Book SummaryOnward, by Howard Schultz

1-Page Summary1-Page Book Summary of Onward

During the 2007-2008 financial crisis, many previously ultra-successful companies struggled to turn a profit and remain in business. Titan of the coffee industry Starbucks was no exception. Sensing that the company was headed toward doom, its first CEO returned to the corporation’s helm in January 2008 to correct its course. In Onward (2012), four-time author and one-time presidential candidate Howard Schultz describes...

Onward Summary The Rise and Fall of Starbucks

By 2007, Starbucks had become a bastion of coffeehouse culture, but it wasn’t performing as well as Schultz thought it should. In this section, we’ll discuss how Schultz helped Starbucks rise to the top of the global coffeehouse industry as its first CEO before stepping down to let two successors hold the reins. Then, we’ll explore the challenges Schultz identified as leading Starbucks toward its downfall.

Starbucks’ Rise to the Top

Schultz explains that his relationship with Starbucks began in 1982 when he joined the company as a marketing professional. At the time Starbucks was small and local to Seattle, Washington. As part of a work assignment, Schultz traveled to Italy, where he was inspired by the pleasurable cafe experiences he had there to start his own coffeehouse company. In 1987, his company acquired Starbucks and chose to keep the Starbucks name, at which point Schultz became Starbucks’ first CEO.

(Shortform note: As Starbucks’ head of marketing, Schultz focused on enhancing customers’ in-store experience. He realized that many customers felt intimidated by Starbucks because they knew so little about coffee, so he...

Onward Summary Schultz’s Plan to Shake Starbucks Up

Once he understood the grave position Starbucks was in, Schultz stepped in as CEO for the second time to steer the company in a better direction. In this section, we’ll discuss Schultz’s motivation for reprising his role as CEO and the leadership strategies he used to restore stakeholders’ trust in Starbucks.

How Schultz Reprised His Role as CEO

When Schultz realized Starbucks was struggling, he wrote an email to company leaders explaining that he felt the decisions they’d made to increase profits had come at the expense of the company’s formerly outstanding customer experience. Someone leaked the email to the media, which resulted in intense scrutiny of Starbucks’ performance and culture. The email was also controversial internally, as Starbucks executives disagreed about how to handle the problem Schultz highlighted. However, Schultz says leadership eventually agreed with him.

(Shortform note: Starbucks’ history has been peppered with communications leaks: In addition to Schultz’s 2007 email to executives, which [made investors anxious about Starbucks’...

Onward Summary How Schultz Revitalized Starbucks

As CEO, Schultz made a multitude of decisions that helped Starbucks survive the financial crisis. In this section, we’ll focus on the three turnaround strategies mentioned earlier: overhauling Starbucks’ management, improving its financial standing, and enhancing the coffeehouse experience. We’ll also discuss how these decisions culminated in Starbucks’ improved standing by the end of 2009.

How Schultz Overhauled Starbucks’ Management

One of Schultz’s initial turnaround strategies was to completely overhaul the company’s management. In this section, we’ll dive into the three major changes Schultz made to accomplish this strategy: hiring new executives, securing emotional buy-in from executives and managers, and reaffirming key values in Starbucks’ management strategy.

Hiring New Executives

Schultz explains that he hired several new executives during his tenure as CEO, some promoted from within and some brought in from outside organizations. He carefully selected these new hires on the basis that they shared Starbucks' values, could provide a much-needed fresh perspective on Starbucks’ problems, and would work tirelessly to find solutions. Schultz also explains...

Shortform Exercise: Lead Your Way Out of a Personal Crisis

Schultz describes several strategies he used to inspire confidence in his leadership and revitalize Starbucks. Apply these strategies to your life to overcome a personal crisis.

Describe a personal crisis, big or small, that you’re currently experiencing. For example, maybe your family is struggling financially. Is the crisis your responsibility to resolve? Why or why not?