Report: Starbucks "staffing crisis" at the Store Manager level in the DC area

A Starbucks Gossip reader writes: "Apparently there is such a staffing crisis at the SM (Store Manager) level in the DC area that several SMs in the Mid-Atlantic are being recruited to travel down to DC, all expenses paid, for a period of two months to help run the stores until ASMs and RMTs are ready to assume those positions. One of the SMs I know is going." Anyone know about this alleged "crisis" and what's behind the staff shortage?

Comments

[Christinschu]

Victor Via! Ack! The raise thing. That is probably one of the top 5 slaps in the face of the last year. Two years ago I got a 5% raise, last year I recieved the same (if night slightly better review) and got a 2% raise.

My asm got a 1% raise.

Pennies! LIterally pennies an hour for her.

[SBUX Alum Bill]

@ Christinschu:

Just in case you don't know what happened to the rest of your raise this year - Howie got it! He got an absurdly large raise & an options package worth $27 million as a reward for his "fiscal discipline" (i.e., he got a huge raise as a reward for preventing his "partners" from getting reasonable raises).

[Yuck!]

I am saddened by this thread! All I can say is that I have not experienced any of this and I have been a partner for 10 years. Please hang in there, Starbucks needs partners with passion and experience. If your voice is not heard, call the compliance hotline. If nothing is done, send a letter to Howard or Cliff, we need to get this thing fixed pronto!! Starbucks was built on the foundation of our Mission and regardless of the changes, it is still something every partner is accountable to. Speak up to someone that can actually do something, not this website.

[Michael]

I was laid off a year ago February as ASM. A month to go before I got my own store. I loved Starbucks. Still do! But so glad I'm no longer there. New job is less stressful, I'm happy, and I give back to the community.

[AWil]

My old store that I was unceremoniously let go from gives me Customer Voice surveys to fill out so I don't have to pay for drinks anymore. I give them good scores, because the partners were amazing at the store. It was the DM that is entirely incompetent. It is laughable, and I have a much less stressful job now. haha!

[karldotcom]

I am still not sure what happened, but a local newly promoted District Manager in the LA area went back to running a store that has been without a manager for two months. All the baristas I asked said he was "just trying it out" for a while... There are also two stores being run by one manager elsewhere in the area...one does small volume so I was told.

Of course, a WHILE back I am told the local district manager was a wanna be actress, and would go on auditions and work as an extra while on duty for Starbucks.

It apparently took five years (so I am told) for her to be found out...

This is where the overcutting at Starbucks comes back to bite them in the ass....

[shift.misto]

**checking in half way thru VIA promo weekend** i decided after much thought, not to cheat my way to 125. i put in the elbow grease, used my best "trust me" charisma and pushed those little packets like white baggies on a miami night. the midway result: we are so far undergoal that i'm considering sending my SM flowers after her monday morning calls.

sidenote to starbucks:
make via for samples. do you realize it takes TWO three-packs to make a sampler? why don't we have jumbo via packs for sampling?

[VICTOR VIA]

My prediction bye bye to all of us calling the compliance line is a joke..retaliation will happen they will just mask it as not having interpersonal savy..automated training-inventory-no more writing schedules...store managers bye bye my only hope is the company realizes what a true waste of money the DM is...they generate no income-they are a cost center and frankly how are they contributing to the bottom line...at least as a SM i make tons of money for this company and I answer my phone and respond to the front lines when needed...mmmmmm I agree with so over it I am so over it....hoping Howard reads these posts-

[Crema_the_crop]

VIA - The people who want it are buying it. The people that don't want it will never buy it. They don't care if it's Iced or sweetened or Decaf or Christmas Blend Via or Via Mocha or Via Latte or Via Brownies or yadda yadda yadda, it's pathetic. I would say the true selling potential of the product is about 40% of what we are being held to currently.

Is this a ploy to get SMs out? To phase out the SM role? Develop a "store supvervisor'? The computer does the schedule already, it will be doing the ordering soon, what's left for the DM? Payroll can be done by a competent shift...give it a couple years.

[James Connolly]

Y'know, when I first started to organize for the SWU, my friends not involved in either Starbucks or the IWW looked at me like I was crazy because Starbucks was thought of so highly.

Reading this thread's comments hammered home that I'd be crazy to not organize when faced with such disrespect from the corporate level of management. And while it is true that you can find another job, there's still plenty of areas of the country that will remain at high unemployment for the foreseeable future, so that might not be a viable way to cope with how awful this company is becoming.

Organizing, on the other hand...

[James Connolly]

@ex sbux manager 'Hey, if Howard is so willing to brag about the results to the media, I think it's important that the media be able to see how these numbers are being "reached." '

Unfortunately the media as it stands right now is completely uninterested in being anything other than a cheerleader for corporate interests. A perfect example of this is all the coverage the Tea Partiers get while rallies that draw ten times the number of people about Wall Street reform barely get a blurb in the middle of the paper.

The media only cares about where the money is. Nothing more, nothing less.

[javagirl666]

shift.misto....Love you!

[Isabella]

I know I might sound naive, but how do you "fix" or "cheat" Via numbers? I have never been asked to do this in my store. We have been asked to upsell and sample like crazy. We have been asked to sample with chocolate milk, brownies, etc. I am just curious how other stores are fixing their numbers

[VICTOR VIA]

A letter to Howard...Ive written my letter to Howard it will be the forward to my book which will be dedicated to all the fallen partners who were let go in the name of shareholder value-dedicated to the loss of work life balance and and how leadership is making a huge profit and baristas to sm's live in poverty and fear of losing their job i so look forward to facing Howard and Cliff on Larry King for the book tour

[ex sbux manager]

Isabella..fixing Via sales are easy. One thing you can do is Via for the troops, often that will sell a bunch. Another is coming up with your own promotion of (buy via and get a free coffee) I've seen so much as buy a VIA and get a free Frap (which is just ridiculous.) Also I've seen that all travelers are rung up as 12pack vias...I'm sure there are other ways, but those are the most off the top of my head. I remember with Vivannos we rang them up instead of grande caramel machiattos...I'm sure caramel brule was rung up as white mochas...etc etc etc.

[Manny]

Thank you SBUX for robbing me of my Memorial day weekend with my family and having a BBQ. As an SM I was forced to work Friday Saturday, Sunday and Monday to sell Via for Via Weekend. I sold a ton of Via. Did I cheat? Ofcourse I did!! I did so to get people off my back. Did the company make money? NO!!! because we cheated. This is what we have been reduced to doing. Fudging the numbers. Is anyone listening? This is pathetic. I have read this website for over 5 years and every year it gets more negative. Is anyone listening. Does any one care? Thank you SBUX for robbing me time with my family on this Holiday Weekend.

[Anony-girl]

This is also true in the Chicago Market. We are hemorrhaging Store Managers and Shift Supervisors. We have SMs from other stores running around doing what they can when they can.

Let me tell you all this right now.

THIS IS A COMPANY WIDE EPIDEMIC. Ecosure pressure and the otherworldly pressure to sell via is driving people out in mass employment suicide. Much of this boils down to labor and corporates' inability to ease up and give each store the proper training and non coverage hours they need.

[TiredofThis]

That's true about the ecosure I got written up today for getting an 88.6. It seems a little ridiculous to me.

[PlayingwithFIRE]

QUESTION...Is it possible for a SM to pay a barista hours and tips that they never worked....maybe a little extra "for a job well done"? Is that "legal" ??? Any consequences?

[shift.misto]

@ex sbx manager

but you realize those are all no-no's, right? we can't mention the word "troops". we CANNOT give out free coffee with purchase like we can with beans. im sure you know that its cheating to mis ring, but those are things the customers dont know you are doing. go ahead, give out free coffees with via, and wait till they ask for their free coffee and the starbucks down the road and see how long it takes to get a call from your DM.

[East Coast Mgr]

@ playingwithFIRE, are you kidding me?
Can you get in trouble for stealing money, what do you think?

[ex-sbux manager]

shift-misto...if you read my prior posts, I'm out of Starbucks and at a new and better job. Im just replying to a question from another post asking how people cheat. Of course there are no-nos...but I guarantee you that it is still happening. Actually, I specifically remember one time when a customer came to my store a few months ago demanding a free drink with her purchase of VIA becuase the store closest to mine was doing so...when I notified the DM you know what happened? nothing. Also, Im confused about your post when you put my name in as "ex sbx manager" but still talk to me as if I'm still employed by Starbucks...lol

[Shift Supervisor]

In my socal area it is pretty much impossible to get any kind of coverage in stores because people are leaving and store managers stepping down because they are sick and tired of the bull from upper management. Even the SM's that are still here are walking on eggshells. WOW what a way to go into work and do the best job possible. Sbux went from positive encouragement and reinforcement and getting the best possible results to down right treats of your job if you sneeze practically. Now who in their right minds would want to go and work under those conditions? This past week I have had 2 former SM's that had stepped down because of the bull and they wanted to get out of there before they got the ax. Both managers have been with the company 10 and 15 years. We can't even get enough Shift supervisors in our area. Optimal scheduling has killed us. Last week alone we had at least 6 phantom's cover our store. Plus with no coverage people are filling out the customer voice and complaining but the company looks at it as the stores fault when it is the companies fault. I could go on and on but I will let others on here have a chance.

[wow]

WOW, and yet another SM is gone in the metro DC area! have 3 stores in my district 'exposed' now. its only getting worse!

[shift.misto]

@ex sbx manager
you are here to discuss policy, so i assume you are up to date, otherwise your input would be irrelevant and a waste of bandwidth.

and of course nothing happened. you must have missed the Major Steps, including but not limited to "DONT EVER CHEAT!, wink wink".

[ex-sbux manager]

Shift misto...I'm still confused....there are alot of posts from alot of people discussing "cheating." I didn't come here to disucss policy, for if all the policies were being followed half the posts on this site wouldn't be here. Someone asked how stores are cheating, and I explained it. The reality is that as Starbucks continues to place such a great accountability on goals, and people not hitting it, managers will be fired...leading them to decide whether to cheat and still have a job, or be fired. Which is *gasp* the root of this thread. You can buy your manager flowers after her conference calls alll you want, but that's not going to stop your DM from firing your manager for not hitting goals (I don't even just mean Via, but CV Eco-sure, etc.) Now I understand trhat you are trying everything, trying so hard, giving it your all...but from the DM and RDO's piont of view, they don't care. They just want to see the numbers, and as long as your not hitting them, then they'll find someone who will. Maybe your just a naive shift who doesn't understand, I don't know. But one day if you keep not hitting your goals, your SM will be placed on an action plan or PIP...which pretty much means that they'll be fired. By the way, I still talk to a DM frequently....they have no choice because in the end, they have their RDO up their butt about not hitting targets.

[chicagogurl]

i work in chicago in distric 307 and this lady named toni is a new district manager, and she's awful. she's a nice good person, but she cares more about the numbers, and when she comes in our stores, she doesn't connect with partners, she just wants to know the numbers, she sits in the cafe and talks on the phone or writes on her computer and doesn't find out or connect with her districts partners on an interpersonal level. our regional director and her name is kristin and she's a joke too. she comes in to our stores, doesn't connect with partners, doesn't talk to us, just smiles and acts like we're these inconsequential people. they only care about via numbers. i'm so stressed out, i don't know what to do. if you say anything it always comes back to bite you.

[susie coffee]

in our district there are only a handful of sm that have been with the company for over 2 years. I know longer even write down there names, just the phone number.
my dm complains we are not prepared to promote people in our stores, we are down a few sms with no relief in sight. our asms have a long way to go. she complains when we use training hours. we don't have much time to develope the wonderful people who work here.
I would love to spend time with the staff doing something other than cleaning and making coffee or begging people to buy via, but we don't have coverage. so we don't develope staff and we end up exactly where we are today. Short good people.

[nova sm]

For the people in the DC stores. I am double-storing and running the store down the street for mine because that SM is going to work in DC. I live in the Manassas area. There are some great managers\ coming to help. I got an 88% on my ecosure as did this other manager. He and I are also the leaders for the frappuccino promotions, customer voice, and VIA (without cheating) (no write-ups) BTW, my DM, who is not perfect, responds to all reports of cheating. A nearby manager was terminated a few months ago because his customers were coming into my store to report it, as did one of my shifts.
The point to the long thread, is that the area is having some serious difficulty. But, there is some fantastic help, like my friend, so hang in there....

[JanetS]

I agree with what people are saying on this thread. My daughter has worked for SB for 13 years and has been a successful manager for 9 years in CA with a consistently profitable store that always met or exceeded Starbucks expectations. Her reviews were always excellent, and her employees and customers loved her. Suddenly in October 2009 she received a bogus review and her new DM constantly harassed her. That DM left and the new one said she was a great manager and gave her an excellent 6 month review and a raise. Then a month or so ago another DM came onboard. He had another DM go to her store on her day off and gave her a low Quasa. She was immediately suspended and fired 3 days later. She never received a copy of the Quasa nor received an exit interview. She was trained as a manager when they were really training them. She started when they made delicious lattes like Peets has with real espresso machines, not the automatic ones they have now. She and the other managers have been constantly threatened with losing their jobs in the yeare. Employee morale is down. Starbucks say they value their partners. I don't think so. They need to change their website. They don't value them and shove them out after about 12 years in a very unethical and sneaky way.

[east coast mgr]

@ nova sm,
for starters be careful in giving out that much identifiable info! big brother IS watching.
not sure where exactly you work, but help is nowhere to be found in other parts of the area.

and not to be a pain but 88 on QASA, thats not passing and likely a re-audit and or write-up. it really isnt that hard hard to score over 90.

Co-managing is the name of the game anywhere now. done it many times myself as there are always multiple stores in my direct surroundings without a mgr.
Yet I do not feel any more secure about my job because I helped out so much. thank you's or appreciation are a rarity and i know for a fact that 4-5 managers in my district alone are looking for something else... this area is going to go done WAY further. no one wants to do this anymore.

[Brittany]

They are closing the Columbus Starbucks in Virginia Beach next month. It has been there since I moved here 10 yrs ago. The staff is extremely polite, the drinks are perfect and the parking is the best anywhere around at the beach! I spoke with the manager who informed me that Starbucks was not renewing the lease. I know that store is busier than others. Is Starbucks going downhill? This area hasn't had stores close ever!

[SoCal Gal]

@Chris I just got docked on my ecosure for having a dirty dustpan as well!

My job was threatened when I didn't pass QASA, and despite having a doctor's note for exhaustion -- I was made to work 80 hours a week to clean my store while my partners shuffled around lethargically not giving a shit.

[Jim McDermot]

All the frustration and anger should be directed at Cliff Burrows and Coward...I mean Howard. The two of them have allowed with a wink and a nod the complete dismantling of Starbucks as it once was. The Starbucks that many of you speak about is DEAD and will not come back. As more and more customers and 'partners' realize that stark fact, Starbucks' business will continue to crumble and the company will turn to ever more desperate methods to turn a profit.

[ByeBye]

There does seem to be quite a staffing crisis. Saw a notice in my backroom that they are looking for SM, ASM and shifts for 3 stores in a remote area. I am leaving SBUX next Wednesday after 5 1/2 years. I was a SM for 3years and was beaten down last summer by all the unrealistic expectations. I stepped down to barista so I could focus on my family. I was appalled by the lack of care in the store I went to. They didn't follow standards and the store manager encouraged the bad culture of the store. It was hard to see that I worked so hard to make my store run well and another SM wasn't being held to anything.

[chicagogurl]

COWARD SCHULTZ sounds about right to me.

[Arnon]

It's not just a management crisis... If anyone can cover a Barista shift in Northwest Baltimore on Sunday the 13th (3-7 fixes the problem, but 5:30-2 or 1:15-close are better)...

I'll pay you $50 out of my own pocket if you can help. send me a text message: seven-eight-one-seven-two-four-zero-five-eight-one.

(this scheduling issue is my own fault, so don't pity me too much...)

I've called 47 stores in the area over the past several days, some more than once, and have found absolutely nobody who can step in to this shift.

[ExSbuxManager]

I left in February, and 9 other people (5 sm's, 1 ASM, and 2 RMTS) have all bailed almost like dominoes falling down.

I'm sort of glad to hear that its everywhere because it further shows the iron fist from above is like lethal injection to what used to be the culture that made slaving your ass off worth it for pathetically low wages.

Once upon a time it was the partners that made the company great, but the greed train tanked the company, and a new greed train is their solution to fix it?

Honesty and integrity? Get that out of every success profile and review because if upper management were held accountable for that they'd have to fire themselves.

Oh, and not selling via or hitting unobtainable goals is priceless!

[an instant failure]

my store manager makes us buy via to make our goal :(

sometimes we don't get tips because it's spent on via...

[lilkunta]

Is LG Lucious? The DM of silver spring/wheaton Starbucks?

[A Lighter Shad Of Green]

So, does anyone know how the salaries of Sbux SM's compare to those in other companies? I've been an SM with Sbux for nearly 3 years now and I'm kind of thinking that we, at least in my region, are somewhat underpaid.