Leadership Case Study: Howard Schultz and Starbucks' Growth

This case study explores Howard Schultz's transformational leadership style and its impact on Starbucks' remarkable success and global expansion from 17 stores in 1987 to over 21,000 stores in 66 countries by 2015. Schultz's leadership is characterized by idealized influence, motivating employees, and fostering innovation. The case highlights how his approach promoted mutual respect, enthusiasm, and creativity among Starbucks' partners, enabling the company to address problems effectively and provide career counseling. Despite challenges like entering the competitive Italian coffeehouse market, Starbucks has maintained its company values and traditions, earning recognition as one of the world's most admired companies. This leadership style has significantly contributed to Starbucks' estimated $16 billion in sales, demonstrating the effectiveness of transformational leadership in achieving organizational goals.

Running head: HOWARD SCHULTZ - LEADERSHIP STYLE
HOWARD SCHULTZ - LEADERSHIP STYLE
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1HOWARD SCHULTZ - LEADERSHIP STYLE
Howard Schultz is one of the most well-known leaders in the world. The leader has at
present been serving the chair of the executive chairman of Starbucks. The following paper
discusses the leadership style of Howard Schultz and the impact of the leadership styles on the
success of Starbucks.
Howard Schultz is the present executive chairman of Starbucks. The leader is known to
have been implementing the transformational leadership style within the organization. The
transformational leadership theory implements the fact that the concerned leader would work
alongside the employees of the organization in order to recognize the change that is needed
within the given organization. The transformational leader is known for the creation of the vision
that is required for the guidance of the change through the inspiration. This also refers to the
change in the collaboration with the other members within the group (Rowe 2014). The
transformational leader is known for influencing the concerned employees to work harder in
order to achieve the goals that have been set by the management of the organization. The
transformational leader is known to have been helping the concerned members of the workforce
of the organization in achieving the set goals in accordance to the mission of the organization
(Mathias and Smith 2016). The transformational leader is also known for motivating the
concerned employees of the organization in order to be a part of the collective team that works
towards the achievements of the concerned objectives that have been set by the organization.
The leadership style depicted by Howard Schultz is the transformational style of
leadership. The leadership style that has been depicted by the concerned organizational leader
depicts that the idealized style of the influence over the employees. This helps in building the
confidence of the concerned employees of the organization thereby building the mutual respect
among the employees of the organization. The transformational leader, Howard Schultz in this

2HOWARD SCHULTZ - LEADERSHIP STYLE
case is known to have been motivating the concerned employees to display the correct amount of
the positivity and the enthusiasm towards the serving the concerned organization. The
transformational leadership of Schultz has helped in the promotion of the innovation and the
creativity among the given employees of the concerned organization in discussion Starbucks.
This helps in the matters that are related to the inflow of the ideas within the organization. The
employees of the organization tend to share the ideas and the views without the fear of being
ridiculed or reprimanded by their workplace peers (Koseoglu, Liu and Shalley 2017). The
transformational leadership had helped the concerned organization to deal with the addressal of
the problems in a proper manner thereby leading to the conditions wherein the problems of the
employees are addressed in a proper manner. The transformational style of leadership also helps
in offering the concerned employees with the required career counselling on an individual
manner (Leavy 2016). This might help in the creation of the harmony within the organizational
workforce.
Thus, from the above discussion, it might be inferred that the transformational style of
leadership as depicted by Howard Schultz has helped in the improvement of the concerned
organization in discussion, Starbucks.

3HOWARD SCHULTZ - LEADERSHIP STYLE
References
Koseoglu, G., Liu, Y. and Shalley, C.E., 2017. Working with creative leaders: Exploring the
relationship between supervisors' and subordinates' creativity. The Leadership Quarterly, 28(6),
pp.798-811.
Leavy, B., 2016. Effective leadership today–character not just competence. Strategy &
Leadership, 44(1), pp.20-29.
Mathias, B.D. and Smith, A.D., 2016. Autobiographies in organizational research: using leaders’
life stories in a triangulated research design. Organizational Research Methods, 19(2), pp.204-
230.
Rowe, W.G., 2014. Is Nonprofit Leadership Different from Business or Government
Leadership?. The Journal of Nonprofit Education and Leadership, 4(2).