Let's get the weekend OPEN THREAD going!

Have something to say that isn't covered by one of the recent themed posts? Here's your chance to spout off or ask questions about anything Starbucks-related. || Jump to the second page of comments.

Comments

[cafe noir]

I have a question...I am still a fairly new partner at sbux and my manager is very adamant about writing names on cups. I try to do this to, as I have seen how much it simplifies handoff. However, none of the other partners at my store will do this, no matter how much effort I make to get people's names. I don't tell the others to do this, but when ever I take the order I will call the name also. But nobody pays attentions to the names and nobody cares; which is unfortunate, since we are in a mall and a LOT of people can't seem to tell the difference between a white mocha vs. a carmel macchiato. So..names on cups mean fewer stolen/confused drinks and would save time. But NOBODY wants to do this. I am just curious as to what the general opinion is. Do names on cups really make a difference, as far as most of you are concerned, or are they just an annoying hassle to deal with and bog the line down?

[Tall Italian]

Sometimes partners get weird with asking each customers name...I guess they think it gets tedious? No idea. But hey...if they want to remake drinks because the wrong person grabs someone else's drink...that's on them. I personally don't see a problem with it. It's just partner's being stuck in their ways. Personally, I don't do this is my store but then again, I don't work in a mall and therefor there is seldom any need to do so.

[Tall Italian]

and just to clarify...I don't see a problem with name-writing on cups. Not partners refusing to do so.

[me myself and I]

We almost never write names on cups. The last time we tried to do this it was quite embarrassing, since most names got written wrong. And if you ask everyone how his/her name is spelled, it takes way to long. But I guess it is time well spend in a mall store.
I am in a neighborhood store and the only times we ever write names on cups is the few times over the summer that one specific tour bus stops by. The driver seems to like us and even calls ahead, so we know ahead of time he is going to come with about 50 people.

[Seadanes]

I'd say if your manager told you to do it, then you should mention it to your manager so that the manager can enforce this policy. As a customer, I think that this would be really helpful in a mall store. I've had my drink taken several times, even though the tea bags clearly hang down and should alert someone it's not their latte.... ;-)

[ImChiquita]

The reason I write the names on cups is two-fold:
1. so that the drink being called is specifically for Dave or Russ or Lisa. Not some moron hogging the hand-off plane.

2. So that I may get to know my Regulars better. It only takes me a few days to associate the Regular with their favorite beverage, and by then, writing their name on their cup is habit.

I'm a 7+ year SBUX Partner.

[Lilith]

Anyone want to talk about how in Q1 2011 they will take away non-coverage for store managers? I think it's the dumbest move ever. I hope the lawyers line up in droves to represent managers if they don't start getting paid for overtime.

[ThatsScary]

say what, lilith?!?!?!

[Marcus]

Free pastry idea is good--I am due a pastry cos I got a really, really stale donut the other day. When I went back I asked before I bought another donut if the ones in the case were from that day (this is a really surly barista) and she actually what was friendlier than usual by dead-panning, "No, they're 2 years old." Usually if I had asked a question like that she would have rolled her eyes and ignored it. I told her that the one I had the other day *tasted* like it was 2 years old and I couldn't even eat it because it was so bad. I thought she might offer a replacement, but she did not. So I went ahead and bought another donut anyway. As I put it, "I guess I'll give it a go if you say it's fresh." And, it was fresh that time.

So anyhow, I'll consider the offer on the 23 my reimbursement for the inedible one I got before--the only question is whether I can wake up in time. Why does it end at such an ungodly hour? I lately get up around 11:30 AM, so it'll be a stretch for me.

[BOSTON STARBUCKS REBEL]

No more non coverage? Thats how they're increasing the partner experience?

[Darth Sidamo]

As an ex barista in a mall store in the midwest (the manager there, female mid 20s, was pretty worthless and only cared about partying) I ran into the same things you did. There are many problems with names. Mainly the amount of time it takes to ask for a name is greater than remaking a drink every once in a while.

Also this scenario happened. I made a Strawberries and Creme and called it out for Alex. This 14 year olds name was spelled Alixx and she refused to take the drink because we spelled her name incorrectly. This was clearly the drink for her and in a moment of unneccessaryness she refused the drink. It wasnt remade and within a few minutes she cracked.

[ash_sk8s]

Names can be tricky. I worked in an airport store so there were all kinds of people, and lots of foreign names. We also had a girl who struggled with English and could not spell any names correctly. "Tom" was "Tame". It was absolutely required to do so at my store though, and for the most part it is a really good idea.

[ExPhillyareaSM]

If you work in a mall store names are key to making your customers' experiences positive. I managed an outlet mall store where we had 1300+ customer on any given Saturday or Sunday. During the holidays it was 1600+. (Don't even ask what Black Friday looked like). We had a ton of foreigners who often times didn't remember what they ordered. Getting the customers' names lets them get the right drink and doesn't make the baristas remake drinks over and over again.
If your fellow partners aren't using the names you provide them when taking orders- then they will suffer every time they have to remake a drink.
I would mention it to your SM and let her decide how she wants to handle it.
When you are on the bar, I would suggest you ask your fellow partners for customers' names so you don't have to remake drinks.

[koolaid free]

Lilith:

Please tell me more? Will store managers move to a general manager model, with 40 hours of designated time? Or, will we have to write the schedule, reviews, and all of the millions of other things we squeeze into our 12 ours on "downtime"? If it's the latter, I will be putting my resume out.

Sorry. There is only so much I can take. :(

[@usorthem3]

Does anyone else have baristas doing tips? Over the last three years the Shifts rotated who was doing them each week but next weeks schedule has one of the baristas down for it. Is this so they can save $3 difference for the hour paid to do them?

[no-to-names]

One time, my assistant manager asked a man for his name and he laughed, then said "GOLDEN PISS" as loudly as he could. This is why I do not ask for names anymore.

Another reason: If you are bad at remembering names in general and you have to ask the same person every single day (I'm talking about weeks on end), they start to get pretty insulted. Some people are better at the name game than others.

[coffee in exile]

I enjoy the baristas at my local starbucks asking for my name, even if I'm a fairly regular customer and it's a slow store, so it's not really necessary. My name has several accepted spellings, but it's not worth getting worked up if it's spell different from my spelling. It's nice that they're making the effort! And when the store does get it's busier times it helps the 8 million caramel macchiatos and white mochas go out in the correct order, it seems.

[....]

no non-coverage = new job for me

starbucks now = mcdonalds

[isabella]

We have baristas and shifts that do tips at our store. I really doubt it is to save $3. I think its nice to change things up a bit.

And I can't imagine them taking away non coverage after all of the feedback they must have received during the survey about it.

[Disbeliever]

troll - noun - one who posts an inflamitory message in an attempt to rile up other people on a message board. See: Lillith.

Seriously, I don't think people should get too worked up over some unverified comment by someone we don't even know works for Sbux.

As a SM in California, I'm not too worried about it, since I'm locked into only 40 hours a week, or overtime.

[gc]

As a SM in California, I'm not too worried about it, since I'm locked into only 40 hours a week, or overtime.

Posted by: Disbeliever | March 20, 2010 at 12:26 AM

Until it happens. Then you'll look back at this time and realize how naive you were not actually not listen to the "unverified comment."

I'll get the popcorn.

[javagirl666]

There was a time when managers didn't get non-coverage and we managed just fine. This was also a time when we had to hand write a sheet with all of our invoices for the week and send it into Seattle and when we had to phone in our roasting plant orders. Very time consuming. And about the names on cups..I think this is something the company wants us to do..it increases the customer connection and lessens the chance of having to re-make multiple beverages due to people taking the wrong drink.

[Waltie]

"Does anyone else have baristas doing tips? Over the last three years the Shifts rotated who was doing them each week but next weeks schedule has one of the baristas down for it. Is this so they can save $3 difference for the hour paid to do them? "

I've worked at many different stores, all of which had different "rules" about this kind of thing. Some said only shifts can do tips, some only baristas, and some said either one.

On the one hand, dividing out tips is a huge waste of the shift's time. A cash controller should be on the floor, running the shift. Unless he or she is given time to do this while another shift runs the floor, it's a poor use of time, in my opinion.

HOWEVER, if you let baristas divide tips, then you have to let them all do it, otherwise it would be discrimination. Which is why only cash shifts should do it, in my opinion. Otherwise, you're just opening the floodgates for theft.

[txkona]

I'm in TX and i've heard the NC rumor from two other managers in the last week...I asked my DM about it yesterday and she said that she'd explain at our next district meeting. I believe that something big is happening in Q1...

[Darth Sidamo]

@Waltie. Saying that only shifts should do tips because a barista is likely to steal money is incredibly ignorant. A partner on any level with the intent of stealing will regardless of position. If anything a shift would have a higher opportunity for theft with the access to keys and the alibi of cash handling.

There is no rule saying that only shift managers can do tips. The only rule states that a SM or ASM cannot do tips and they cannot drop tips either.

Talk to your store manager if you are interested in doing tips and the manager should be able to set up some sort of rotation.

[Lilith]

I'm not a troll, been on the board off and on for years. I'm no longer with the company, so I was looking for more details. I'm still concerned for friends stuck with the bux and working 50 hour weeks.

I think it's a bad move with the current state of the company and think it's a valid discussion. Sorry I walked away from the computer... Geez.

Disbeliver: back in the good ol days it probably was possible, now I think there is too much on the plate.

[Lilith]

Sorry- that was meant for javagirl666, not disbeliever.

[Dan Armstrong]

I've never worked at Starbucks but I'm just crazy about the place. I remember the bad old days before Starbucks opened in my neighborhood in Manhattan. You had to wait until 10 am on a Sunday morning to get anything other than dishwater diner coffee. The coming of Starbucks was one of the biggest events of my life - right up there with the internet and cell phones.

Anyway. I do a lot of data visualization and mapping. And I'd love to find data on things like how sbux stores spread across the country and the world, or sbux demographics, or comparables across stores (like daily sales, traffic, the mix of drinks sold, etc.)

I'm sure a lot of this data has been collected, and I imagine that a lot is confidential. I wonder if anyone on this list has ideas about how I could get my hands on it. I guess I could scrape the official site for store locations, but that's not very interesting by itself. Or maybe some of it is online but I just don't know where to look.

If you work for Starbucks and you would like to contact me directly, you can send e-mail to yokoshikoko followed by an "AT" sign followed by yahoo.com. I don't know anyone at sbux and if you can send me anything - no matter how trivial it might seem - I will be eternally grateful and eternally discreet.

Thanks so much. I love this site.

[Waltie]

"@Waltie. Saying that only shifts should do tips because a barista is likely to steal money is incredibly ignorant. A partner on any level with the intent of stealing will regardless of position. If anything a shift would have a higher opportunity for theft with the access to keys and the alibi of cash handling. "

My intent wasn't to portray all baristas as thieves. I was simply pointing out that, well, shifts are already faced with the responsibility of cash handling, and they were (hopefully) promoted because they would treat that position with respect. And while every store has a few shifts, they have dozens of baristas. It's just easier to limit the responsibility to those who have cash handling skill than just anybody in the store.

So, no, not ignorant at all. I was simply sharing an opinion.

[SeattleViaColorado]

Personally if they want to save money and increase efficiency they need to automate the order. It's not like it would be too big of a leap to have product shipped to us as soon as its rung up. We have the hardware for it, all it takes is the right software. Wal-Mart already does it. Do you think the manager there goes around with a paper list or looks at a white board in the office with products that are running out? How much time is wasted putting in the order each week (not a rhetorical question i really want to know)? This could free up managers to communicate with their partners and customers, and focus on increasing the experience. Why does it still feel like so many of our business practices are stuck in 1995? We need to be working smarter not leaner!

[me myself and I]

SeattleViaColorado, that only works, if there wouldn't be any waste and if everything would be rung up the way it is supposed to. Unfortunately it isn't.

We would have to do way more inventory counts to correct those issues if we implemented this closed supply chain system. And it wouldn't take into consideration things like weather-forecast changes, long weekends etc. In a restaurant environment it would be very difficult to implement this successfully.
At Wal-Mart they don't use pencil and paper, they use scanners. They walk through the isle, check what is missing or running low, scan the tag and enter the amount they want to order. But they have tens of thousands of skus, we have hundreds. So our business just doesn't warrant the implementation of such systems. Sure, ordering could be made easier, but I don't see the benefit of fully automatizing it.

[koolaid free]

IMS is the beginning of this type of automation...coming soon. It's actually pretty awesome.

[Munchkin]

I have also heard that non-coverage is going away. I don't think it means we have to work on a schedule "between customers." I am interested in seeing what they will say to managers when it comes to things like making the schedule, ordering, and reviews. Quite honestly, other than writing schedules, I'm not sure if I'll miss a full day of non-coverage. I'd rather have it spread across the week.

[Jen]

I think waltie that assuming baristas would be more likely to steal IS ignorant. We ALL have cash handling skills, during barista training there is a heavy section on the registers, and a lot of training goes into that.

Last week i was trained to do tips. I worked at a grocery store for 7 years before working at another job, then starbucks. I have exceptional money handling skills, and i dont think all baristas would be a good fit to do tips, but i think those who are responsible and willing to learn should have that, I want to become a shift by summer so it was an added responsibility for me to prove that i'm a good employer.

So Baristas aren't just "anybody in the store", we all have cash handling skills. Get it straight.

[Say What?!]

Okay, someone needs to get more info on this non-coverage thing, STAT!! Doesn't anyone have a contact that will spill the beans? (har har)

[Darth Sidamo.]

If this were true then only shift managers would be allowed to have tills. It wasnt all that long ago that EVERYBODY went back and counted tills.

Every single person is trained in cash handling. If anything with access to keys and the chance to transport money non suspiciously to a place off camera, a shift has a much bigger opportunity to steal. With as many as 3 or 4 people using the same till throughout one day and only the tills are pared while the 20s are dropped, the shift could easily pass blame onto many of the baristas.

[baristabrenda]

@usorthem3 Our store rotates between baristas and shift supervisors doing the tips. Varies week to week. No problems at all. We also use the coinstar at the local grocery station to save time.

[crema_the_crop]

@koolaid free,

What info do you have regarding IMS automation??? This is exciting to me....

[koolaid free]

Hi Crema: It's pretty awesome. Single day pastry items and some roasting plant items will be "perpetual". This means the system keeps track of usage and "suggests" an order quantity based on this data. You will still have the option to increase or decrease as needed.

You can start preparing now by focusing on back of house organization, coaching your partners on ringing with extreme accuracy, and ensuring accurate mark outs.

:)

[mr coffee]

koolaid free, are you in socal? IMS is being tested in my area and i have to agree, it's pretty cool, but it has a lot of kinks that need to be worked out as well...

[(former) FLA SM]

Did every SM get their laptops, as was promised in New Orleans? If so, I guess your non-coverage time will be the same as your off time. If not, gee what a surprise: Starbucks lied.

[Pixie]

Honestly, if we go automated on the ordering, I am probably going to quit. We already have autoship and that is a JOKE! If we order something as we ring it up, that's fantastic, but what about weeks we KNOW we are going to need more of one this or another based on environmental factors? I come from a remote market store (no other stores within 60 miles)and if we run out of something, we are just out until we get the order. Imagine running out of something like pikes place roast because the system doesn't order right? Or...Lemonade because it is hot and the system doesn't plan for things like that?! I'm currently doing the RP order for my store and I take all of these things into consideration each week. Not only that, but if you actually know your usual pars for things, it takes 15 minutes to complete an order, even making small changes for increased (or decreased) need. I'm just saying...

[Pixie]

The Pastry thing sounds awesome, though!!!!

[Pixie]

Regarding the tip preparation question:
I have worked at several stores and in all of those, everyone does the tips, it rotates between people. Sometimes there are only 3-4 people who WANT to do them and it rotates among them, sometimes whoever CAN come do them will. In a few instances the Shift team rolls the change daily and changes it out with the safe. So by the end of the week all that needs to be done is passing the money out. As a shift, if I had to worry about tips while holding keys, I would probably scream!

[formermanager]

It seems like tips are the dirty little secret of all stores. We'd roll the coin and exchange for bills out of the safe or tills, and I remember as an ASM at a new store being asked to do tips! I refused, of course, but this stuff does go on.

[Lynn Backalenick]

OK I'm a frustrated customer... I love my local Starbucks and 90% of the people that work there.

BUT 1) for over 2 years they have the choice of blasting the music so we can't talk in there or no music at all. They seem unable to fix this problem... when it was finally "fixed" it was good for a few days... but once again (and only under one manager)the problem returned.

And 2) Strange but more upsetting is their AC. Come on it is only March and we are being frozen! When I dared to mention this (others won't ask but tell me they are freezing), the response I got and will get throughout the summer was "that's good because yesterday it was 80 degrees in here". Again the same manager. I know we freeze while the employees may be comfortable. I don't want them working in a sweatshop but can't there be a compromise.

This is my "joint" my social life and I can't stay there. Is it the corporate policy to torture regulars to keep us moving? This is so frustrating and FYI when the old manager was there these problems were addressed, or frankly never happened.

any answers that make sense please let me know in the interim I will have to go somewhere else (unless the idea of earplugs and blankets might be in the near futher) and likely take about 50% of the regulars with me!

[javagirl666]

Lynn: Mys tore stays between 68-72*. While you may be cold out front the machines behind the line put out alot of heat and when you are a busy store, it gets really hot back there..sorry.

[Lynn Backalenick]

No No that would be totally acceptable we are talking very, very cold. I guess I need to measure the temp but I keep my home around 70 degrees and it's fine but thanks for the info.

[Georgia Latte]

FL SM.... All store managers should have laptops by now. As to your point about our NC time being when we aren't at work... We have specifically been told the laptops are NOT to be taken home and are to stay in the store.

[Darth Sidamo]

Lynn. I totally agree with you because before work I usually sit out and read a newspaper and drink a coffee or ice tea. Here is atleast a barista explanation for your gripes. It wont fix your problem but it will explain atleast what I am told in my area.

1. With regards to the music we have a dial that goes 1-10. The dial is usually around 2 for example. Youd think that we have a great bit of control over the volume. Turning that dial less than a mm in one direction is the difference between deafening and crickets. It is near impossible to get a decent volume because it is louder in some corners of the store while others cant hear it. Over those three days a customer as yourself probably asked someone to change the volume and then another asked for another volume which is why it went back. Trust me many baristas hate the stuff we play. I could care less to listen to Feist and Allison Kraus making Robert Plant suck.

2. As far as temperature we at store level are not allowed to change the thermostat. It is automated for the most part turning off when we are closed to save energy and etc. Also Baristas are right, its like ten degrees hotter behind the bar because we stand next to steam and hot coffee all day. It is actually at times unbearable as I have to stand in the walk in cooler for a few seconds to stop sweating. Other times I am standing next to a DT window all day while it is 10 degrees outside. Reasoning is that you are not forced to be there for 8 hours of the day, still the temp is not comfortable for us as we get the other extreme. My last point is that 90% of all Sbux are windows and doors. No matter where you sit you are never less than 10 feet from a door. You are never less than 5 feet from a window. Nothing loses heat or AC like these two things. This store design will never change as well because this is set up so when a customer can see inside an entire store it comes off as inviting.