Implementing Six Sigma at Starbucks

Six Sigma at Starbucks

Starbucks is a coffee-making giant in the retail sector that has experienced tremendous growth and profitability since inception. The company\'s success to an extent that its renowned as one of the leading coffeehouses across the globe is attributable to its relatively effective business operations and processes. Starbucks Coffeehouse has a huge customer base that has contributed to a significant market share and competitive advantage. This coffeehouse targets customers from all walks of life and provide coffee products for a wide range of customers based on their needs and preferences. However, the firm\'s major customers are urban and affluent populations, especially on-the-go white-collar professionals who want to take coffee to their workplaces (Bowman, 2016). This target population is Starbucks\' favorite customer given that the firm considers its major customers to be educated professionals with an average income of $90,000. Additionally, Starbucks targets customers who are looking to relax with a tasty and enjoyable beverage. The priorities of these different customers include to enjoy a tasty drink when relaxing and enjoy coffee while working in order to boost their energy levels.

An important aspect of Starbucks\' profitability and success in the competitive retail store sector is its business process. There are three major aspects of the firm\'s business process that are geared towards delivery of tasty beverages to customers. These three elements are order placement, processing the order, and delivering the beverage to the customer. Once the customer visits the store, he/she orders and pays for the kind of beverage he/she wants. Upon receipt of the payment, the store processes the order (i.e. makes the beverage) and delivers to the customer within a period of 5 minutes. This process has acted as the cornerstone of Starbucks\' operations as the firm seeks to provide excellent customer service within a relatively short period of time upon order placement.

Despite the role of this business process in Starbucks\' profitability through the years, the company faces the need for lean improvement of operations in order to enhance customers\' experiences and satisfaction. This need is demonstrated in the firm\'s mission to ensure their customers enjoy their beverages and experiences at the store. Additionally, recent customer feedback has indicated the need for improvement of customer services and the quality of beverages produced at the store. Since most of Starbucks\' customers are on the move, the speed of order processing should be enhanced without compromising the quality of beverages produced by the company across all its stores.