Stirring Things Up

In the business world there are many things that need to be assessed to increase productivity and growth. The operation techniques that Starbucks’ adopted with having their employees constantly busy doing a function rather than waiting on the coffee was a very proactive approach to business strategy. This type of production would be considered as a process since there is a continuous flow of products being produced (Fundamentals of Management Essential Concepts and Application Chapter 5). This type of operation creates goods and services to meet the customers needs and wants. They are continuously producing more coffee and products for their customers providing great customer service and convenient availability. With the Starbucks’ company there are always uncertainties that may unravel as time passes. With the value chain management there are problems that may arise especially since Starbucks’ has several locations that they need to manage and supply. They may run into problems where there is a shortage of hard working employees that are willing and able to perform the functions effective and efficiently. This is one problem that if Starbucks’ is faced with they will be able to over come with an open mind and proper training programs. As long as they are able to motivate the employees to learn their job functions they can train them to perform the work properly. This may however lead them into financial difficulties that they may want to address as needed. With a value chain it is very important to maintain understandable communication. This is one obstacle that is popular for companies in this situation however, with this in mind Starbucks’ should be able to over come this issue with understanding and a certain amount of trust. Too much trust can lead to hardships in the company or it could substantially assist with the success of an organization. If companies can work together and share information they can learn from past mistakes and

References: Dave Grooms. The Advantages of Lean Manufacturing. Ezine Articles. Retrieved at http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Advantages-of-Lean-Manufacturing&id=784987 Akin O. Akiniaon. Thinking of Lean Manufacturing Systems. SAE International Magazine. Retrieved at http://www.sae.org/manufacturing/lean/column/leandec01.htm Fundamentals of Management Essential Concepts and Applications. Case Application: Stirring Things Up. Retrieved on page 397. Starbucks Website. Retrieved at www.startbucks.com