Listen, acknowledge, take action (Starbucks)

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.iww.org/en/node/3975

Submitted by intexile on Sat, 03/01/2008 - 12:04am.

Andrew Clark in New York - guardian.co.uk, Friday February 29 2008

It was tough - but Americans soldiered on. For three hours on Tuesday afternoon, Starbucks outlets across the nation closed their doors for a mass barista training session aimed at perking up coffee quality. But was this shutdown an espresso masterclass or simply a public relations masterstroke?

Nicknamed "fourbucks" for the hefty price of its brew, Starbucks holds a special place in modern culture. It has injected new words into popular discourse – Frappuccino, half-caff. Apparently a "red-eye" means an extra shot. And to many people, the Italian word "venti" has become an adjective meaning extra large.



Chairman Howard Schultz is anxious to reverse a worrying decline in the average number of transactions per store. Baristas, from now on, will be expected to chat more vigorously to customers rather than preparing drinks in silence.

Shots will be dispensed into shot glasses, rather than plastic cups. Staff will be checking the colour of the brew more carefully and monitoring the steam emissions from machines.

Starbucks has stuck up notices in every branch with a faithful promise: "Your drink should be perfect, every time. If not, let us know and we'll make it right."

It's all good management school stuff. But not everybody is impressed. Peter Montalbano, a barista at one New York branch, says: "It didn't really do much for me. They had this abbreviation – LATTE. Listen, acknowledge, take action, thank and ... I forget what 'e' stands for.

FULL story at link.