Starbucks new CEO, Brian Niccol is trying to streamline the ordering process, eliminate bloat on the menu, and return the coffee giant to its roots as a nurturing place to visit.
I believe Starbucks will go the way of Boeing, another Seattle institution, for the same reason. The airplane manufacturer began its decline when the CEO decamped to Chicago, then DC, severing the in-person link with those being led. Niccol lives in Newport Beach, and will not move to our town, where the 3500 person headquarters is located. Instead, he’s been given a private plane and permission to manage via Zoom. How does he expect to engender trust among those who will actually lead and manage his imagined transformation, without an up close and personal management style to match the personal touch he expects of front-line workers? Culture in big corporations flows from the top, Brian.