Evaluation of the President of Starbucks Leadership Style Report

This report provides an evaluation of the leadership style of Kevin Johnson, the president of Starbucks. The report begins with a reflective statement on leadership theories, the contributions of individuals, leaders, and stakeholders in achieving organizational vision, and the importance of applyin...Read More

EVALUATION OF THE
PRESIDENT OF
STARBUCKS LEADERSHIP
STYLE

TABLE OF CONTENTS
PART ONE REFLECTIVE STATEMENT....................................................................................3
Systematic understanding of leadership theories beneficial for aspiring leaders...................3
Contribution of individual, leader and stakeholder in executing mission and vision of
company.................................................................................................................................3
Importance of applying appropriate leadership strategies for aspiring leaders......................4
Importance of motivational theories by aspiring leader.........................................................5
PART TWO.....................................................................................................................................5
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................5
Overview of servant leadership style and challenges associated with practicing in VUCA
environment............................................................................................................................6
Evaluation of Kevin Kevin Johnson leadership style.............................................................7
Reason behind Kevin Johnson having strong personal brand as global leader......................8
Recommendation which could have been used instead of believe of Kevin Johnson for
maintaining competitive advantage and sustainability...........................................................9
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................11

PART ONE REFLECTIVE STATEMENT
Systematic understanding of leadership theories beneficial for aspiring leaders
Question leader need to ask themselves- the major question the leader need to ask
themselves is that whether they have proper knowledge of the leadership style or not. The other
one is that whether the leader has proper analytical and reasoning skill or not.
Two key aspect of leadership- These aspiring leaders do not have proper knowledge
about the leadership theories as they are learning to become a leader so it is very essential for
them to have complete understanding and knowledge of these different types of leadership
theories. The major key aspect of leadership is that they need to lead and direct the other people.
Leadership theory- The leadership theory is a style or model which is applied by the
leader in order to deal with a particular situation. The leadership theories provide the leader an
approach or way in which they need to direct or lead or motivate the employees.
Two different leadership style in VUCA environment- the two different leadership style
used in VUCA environment is the servant leadership style and participative leadership style.
Understanding of range of leadership style by aspiring leader- An aspiring leader is the
one which need to become leader of a particular group or the company. This is an individual who
wants to direct and lead a group of people in direction of achieving some or the other objective
(Maak, Pless and Voegtlin, 2016). For these aspiring leaders it is very necessary for the person to
learn about the leadership theories and models. These theories and models are some
predetermined ways of dealing with a particular situation. Thus, these models and theories of
leadership guides the way a leader must behave in a particular situation.
Contribution of individual, leader and stakeholder in executing mission and vision of
company
Organizational mission and vision- The organization mission and vision are that aspect
for which the company is running in order to achieve them. The vision is that statement of
company in which the company outlines the future position where the company wants to go in
the future. These are the end goals for which the company has been established. On the other
hand, the mission statement is the one which outlines the objectives and strategies through which
the vision of the company will be accomplished.

Individual’s contribution- For executing the mission and vision of the company every
person related with the company contributes some or the other things for the fulfilment of the
mission and vision. The individual contributes to a great extent in the fulfilment of the
objectives. The individual are the employees who work in the company. They majorly impact the
execution of mission and vision as they are the ones who work in direction of achieving the
objective.
Contribution of leader- Also, the leaders contribute in the working of the company
because leader are the one who plan all the working of the company and how to accomplish the
mission and vision is determined by the leader only (Iqbal, Anwar and Haider, 2015).
Stakeholder’s contribution- the stakeholder are the ones who are directly or indirectly
related to the business and its working. These people are mainly interested in the profits of
company which is only accomplished when the mission and vision of company is achieved.
Leader need to understand these contribution- In this case the aspiring leader needs to
understand the contribution made by every leader and other stakeholders of the company in
achieving the objectives and mission and vision.
Importance of applying appropriate leadership strategies for aspiring leaders
Leadership strategies- The leadership strategies are defined as the different types of
strategies which the leader can apply to a particular situation to lead the situation in the direction
of the accomplishment of the objectives (Zareen, Razzaq and Mujtaba, 2015). It is very
necessary for the aspiring leader to know about the different strategies of leadership.
Change leadership- For this the most important is the change leadership under which the
leader tries to implement some changes within the company. This is very essential because of the
fact that the business exist in dynamic and ever-changing world where frequent changes keeps
going on. Thus, it is very necessary for the aspiring leader to identify which changes are essential
and which are not.
Organizational potential and business context- The organizational potential is defined as
the capability of the company to which it can work in effective and efficient manner. And the
business context is referred to as the changes which are relevant for the potential of the company.
Understanding of aspiring leader- Thus, it is very necessary for the aspiring leader to
understand the different leadership strategies which are applied in business context up to the
potential of the company.

Importance of motivational theories by aspiring leader
Motivation theories- The motivation theories are the ones which are used by the leader in
order to motivate a person to perform some task. The motivation refers to as the act of
encouraging or influencing some person to work in accordance to them.
Categories of motivation theory- The two different categories of motivational theories
are content theory and process theory (Choi, Kim and Kang, 2017). The content theory is the one
which outlines what factors motivates the person. In contrast to this the process theories
highlights the way a person is motivated that is how the person is motivated.
Employee motivation- it is very necessary for the leader to maintain employee
motivation. This is majorly because of the reason that if the employee will not be motivated then
they will not be able to work to their fullest potential.
Appreciative inquiry techniques- It is very necessary for the aspiring leader to know
about the appreciative inquiry theory. It is important because of the fact that this is a technique
which helps the aspiring leader to identify the reason behind everything going on smoothly and
try to maintain those factors so that the future work also goes well.
Knowledge of aspiring leader- It is very necessary for the aspiring leader to have
knowledge about a range of motivational theories because this helps the leader in motivating the
other employees to work in direction of the achievement of the group goals.
PART TWO
INTRODUCTION
In the competitive business world, it is very necessary for the companies to have a use of
good leadership style in order to provide direction and guidance to the other employee. This is
very necessary because the business exist in dynamic world where many changes keep on taking
place which needs to adapt by the business (Zhao, Hwang and Lee, 2016). Thus, for this the
leader plays an important role in managing and leading the change. The present study is based on
Starbucks which is an American coffee shop founded in 1971 in Seattle.
This report will start by providing overview of servant leadership style and challenges
faced with its practising in VUCA environment. Further, the analysis of the Kevin Johnson
leadership style will be done along with the discussion that why Kevin Johnson have strong
personal brand as an effective leader. In the end some recommendation will be provided for
improvement.

Overview of servant leadership style and challenges associated with practicing in VUCA
environment
Meaning- The servant leadership is a style or a leadership philosophy which is based on
the belief that the effective leader is the one which serve to other people rather than focussing on
the accruing of the power or the taking of the control. The main emphasize of this type of
leadership is on taking up of responsibility and not on the exercising of the power on others
(Shao, Feng and Hu, 2017). This type of leadership that is servant leadership mainly focuses on
the ethical leadership because it is very necessary for the leader to maintain the dignity and
values and ethics which governs the business and its operations. The major characteristics of the
servant leader is the one that they share the power and put the needs of the subordinates and the
employees first and help people in developing and performing up to their maximum capacity.
The major example of servant leadership into practice is the Marriott International
wherein the founder Bill Marriott always emphasizes on culture of the service. That is organizing
culture for both the consumers as well as the company itself. The more emphasizes of the
founder was on the spirit to serve the consumers and not to earn the money.
Challenges faced by servant leadership in VUCA business environment- There are
many different difficulties faced by the servant leader because of the fact that the business
operates in the VUCA environment. The VUCA is an acronym which stands for Volatility,
Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity. The major reason underlying this fact is that the
business operates in the dynamic and ever-changing world and there are always some or the
other changes (van Prooijen and de Vries, 2016). Thus, the business context is always one of the
VUCA elements that is in business environment there are always either complexity, ambiguity or
uncertainty and volatility. Thus, for a servant leader it is very difficult to operate in such type of
environment. For instance, for dealing in uncertain situation the servant leader has decided
whether they have to go for the option or not. Thus, this takes a lot of time to decide (Fiaz, Su
and Saqib, 2017). This is majorly because of the reason that the servant leader takes a lot of time
to take the decision this is majorly because of the fact that these types of leader first consult
every little thing related to the uncertain event then decide what to do. Thus, this takes a lot of
time in taking the decision as to whether the change will take place or not. Another complexity
faced by the servant leader is that this is not suitable in every type of organization. This is mainly
pertaining to the fact that in every business organization it is not possible for the leader to keep

the needs of the employees on priority. Thus, this is not at all appropriate in the VUCA
environment.
Evaluation of Kevin Johnson leadership style
Kevin Johnson leadership style- Kevin Johnson is the president and Chief Executive
officer (COO) of Starbucks who is a passionate leader who carries on the legacy of Starbucks in
the direction of the growth and development of the company. Kevin Johnson was appointed for
Starbucks in the year 2009 as the board of director and is serving a record setting transformation
and growth for the company. The leadership style used by Kevin Johnson is the servant
leadership style (Berraies and Zine El Abidine, 2019). This style is being used by Kevin Johnson
because of the reason that this style is based in the benefit of every person and stakeholder within
the company. As this focuses in the fulfilment of interest area of every stakeholder it means that
the overall company will be in the direction of the accomplishment of the goals and mission and
vision of the company.
Also, this style of leadership is chosen by Kevin Johnson because of the fact that this
encourages people and other employees to work in more effective and efficient manner. This is
majorly pertaining to the fact that Kevin Johnson cares for all the needs of every employee thus,
they perform their task with great efficiency. This is evident from the fact that the financial
performance of the company improved after Kevin Johnson joined the company. Also, the
company is developing more innovative beverages to attract more of the consumers and also is
expanding in China as well (Kang, Solomon and Choi, 2015). Further, Kevin Johnson has also
started the concept of own mobile order application on phone which is helpful for the consumers
to order the food and other beverages from the mobile phones as well.
Positive elements of leadership style- this type of leadership adopted by Kevin Johnson
was very helpful in improving the company and its performance. This is evident from the
positive elements of the use of this leadership style. Some of the points were discussed above
and some of them are like Starbucks has invested in the rights of developing and operating in
new Princi Italian bakery which is located outside Italy and deals in bakeries all over the world
(Quintana, Park and Cabrera, 2015). Also, the leadership of Kevin Johnson includes the touch of
ethical consideration within the working style. This includes support for consumers and making
informal communication with them so that they can know all the flaws in the product if the
consumers think so.

Negative element of leadership style- as everything has two side’s one positive and one
negative. The negative side of the leadership style of Kevin Johnson is that some people are in
dilemma that whether some of the decisions of Kevin Johnson will work or not. These are like
whether the delivery system of the company by way of mobile app ordering will be successful or
not. This is negative because of the reason that the consumers have perception that coffee means
break and free time, and Kevin Johnson has launched the online mobile ordering app. With this
app the consumers can order their requirement and the order will be delivered to the consumers
at their place (Maria Stock, Zacharias and Schnellbaecher, 2017). Thus, there might be
possibility that the consumers might not like this idea as this will reduce their free time and time
to go out and to shill with their friends and family.
Stakeholders and their views and comment on leadership style of Kevin Johnson- all
the stakeholder of the company has either positive or negative say on the leadership style of
Kevin Johnson. Some of the employee’s states that the company thinks that they are machines
and they just have to work. This is a negative feeling of the employees of the company as they
just want the company to achieve the objectives of the business in any condition possible. The
pay of the student who are being is employed in the company is very low as they are not able to
meet their rent and food facilities. Thus, these are the negative feelings of the stakeholders of the
company.
In contrast to this some of the employees feel positivity at the workplace in Starbucks.
This is majorly due to the fact that the company hire most of the student and aspirin student and
this is positive. This is mainly because of the reason that these are more innovative in thinking
and are easily able to learn new and advance things. The other positive thing at Starbucks under
the leadership of Kevin Johnson is that the stress is overwhelming in the company (Alonso‐
Almeida, Perramon and Bagur‐ Femenias, 2017). This is majorly because of the reason that the
company creates so good environment that the employee in situation of stress also feels good in
the company.
Reason behind Kevin Johnson having strong personal brand as global leader
There are many reasons behind Kevin Johnson being a global leader and having a strong
personal brand (Sudha, Shahnawaz and Farhat, 2016). The major reason is the fact that after
Kevin Johnson has joined the company it has gone in the direction of achievement of the group
goals and the company has gone high in the profits of the company. Another major reason for

Kevin Johnson to become a global leader is that around 70 % of the employees of the company
are the student or aspiring student. This step is taken by him because of the major reason that the
students are young and innovative and they can learn any new thing faster then any other person.
Also, there are many changes taking place within the business environment very frequently thus,
it is very necessary for Starbuck to have young and qualified workforce. Another major reason is
that Kevin Johnson calls every employee a partner of the company. this build a positive and
affectionate position in the minds of the employee.
And because of this reason the employees’ work more efficiently and effectively
(Mekpor and Dartey- Baah, 2017). Also, the one more reason for Kevin Johnson to become a
global leader is that it majorly works for the fulfilment and satisfaction of the employees within
the company. This is very necessary because of the employee will not be satisfied with the
working of the company then they will not work up to their fullest potential. Thus, for this Kevin
Johnson motivates its employee to perform hard by offering them free bag of coffee every week
and one free food and drink in accordance with their shifts within the company. Also, Kevin
Johnson provides for around 30 % if discount to all its employee son each and every food and
beverage product provided by the company.
Recommendation which could have been used instead of believe of Kevin Johnson for
maintaining competitive advantage and sustainability
Just using the strategies by the company is not enough as there are many changes taking
place within the business environment. Thus, in accordance with the changes taking place within
the business environment there are some of the recommendation which needs to be considered
by the Starbucks and Kevin Johnson. Some of these are listed in the following points connected
below-
The major recommendation for the company which Johnson could have used is providing
the employee with the financial and non- financial incentives and perks and benefits (Huertas-
Valdivia, Gallego- Burín and Lloréns- Montes, 2019). This is necessary because of the fact that
this will motivate the employee to a great extent. The financial motivators include the bonus and
incentives, cash advances and many others. On the other hand, the non- financial incentives or
motivators include promotion, recognition, respect and other non- monetary benefits. Also, if the
monetary and non- monetary benefits are being provided to the employee of Starbuck then they
will be more engaged with the company and will be more motivated to work in better and

efficient manner. This will increase the morale of the employee and will keep them engage with
the company. This is majorly because of the reason that they will understand the fact that if more
profits are earned by the company then the employees get the benefits thus; they work harder to
earn more profit. Thus, this will provide the employee with more incentives and also recognition.
Another major recommendation for Kevin Johnson for improving the state of the
company to next level is that to use the democratic leadership style along with the servant
leadership style. This is majorly because of the reason that the democratic style of leadership will
involve each and every employee to take participation in the process of decision making. This is
majorly because of the reason that the employees are the ones who actually performs the work
and they better know that what changes are being required in the workplace and the structure of
working. Thus, it is very necessary for Kevin Johnson to take the ideas and viewpoints of the
employees. This will improve the workplace environment and organizational culture. Thus, this
will improve the overall company and its working (Yee, Tan and Ramayah, 2017).
CONCLUSION
From the above study it can be concluded that the success of the company majorly
depends on the leadership style chosen by the leader of the company. This is majorly because of
the fact that the leader is the one who directs and lead the other employees in the way of
accomplishment of the group goals. The present report started with the discussion of servant
leadership and the challenges faced under the VUCA business environment like delay in decision
making and many others. Further, the discussion was done on the style of leadership used by the
COO of Starbucks which is Kevin Kevin Johnson that is the use of servant leadership and its
positive and negative impact of the leadership style. Next the discussion was on the reason why
Kevin Johnson is a global leader and in the end some recommendation were highlighted like
giving perk and benefits to the employees.

REFERENCES
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