OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:

PCA-Choosing an Organization Worksheet

Worksheet Objectives:
1. Identify an organization and situation you want to study over the remainder of the course.
2. Describe the organization and the situation

Complete the following making sure to support your ideas and cite from the textbook and other
course materials per APA guidelines. After the peer review, you have a chance to update this and
format for your Electronic Portfolio due in Module 6.

1) Name and describe your organization.

Starbucks Coffee Company: an international giant with the standard for coffee and

friendliness. If you have Starbucks, you are in some sort of elite social category. It has

become a social status for many people across the US. Furthermore, the Starbucks

marketing team is brilliant at bringing in new customers and keeping current customers

as regulars. If it is drinkable, it is sellable.

2) Describe your role in the organization (it can be an internal or external role).

I am a shift supervisor for a retail store. I had been a supervisor for about 9-10 months by

the time this happened. I was comfortable in my role and riding on cruise control most

days. All of the supervisors and baristas had been employed for at least six months. We

had a talented team and worked together very well.

3) Describe the situation, including information you think the will help the reader
understand the most important elements of the situation. (This will require
selectivity: part of the art of case writing is separating the essential facts from the
mass of information that might be included).

You might have heard, seen, or even sampled the Oleato drinks launched by Starbucks

back in June 2023. The launch was publicized and said to be “the biggest thing to happen

1
 in your Starbucks career.” I looked forward to it as a coffee enthusiast and hoped it would

live up to the hype. Launch week came, and I can only describe it as a giant flop.

Customers were not happy, partners despised how out of touch the company seemed, and

every time we tried to sell the product, it felt like we were lying to customers. We were

required to do four hours of sampling every day for 2 weeks. We were told it was “on the

schedule” and “company standard” and “will bring more people in to buy it.” The quality

of the product is not necessarily relevant, but the way the company misunderstood

everyday business needs sticks with me to this day. I wrestled with the corporate mindset

vs local business needs. How do we keep a company standard and culture while

maintaining our specific location? For all the good things Starbucks has done for its

employees, this launch felt outrageous and disconnected from both employees and

customers.