No Whipped Cream — An Example of CXX!

So there’s this Starbucks store that opened in a new mall, close to our home, a few weeks ago. My wife and I went there for a coffee just a few days after the shop opened, and of course, being a loyal customer, I wanted to pay through my Starbucks app (and NO other method). But as luck would have it, the mobile networks had not yet reached the location, so my app didn’t open, and I was struggling to pay. The manager assures me, “No worries sir, you can pay the next time you come here!!”

Two days later, I go there to pay, and order another coffee. However, as it was being served, I realized I had missed mentioning “No whipped cream, please” (I am trying to lose weight, please) so I requested the server to just remove the whipped cream and give it to me. Did she do that? Of course not! She insisted that she will make a fresh coffee, to ensure that the Starbucks experience is not diluted.

By any standards, this is a great example of customer experience. But what differentiates this experience is that the empowerment to make the decision (please pay later, I will get you a fresh coffee with “no whipped cream”) was with the person engaging with the customer, and not with anyone else. She didn’t need to consult back with her manager, and could take an on the spot decision. And the organization trusted her to take the right decision — defined by what is best for the customer, and therefore the organization.

Simon Sinek talks extensively about the “Why” of any organization in his book “Start with Why”. He elaborates that defining the “Why” is necessary, but it has to be followed up with the “How” and the “What”. And if an organization is consistent in its beliefs (the WHY), in its actions (the HOW), it will have consistent results (the WHAT). And Starbucks does not say its mission (the WHY) is “To serve great coffee” OR “To deliver a great in store experience” — it is “To inspire and nurture the human spirit — one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time”. And that’s what this store team exemplified — through their actions, and not by a statement at the back of the counter!

While we all get excited by outstanding customer experiences, the challenge with most organizations today is multifold (and the last 21 months have turned things on their head, with convenience being the key defining factor).

• How do you recruit, and then train, the teams at all levels to understand and operate at the “Why” and not the “What”? More difficult when attrition is high — it becomes about building and retaining the culture.
• How do you build a performance metrics that measures empowerment, and trust? These are not quantitative (as is sales, or speed of service).
• How do CXOs stay committed to the “Why”, without getting swayed by the thousands of compromises the organization may have to make daily, and make it part of their strategy blueprint, so that the conveniences don’t outweigh the commitments?

If you believe that customer experience is key, some of these tougher questions will have to be thought through and implemented now. I don’t have all the answers, but have repeatedly experienced that trusting the instincts of the team engaged with the customer, can be the goldmine that can only grow bigger. And having processes and systems to further support and strengthen those instincts, will always work in the longer term. Hit me with your experiences and thoughts!