff and Linstone identified Unbounded Systems Thinking or UST as the fifth way of knowing, or the enquiry system that avoid the traditional hierarchical ordering of the sciences as well as professions and replaces the linear order with a circular concept or relationship among the different sciences and professions. As a result, the circular concept in UST remove the hierarchical order of the discipline superiority where in each of science is considered as vital (Hemphill n.d.).
As part of UST, multiple perspective concepts are also included where in it includes three paradigms of thinking: the technical perspective; the organizational or societal perspective; and the personal or individual perspective. Thus, it is important to focus on the perspective of the three users in order to distinguish how the research looking from and what the research looking at.
In connection, different managerial decisions are often reach dialectic gridlock due to the essentially different sets of assumptions regarding the definition of the real problem. Thus, assumptions are the properties of stakeholders or any individual, group, organization or even institution that can affect as well as affected by any policy or policies of an individual or a group, an organization as well as institution. Thus, proponents of different policies are all operating with the different assumptions regarding the behavior of the shareholders of a company. Thus, the assumptional analysis plainly identifies the different managerial stakeholders’ assumptions that allow the managers to be open regarding different challenges before a final strategic policy will be adopted (Hemphill n.d.).
The said mode of enquiry will be helpful in order to analyze the aims of the study regarding Starbucks focusing on globalization, and how it can affect the entire operation of the company using the perspective of different stakeholders. It will also focus on the different assumptions regarding the current and future status of the company.
Background
Starbucks is considered as one of the most famous as well as most love brands in the world in any industry. It had literally moved beyond the walls of its traditional stores, offices and roasting and production plant (Knapp 199, p. 195). As a result, more and more people, in different places where in the Starbucks’ stores are located, are experiencing or at least heard about the brand and their products. In addition, the company has become the success story of 1990s due to its global phenomenon hits (Knapp 1999, p. 195). The company renewed its quest for a high quality coffee by offering fresh coffee that can be considered as different from the idea of different canned coffee products that are being offered by its indirect competitors such as General Foods, Nestlé, Procter & Gamble or P&G as well as Jacobs (Pendergrast 1999 p. 307)
Consequently, the company focuses its effort towards improvement of management and marketing activities that resulted Starbucks to become the top 16 Best Companies to Work for in 2007, as reported by Fortune. This shows that the company doesn’t only focus on their customer relationship but also focus on their employees. The company offers different benefits for the workers together with the best working condition that enables their employee to be motivated and works at their best. Thus, it improves the retention rates of the company.
Research Assumptions
Globalization is considered as one of the major factors that can affect the entire operations and performance of any organization from any industry in the world. This can affect the human resource management as well as its relationship with the customers. This is due to the influence of the different cultures and traditions that can affect the motivational factors as well as behaviors of the employees. In addition, it can affect the perspectives, needs and demands of the customers towards a given product or service.
It is also important for multinational companies to have a centralized information process in order for the head management to know which of their branches or stores are in great need of attentions in terms of marketing, management and other important activities. Thus, in the said aspect, the issue regarding application of IT or IS enters. This is due to the fact that centralized information processing can help the company to manage their important resources, primarily information regarding the product research and development or innovations.
References
Hemphill, T, The Unbounded Mind: Breaking the Chains of Traditional Business Thinking. - book reviews, Business Horizons, FindArticles.com, viewed 22 December 2008, <http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1038/is_n5_v36 /ai_14723305>
Knapp, D 1999, The Brand Mindset, McGraw-Hill Professional
Pendergrast, M 1999, Starbucks: The Romantic Period, Basic Books, New York
Study Campus, Lesson 2 – Principles of Enquiry, viewed 22 December 2008, <http://www.studycampus.com/PgD/itnfy/lesson2.htm#unbounded>
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