From Miss Piggy to Spinal Tap, and Will Starbucks Discover Customer Value?

In Season 2, Episode 5, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh are going back in time (apologies to Huey Lewis and the News) to the 1990s and examining companies that were iconic then and trying to find new ground today. But we start with coffee mugs - our most vintage mugs. A coffee mug can make coffee better, or ruin it, or bring back memories. The vessel may not be more important than what’s in it, but it’s up there. And this is our first, but perhaps not our last, Miss Piggy reference. 

Episode page with video and more

Before we delve into AOL finally ending its dial-up service, we take a deep dive into Starbucks’ new CEO and his efforts to revive the brand. Both the substance and the approach to decision-making matter here. On the approach, making too many decisions at the top can undermine those you’re asking to make their decisions, but the right decisions in the right way can break things loose or shift your culture. 

However, this also raises the question of what Starbucks customers value and how to consistently deliver that value. There are many systematic barriers put in the way of baristas trying to deliver value. Will Starbucks and its CEO remove those barriers and find value? We will see (or at least their customers will). 

We wrap up sharing our experiences with jazz flutist Frank Wess and the new movie "Spinal Tap II." 

Links From the Show:

• MiiR carafe  - via Amazon
• WSJ on Starbucks' efforts to reestablish its customer value 
• And their efforts to get baristas to smile 
• AOL shuts down dial-up
• The Machine That Changed The World
• MACI  
• Improvement Nerds Podcast with Mark
• Jazz artist Frank Wess on Spotify
• Spinal Tap II: The End Continues  
• Podcast feed at LeanCoffeeTalk.com or jflinch.com/leancoffeetalk
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