The other day I found myself at one of the 424 Starbucks coffee shops in Seattle. I was reading Charlene Li’s Open Leadership when a young man walked into the store with a back-pack and a skateboard. I like people with skateboards as a general rule—but this one disappointed me.
He ordered a coffee and the Barista, pleasantly filled his order. This is when things got weird. The man complained that his coffee wasn’t hot enough. He was actually disappointed that the coffee ‘didn’t even burn his tongue’ as if that was the measure of appropriately hot coffee.
The Barista explained the pot was recently brewed. She apologized and offered to brew him a fresh pot right then and there. It would take about 5 minutes but she was happy to oblige. He wasn’t having it and suggested she give him an Americano and they could call it even.
“No problem, but you’ll have to pay the difference” she told him. From the measured debate that followed—his motive was clear. He was trying to get a more expensive coffee for the regular price. Overhearing the debate was fascinating. The rational of the customer quickly became ridiculous—and I found myself in awe of the Barista’s patience and fortitude. After the customer left in a huff—the other Barista reassured her co-worker that she had done the right thing.
So what does this exchange teach us about leadership? A lot. First, that the employee cared enough not to be bullied. It would have been easier for her to just give him what he wanted. Put in her shoes I may have done just that. However, she had too much respect for herself or the company to give in. She stood up for what she believed was right—even if it meant having a customer leave in frustration.
This also got me thinking about social media and the court of public opinion. Like Charlene Li illustrates through her book: Openness to complaints can lead to clarification of what a company stands for. It’s the heat of conflict through which true colors are revealed. As a fly on the wall it was clear to see that the Starbucks employee was operating from sound principles and the customer was not. If this exchange had taken place in the social media sphere—the pushy customer is quickly revealed for what he was: Untruthful and manipulative.
This exchange also provides informative insight into how Sr. Leadership works to empower Starbucks employees. Had this been at McDonalds, it would have gone down much differently. The underpowered employee—afraid for their job would likely have given the customer what they wanted. Who cares anyway?
In conclusion: it’s easy to see the importance that leadership plays every level of every organization. We are a product of the leaders we follow. They empower us to be empowered.
The Ra-Ra Rant 