Business Ethics at Starbucks Corporation:

The importance of ethics has been highlighted time and again in the context of business. In
the twenty first century government and a number of watchdog agencies have been keeping a
keen eye on businesses that try to engage in unethical practices. While large businesses
mostly act responsibly, sometime they too may feel inclined to indulge in unethical practices
just for the sake of profits.  From Nike to Walmart, all have faced fierce criticism in the past
for unethical practices. From supply chain to HR management and in other areas too
including marketing, there is a need for businesses both small and large to follow ethical
practices. However, in this crowd of brands, some of the companies stand out for their ethical
image. Starbucks is also one of them. It has always adhered to ethical practices and except a
few petty issues has generally been hailed as a highly ethical and customer centric company. 
Ethics is an important focus area at Starbucks. It has helped the company acquire the image
of a highly responsible coffee brand that deals with its customers, suppliers and employees
ethically. Today, Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse chain of the world with the highest
number of stores running worldwide. Its total number of stores as of 2017 was 27,339.
Despite having grown as large, its focus on ethics has not reduced.
Ethics in the supply chain:
Starbucks focuses on ethics in every area but particularly down the supply chain. In this area
its focus on doing business ethically is very strong. What is it like being ethical with your
suppliers? There are a few important principles related to ethicality in the supply chain.
Supply chain and supplier relationships must not remain limited to just a formal give and take
relationship. The best brands that believe in being ethical form strong and trustful
relationships with suppliers. Some important principles that businesses must follow are as
follows:

 Treat your suppliers equally whether big or small. Equality is an important

principle that businesses must follow in their supply chain. Whether it is a
major supplier or a small one, it is your responsibility to treat them equally
and not to discriminate against them. While this creates trust, it also minimizes
issues which could otherwise create difficulties. Treating them equally inspires
trust and confidence and helps establish long term relationships.
 Empower your suppliers. As already mentioned, it is not just a give and take
relationship and you must focus on creating an environment of empowerment
for your suppliers. Empowering your suppliers can be highly advantageous for
your brand. It makes them feel connected and strengthens your relationship
with them.
 Train and educate your suppliers.  Good businesses do not just care for
themselves but they care for others too. They care for their suppliers and
provide them the necessary training in various areas to protect and support
them. From labour to law and CSR, there are several areas where your
suppliers may require training and where training them may make them more
productive and efficient. This will have a double benefit for you.
 Starbucks has followed all the above-mentioned principles responsibly down its supply
chain. It believes in helping the farmers it sources from and giving back to them by
empowering them. Its success is linked to the success of the farmers who grow cocoa for
it. In the process of sourcing, the brand focuses on both ethics and sustainability. Helping
these farmers grow and thrive helps ensure sustainable supply of high-quality raw
material in the longer term. The Arabica coffee that Starbucks sources is different from
the regular Arabica. It is found at the high altitude and Starbucks picks the beans when
they are at their best. However, the farmers who grow them also deserve to be rewarded
amply for their endeavour. Starbucks has formed a meaningful relationship with these
 farmers which is more than just a regular buy and sell relationship. Instead of using
middle men who would seek their own profits, it contacts farmers directly and seeks to
improve their lives by helping them be more self-dependent. In several coffee
communities around the world, this company has helped at least 1 million cocoa farmers.
Traditionally, what used to happen is that most of these farmers would not get the right
prices of their produce. Middlemen mostly took away the profit. To change this norm and
to help the farmers who grew cocoa, Starbucks created its own team to source directly
from the farmers.

Starbucks had launched its preferred supplier program in 2001 which was intended to attract
and reward the socially and environmentally responsible farmers. The company had set
aggressive growth plan and these suppliers were a very important pillar of its growth plan. It
needed suppliers who took the best care of their employees and lands. They were the most
responsible farmers and suited the company’s growth strategy. Farmers had to apply to the
program to become a preferred supplier. The company reviewers evaluated these suppliers
on ‘twenty metrices’ to determine if they engaged in sustainable and environmentally
responsible farming. The kind of land on which quality cocoa beans can be grown is not
found in plenty and to retain the productivity of such lands, it is essential that the farmers do
farming in a environmentally responsible and sustainable manner. The reviewers also
ensure that the farmers are engaged in socially responsible practices such as have a good
social image and take care of their labour force well. This ensures that the supply is not
compromised due to labour or legal unrest.

Ethical Human Resource Management

Starbucks believes in winning its employees’ trust by managing them ethically. Ethical HR
practices result in higher motivation, low attrition as well as performance maximization.
Employee satisfaction has become very critical to maximizing your organizational efficiency
and productivity in the twenty first century. This century has brought a lot of competition.
Even in the area of HR management, brands are in a race to remain ahead of others and hire
and retain only the best. This is the situation in nearly every industry because organizational
productivity depends heavily on the efficiency of the human resources.
Starbucks has also focused on managing its Human Resources strategically and smartly as
well as ethically.  So, what does Starbucks do to keep its workers satisfied? Does it focus on
worker engagement and motivation? Yes, it does. There are several perks of working at
Starbucks apart from a great environment and work culture. It has received several honors
and accolades in each of these areas including being one of the most ethical companies in the
world, a Military friendly employer, a Military Friendly Spouse employer as well as one of
the world’s most appreciated companies according to Forbes. These recognitions show that
Starbucks is an attractive employer. 
Starbucks calls its employees partners and does everything required to help them live
empowered lives. It believes in sharing its success with its people and has tailored its benefits
and perks to suit the needs of its workers. Packages include base pay and bonus, benefits,
retirement savings, stocks and perks. Benefits provided by Starbucks to its employees include
health coverage, stock and savings, paid time off, parental leave, paid time off, education,
commuter benefit and partners assistance. There are several kinds of perks offered to the
employees as well that include coffee and tea mark out,  in-store discount, recognition
programs and several more benefits like on site gym, day care and dry cleaning. These perks
and benefits are intended to keep the employees happy and satisfied but at the same time they
are meant to keep employees engaged and retain them longer. In the 21st century, the
companies are competing to keep their employees more satisfied than others. However, to
build an environment and culture of trust and ethics is essential to make your employees feel
truly empowered and satisfied with their jobs. Starbucks has created a truly inclusive
environment in which its employees can collaborate with others and lead satisfied lives. It
gives its employees special ethics and compliance training in order to help them do everyday
business ethically. As a part of this program, the partners (employees are called partners at
Starbucks) are trained to make ethical decisions at work. Employees receive awareness
materials including Standards of business conduct to complete their legal and ethics training.
They also have several communication channels through which they can report their issues
and concerns.

Ethical Customer Service at Starbucks

Customer relationships are an important area of focus in the twenty first century where
businesses mind their customer relationships more than ever. It is because competition has
increased manifold and every customer is valuable. Businesses want to retain every customer
which is possible only by forming long term and strong relationships with them. Every
customer is an aware customer and knows more about your brand already before you tell him.
It is why fairness and integrity is important in customer relationships because if you try to be
unfair the customers will know. It is why the best brands are always ethical towards their
customers and would not treat a single one unfairly. Starbucks is already known as a
customer centric company and focuses a lot on customer service and customer relationships.
It is well known for its customer service and trains its employees in the area of customer
relationships well.