Onward

2 Reviews

• 

  Inspirational

  Thought provoking and inspirational - this book got the creative juices flowing and provided interest and valuable wisdom - couldn't put it down!

  Is this helpful?

  Felicityjanelane said on May 8, 2012 | Add your feedback

• Perspective from the Top

  To build a multi-national business empire from scratch is a tremendous challenge but potentially a very rewarding journey. It calls for business acumen, leadership and management skills, tremendous energy, unrelenting commitment and to a great extend, luck. It is an exciting journey that many peopl ... (continue)

  To build a multi-national business empire from scratch is a tremendous challenge but potentially a very rewarding journey. It calls for business acumen, leadership and management skills, tremendous energy, unrelenting commitment and to a great extend, luck. It is an exciting journey that many people envy despite very few lucky ones would see their seeds sowed bore any fruits.

  But to make a conscious choice to rescue a dwindling business in times of great uncertainty is no enviable task. Not everyone who is successful would leave their comfort zone to undertake such rocky journey. Only those with a deep passion as well as strong conviction for the business and above all, courage, would take such risky path. For at stake is one’s reputation. It is essentially like swimming in a rough and uncharted water. It is a test of one’s true capabilities.

  Howard Schultz, founder and CEO of Starbucks, is one such individual who had undertaken such unenviable task and rose to the challenge. Onwards is a recollection of his journey in re-building a new foundation for Starbucks that would put its business back on a sustainable growth path with a renewed sense of purpose, identity and boundless possibilities.

  While the book is not a user manual for rescuing a dwindling business in every industry, it provides a glimpse into the leadership as well as business challenges that a chief executive had to face in times of great uncertainty and how Schultz had tackled them.

  It offers lessons on re-energizing a beaten team, integrating internet and social media technologies into its market research and innovations, innovations and many other measures that Schultz
  initiated to transform the business.

  It also explains, in simple and high level terms, the complexity of a coffee business from ethical sourcing of raw material supply, processing to ultimately delivery into the hands of a coffee
  drinker around the world.

  While some parts of the book read like marketing material others read like investor roadshow presentation albeit in much greater elaboration.

  Nonetheless, there are some interesting takeaways from the book.

  For example, the concept of lean production, a technique deployed in automobile manufacturing industry, is surprisingly applicable in the retail sector where employees are encourage to organize their way of working without compromising business goals.

  At the heart of all lessons learned is about staying relevant to the society (market) in times of changes. It is about operating a business efficiently, generating value for all stakeholders involved without compromising the core values and ethics that
  Starbucks hold so dear to its heart.

  It reminds the reader that though a cup of coffee is always a cup of coffee, Starbucks had undergone an incredible transformation in executing its business through various innovation be it in the supply chain, coffee roasting technology and numerous new product categories.

  I am not a coffee drinker or a huge fan of Starbucks coffee. But I came away with the appreciation of the love, compassion and commitment Howard Schultz had for Starbucks and a renewed sense that Starbucks is an admirable company.

  Is this helpful?

  t-salon said on Dec 10, 2011 | Add your feedback

Book Details

• Rating:
  (5)
  • 5 stars
  • 4 stars
  • 3 stars
  • 2 stars
  • 1 star
• English Books
• Hardcover 384 Pages
• ISBN-10: 1605292885
• ISBN-13: 9781605292885
• Publisher: Rodale Books
• Pub date: Mar 29, 2011
• Dimensions: 1490 mm x 1032 mm x 232 mm Just how big is that?
• Also available as: Others and eBook
• In other languages: other languages 繁體書

Prices Change currency & sellers