Jim Donald, who was ousted earlier this month, will receive the money over a 12-month period. He's also agreed not to compete against his former employer for 18 months. (Read the Seattle P-I story)
January 28, 2008
Jim Donald, who was ousted earlier this month, will receive the money over a 12-month period. He's also agreed not to compete against his former employer for 18 months. (Read the Seattle P-I story)
I guess thats the price of bad management...
Posted by: English Barista | January 28, 2008 at 03:29 PM
Jim seemed like a nice guy, me and my DM were in the back store talking while I was on a ten and a video with him in it came up. It made us both kinda sad. Still, someone had to get fired -- it was a nice show to wall st.
He seemed, from the stories i've heard from the people who personally met him, like he was a good guy.
Posted by: Zipy | January 28, 2008 at 03:40 PM
Compared to other CEOs that is a low and fair amount. Jim will get another job, and Starbucks is roaring for a coming back.
Posted by: Boring Market | January 28, 2008 at 04:30 PM
just gross
Posted by: | January 28, 2008 at 04:52 PM
jim donald is not a good guy zipy. if you think he is, he simply had you fooled. he wasn't fired as a "show for wall street" he was fired because he was running the company into the ground. he never should have been hired in the first place. he was a very bad fit for starbucks.
Posted by: jabanga | January 28, 2008 at 04:57 PM
I think Jim should have to pay for damages done to the company. Oh well, BACK to Bentonville Jim.
Posted by: | January 28, 2008 at 05:44 PM
Hey Jabanga...
Ive seen a number of people mention they thought the Jimster was a bad fit for Starbucks.
In what way was he a bad fit?
Posted by: Joe | January 28, 2008 at 06:31 PM
I think it's incredibly easy (and in no way green apron) to assume that we know more about hiring and the qualifications of a CEO. I think it is also the easy way out to overlook those who have contributed to the lack of success that Jim had in his role. Sure, we can annecdotely correlate the "feel" of what's been going on and attribute it to his leadership, but I think we could be missing the boat by putting all of our eggs in that basket.
Posted by: SoCalSnowBunny | January 28, 2008 at 06:57 PM
Oh well, it's just 675,000 cups of coffee!!!!
Posted by: Hal | January 28, 2008 at 07:12 PM
SoCalSnowBunny
he may or may not be the one responsiable, however, he was the one in charge when the company went in the toilet, so he is responsiable. That is why they make the big bucks.
If I get fired, I wonder if my employer will give me a million and a half???
Posted by: | January 28, 2008 at 07:34 PM
If he got a severance, shouldn't "fired" be in quotation marks?
But wow. That's a lot of beans.
Posted by: | January 28, 2008 at 08:59 PM
He runs the company into the ground and gets 1.75 mil, I run my ass off for this company and get a 15 cent raise. Talk about two Americas....
Posted by: Beantownsbuxbitch | January 28, 2008 at 08:59 PM
Yeah cause the Chairman of the board uncle howie had nothing to do with most of the things that happened with Starbucks. He can be a good guy, and do a bad job. Rupert Murdoch doesn't seem like a friendly guy, and he sure does a decent job at what he does.
Posted by: Zipy | January 28, 2008 at 09:05 PM
BuxBitch,
You have no idea what you're talking about...this has nothing to do with "two Americas" and everything to do with the requirements of your job compared to the requirements of his job. The job pool for a store level barista/shift supervisor is vastly greater than the job pool for the CEO of a multi billion dollar company. Therefore the pay is vastly greater for the CEO than for your position.
And, just as frankly, as much as you think you bust your ass for Starbucks, I guarantee you dont work half as hard as Jim Donald did. Even Howard has mentioned Donald's stamina and drive with awe.
You wouldn't last two minutes as a CEO so dont bother comparing your job with that one.
Posted by: Joe | January 28, 2008 at 09:23 PM
Joe
There's extreme inequality in America, this is the most unequal society in the world. The top 1% of Americans hold 90% of the world's wealth. This is just an example of thousands of employees making a little above minimum wage, while one man gets millions.
Obviously you are not a CEO or Jim Donald, and you have no idea how hard he did or didn't work, but it certainly is not worth the severance package he received. But that is the nature of a corporation... pathological.
To become a CEO takes much more than hardwork, it takes connections and upper class status, unless you happen to be the founder. You don't have to be incredibly qualified, just connected and driven (to do whatever it takes). I witness baristas everyday that give there all, but in America it takes so much more than hardwork to succeed, there are so many hierarchies and ceilings in the social structure to be held down by.
Everyone on this site should really watch the documentary "The Corporation" it will really explain most everything about this event and most topics on this website.
Posted by: MPLS Barista | January 28, 2008 at 10:29 PM
Jim Donald was just a fall guy for the Starbucks board of directors. As someone who had dinner with him once and a couple of meetings, I have to say he always struck me as a very partner oriented guy. For a guy who didn't come up thru the ranks of "the culture", he sure worked really hard at representing himself in a positive and respectful manner. Trust me, the board would have thrown whomever they had to to make the stock price jump slightly. Also, as much as I admire Mr. Schultz, he is not exactly without fault here. He hired Jim, and he wasn't at a Sonic's game for the last four years. We need to get back to basic's, and we need to undo a lot of things, and we need to be BRAVE enough to do so. At the moment, it is questionable if we have what it takes to turn back the clock to the good old days.
Posted by: Notthrilledinla | January 28, 2008 at 10:45 PM
"To become a CEO takes much more than hardwork, it takes connections and upper class status, unless you happen to be the founder"
Maybe you should shut up and learn a thing or two. Let me just point you to the man's history:
"Donald started work as a 16-year-old bag boy at a Tampa, FL Publix chain store. By age 19 he was assistant manager of an Albertsons chain, owned a house and was earning more than his schoolteacher father. [2] He rose through the ranks at Albertsons, constantly being relocated to struggling stores due to his reputation for successful turnarounds. [3] In 1991 Donald's reputation reached Sam Walton, the founder of Wal-Mart, who personally flew to Phoenix to convince Donald to run Wal-Mart's new grocery division. In three years, Donald grew Wal-Mart's fledgling grocery division from 6 stores to 146." (from Wikipedia, accessible to members of the lower as well as upper classes)
Jim Donald did not start from an "upper class status," he started as a bag-boy and rose to become he CEO of a multi-billion dollar company. The guy is most likely brilliant beyond anything you or I know which is, by the way, pretty characteristic of the corporate executives I've personally worked with (likely more than you).
Get a life and step out of the propaganda mill for a little bit.
As to the severance -- man, they screwed him, huh? $1.25mil is a pittance. Maybe he'd have done better if he came from upper class roots.
Posted by: JMW | January 28, 2008 at 11:44 PM
In addition to the above, pay particular attention to the following footnote:
"During his days at Albertsons, Donald enrolled in five colleges over the course of 15 years before earning his undergraduate business degree from Century College in Albuquerque. [2]"
Upper class status my ass. He started out lower than a friggin barista and clawed his way up!
Posted by: JMW | January 28, 2008 at 11:46 PM
Thanks JMW.
Witness the American Dream, and the power of hard work and determination.
Posted by: | January 29, 2008 at 12:29 AM
MPLS Barista...
Far be it from me to intrude on your delusion. Carry on.
Posted by: Joe | January 29, 2008 at 01:01 AM
wow JMW. That is some epic pwning there.
Posted by: guest | January 29, 2008 at 01:50 AM
I'm glad that people still know how to cut and paste from Wikipedia. And BTW, we all know what a reputable and reliable resource of information Wikipedia is. Next, you'll be telling us that Christopher Columbus was not the first European to arrive in the New World. Also, that Plymouth Rock was not the first English settlement. And can you please tell me who the guy was on the grassy knoll, I'm still trying to figure that one out. Thanks!
BOSTON STARBUCKS REBEL
PRIMUS INTER PARES
STARBUCKS REBEL ALLIANCE
AIM SN: BOSTONSTARREBEL
Posted by: BOSTON STARBUCKS REBEL | January 29, 2008 at 03:42 AM
I have to agree that Jimmy D is the "fall guy" on this. I know I've taken my jabs at him at times, but he was a very likable guy in person. He was a great story teller and a heck of a dad with all of the things he had to do each day. He usually started his day at 6am and probably didn't go to bed until midnight. He answered every e-mail and vm and called people personally a lot of the time. Still, leaders have to be held accountable, and since they dilly-dallied as a company on the course correction, they had to be bold and give him the boot to send a message.
Besides... in the next 6 months, you're going to see money get a helluva lot tighter... Just wait until you hear the curtain call tomorrow.
Posted by: Pat Nerr | January 29, 2008 at 05:30 AM
"Talk about two Americas...."
Y'all should come down here to NC and see just how Mr. Edwards lives before you go quoting him...
Not trying to wax political here - but ummmm... really. There's not two Americas - there are three - and he's in the ivory tower above it all (ask his neighbors what they think of him... that's how to determine character, yanno). The severance that Jim got is ultra-small potatoes to Mr. Two Americas.
Posted by: Yonder | January 29, 2008 at 05:56 AM
"The top 1% of Americans hold 90%" Are you sure about that? Where did you get this figure?
Posted by: | January 29, 2008 at 07:54 AM
MPLS Barista
If you have "no idea" how hard he did or didn't work, how can you be "certian" what he recieved wasn't worth it? I'm not saying what he got was worth it, but if you have "no idea", how can you be "certian" of anything?
Posted by: | January 29, 2008 at 07:56 AM
God people, can you please learn to spell??? CERTAIN, not CERTIAN, it is frustrating to see so many of you can not spell a simple word! Read a book once in awhile, it certainly won't kill you!!!!
Posted by: | January 29, 2008 at 08:11 AM
"Hey Jabanga...
Ive seen a number of people mention they thought the Jimster was a bad fit for Starbucks.
In what way was he a bad fit?"
-joe
"He can be a good guy, and do a bad job. Rupert Murdoch doesn't seem like a friendly guy, and he sure does a decent job at what he does."
-zipy
i can give my take on these two quotes together as in many ways the second one offers much of my answer to the first. yes ruport murdoch is an incredibly successful businessman and it is in fact largely because of his ruthless nature. the same can certainly be said of sam walton who jim donald made it very clear to me was someone he admired greatly and thought of as a mentor. however, that type of leadership was not an appropriate fir for starbucks as starbucks was built on being a unique and premium brand. while walmart prides itself on doing whatever it can do to "keep prices falling" starbucks success was built on concsistently exceeding customer expectaions not nickle and diming them to death. many of the policies rolled out under jim donald's leadership were bottom line driven cost control decisions that negatively effected store performance and product quality. sure, howard is not completely removed from any culpability because he was not ceo at the time and maybe donald was even brought in to implement the "tough decisions" and wound up to some extent being the fall guy. one thing is very clear: within a couple of years of donald taking the reigns of the company and implementing his policies and initiatives the company took a very hard turn for the worse after a long run of continuous success and exceeding already high expectations. this happened because jim donald wa a bad match for the company and many of his initiatives were not appropriate for a unique company like starbucks. success witha company like walmart does not necessarily translate to success with a company like starbucks. one is clearly a bottom-line driven business while the other was built on being a premium brand built on a flow through concept of taking care of your workforce, so they will take care of your customers, which will take care of your business, one where if you create a great work environment, embrace diversity, serve great products, exceed customer expectations, and genuinely contribute to your communities, then profitability will follow. jim donald managed from the bottom line up, and that was not and will never be the right approach for a company like starbucks. and because of that, and all tremendous negative impact he had on partners everywhere, he is not a good guy nor was he a good fit for starbucks.
Posted by: jabanga | January 29, 2008 at 08:23 AM
It's called I have an education, take a sociology class once in your life. I'm not the delusional one. And deff check out the film "The Corporation" then maybe you'll know what you're talking about.
Posted by: MPLS Barista | January 29, 2008 at 09:02 AM
Jabanga....
If Jim Donald's "crime" was that he made a series of "bottom line driven cost control decisions" then all of those decisions will be reversed now that Howard's in charge, right?
Posted by: Joe | January 29, 2008 at 10:15 AM
Hey Jabanga, you've got Kool-Aid on your lip.
Posted by: . | January 29, 2008 at 11:08 AM
Everyone who thinks SBUX current problems were all caused by Jim Donald and that our brave and glorious savior Howard will now step in and save "his company", please stop deluding yourselves and remember that all the decisions that led us to this point were made for reasons of profitability and with Howard's knowledge and approval. Howard has never NOT been running this company, regardless who sat in the CEO chair.
Carry on ranting...
Posted by: | January 29, 2008 at 11:22 AM
Oh, BSR, you really shouldn't flatter yourself. Christopher Columbus wasn't the first european to land in the "new world," it was Leif Erikson, a Viking, around the year 1000.
Just saying that perhaps a sock might be a good fit for you on occasion.
Posted by: | January 29, 2008 at 11:40 AM
BSR:
First successful English settlement in what's now called America: Jamestown-1607.
Posted by: | January 29, 2008 at 12:45 PM
I know that Leif Erikson was the first European to come to America and that Jamestown was the first English settlement in the New World. I was being sarcastic as pointing out that alot of information can be misconstrued and left up to historical interpretation. Perhaps reading the book, "Lies My Teacher Told Me" might be enlightening for many people. And just to catch you all off guard, Afro-Phoenicians were supposedly were the first people to cross the Atlantic into the New World. I myself will not comment on whether Jesus of Nazareth came to the New World, as purported in the Book of Mormon.
BOSTON STARBUCKS REBEL
PRIMUS INTER PARES
STARBUCKS REBEL ALLIANCE
AIM SN: BOSTONSTARREBEL
Posted by: BOSTON STARBUCKS REBEL | January 29, 2008 at 12:58 PM
"Lies My Teacher Told Me" is an excellent book! I'm glad to know I'm not the only one reading it.
Posted by: MPLS Barista | January 29, 2008 at 01:02 PM
"And BTW, we all know what a reputable and reliable resource of information Wikipedia is."
Well let me just be the first to tell you that you're an idiot of epic proportions.
See, Wikipedia has these things called FOOTNOTES. The vast majority of what I posted came from the following Forbes article:
http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2005/0228/078_print.html
I suppose now you're going to tell me Forbes made up everything about him?
Man, some people ...
Posted by: JMW | January 29, 2008 at 01:27 PM
joe and anon poster #1 i never proclaimed howard to be the savior. i just lived through the transition to jim and the leadership team he put together underneath him and saw the negative effect it had on the company.
to anon poster #2 who accused me of drinking kool-aid i am just posting from my experience. i worked at starbucks before and during mr. donald's tenure and i know that his approach to his workforce and how he managed his business was dramatically different than orin before him and it led to a downturn in the companies performance and his separation from the company. what does kool-aid have to do with that?
its really obnoxious to single someone out with an anonymous post anyway. if your going to be a jerk, at least let me put a name to it.
Posted by: jabanga | January 29, 2008 at 05:43 PM
The Kool-Aid you drink is poured by Howard. I too worked at Starbucks before and during Mr. Donald's tenure. As such I know that the way Jim approached his workforce and how he managed his business was much more in line with Starbucks' guiding principles than either Orin or Howard. Jim's approach and management did not lead to the downturn. Decisions made in the interest of profitability and growth led to the downturn and the diluting of the Starbucks experience....decisions that were made by Howard.
Drink up! Your Kool-Aid cup is bottomless.
Posted by: Anonymous Jerk | January 29, 2008 at 06:22 PM
JMW if I were to assume who you were it would be an anrgy middle aged white conservative male... you need therapy.
Let all of your comments continue with the maturity you have shown...
I find people like you fascinating
Posted by: :-) | January 29, 2008 at 06:58 PM
anonymous jerk i guess we will simply have to disagree. my perception is that the company culture was much more true to its communicated values and ideals prior to jim donald's ascension than after. i believe this is reflected in the performance of the company.
Posted by: jabanga | January 29, 2008 at 07:18 PM
I know that I worked under Jim Donald at Wal-Mart and again at Starbucks... I have to say that Jim does have a certain way that he thinks in management and process of starbucks stores....
Jim is a numbers guy... it is about numbers and if you canat accomplish the numbers you are not worth being with in the stores... I think it goes further that that ... i have first hand knowledge that some of the ideas that Jim went forward with were ideas that Howard felt would push us into a place against the Coffee experience ... the main one being the nasty oven in the stores,,,
So i look forward to the next phase and wish Jim good luck in his future but i am not all convinced he was a good choice ...
Posted by: FreeThinkingSbuxGuy | January 29, 2008 at 07:51 PM
Has anyone here every shopped at Albertsons or Walmart? My God.. If that was Donald's legacy... what does this say for his "legacy" at Starbucks. Anyone worth their salt leaves a place better... or they get canned and the company moves on and tries to re-coup their losses and create sustained successes from learned response.
Walmart has absolutely no customer service and Albertson's is one of the most expensive, crappy, grocery stores in the nation. They may have many different names under their brand but they all suck.
I don't know what it will take to turn this company around but I'm willing to start with the basics:
**Coffee
**Cleanliness
**Consistency (and consistent messages)
**Guiding Principles
**Good hiring/training/retaining practices
**Green Apron Behaviors
**Creating the Third Place through Legendary Service
**Better grammar and spelling (lol.. kidding!)
If we are all to be "numbers" people, lets at the very least take a look at our first numbers: the good folks who come into our stores daily with high (numbered) expectations.
Posted by: anon #2378 | January 29, 2008 at 08:43 PM
That's 1.25m bi-weekly for a year- not over 1 year. Reead the 8k.
Posted by: | January 30, 2008 at 08:42 AM
"During Donald's tenure as chief executive, the number of stores worldwide increased by more than 5,000 to roughly 15,000, and the company was profitable.
In fiscal 2006, the company had revenue of $7.8 billion and profits of $564 million. Last year, revenue increased 21 percent to $9.4 billion and net income jumped 19 percent to $673 million."
Posted by: . | January 30, 2008 at 11:37 AM
I wonder if all those who are about to get fired from SBUX will get such a deal? They have done what their boss told them to do,worked hard for the company but I am sure 2 months of severance is all that will be on the table. Maybe?
Posted by: | January 30, 2008 at 12:12 PM
Re:
"my perception is that the company culture was much more true to its communicated values and ideals prior to jim donald's ascension than after"
Jabanga: Right you are! I totally agree with you on this-I've worked at the Bux before, during and now, after JD. Granted many factors come into play with all the changes that have occurred during the last 15 years, but Starbucks has been a special place in the past and those of us who were lucky enough to see it hope the passion of the Howard can re-capture it again.
Posted by: | February 01, 2008 at 02:51 AM
$1.25 million golden parachute huh.
Wish I got something like that when I decided to go back to school full-time, left the company in December after 7 1/2 years....at the same store...when all of my stock option had long since dipped into the red, depleted of any value whatsoever.
Posted by: JC | February 03, 2008 at 07:16 AM
Bunch of kiss ups. Jim single handed flushed the company down the drain, no matter what one might think. He turned the neighborhood coffee shop into a semi fast food restaurants, forcing the company to compete with Mcd's, and Jack. What a joke. Many of us joined because we did not want to be a part of fast food. Fast food, shoot KFC offers more money, so does a gas station, but I like it at Starbucks. Don't be a kiss up and tell me how bad I am just accept the fact that e get peanuts for brining in millions for a man who is suppose to have passion for all of his partners.
Posted by: | April 21, 2008 at 09:29 PM
Pat Nerr:
Besides... in the next 6 months, you're going to see money get a helluva lot tighter... Just wait until you hear the curtain call tomorrow
Whats going on tomorrow? Tuesdays have not been good days for Starbucks employees.
Posted by: ExShift | August 04, 2008 at 06:30 PM