Starbucks Coffee Company (NASDAQ:SBUX) today announced a strategic
commitment to develop a comprehensive hiring platform for veterans and
active duty spouses in response to record growth and in anticipation of
a 500,000 person future global workforce. In addition, a store in
Lakewood, WA and a store in San Antonio, TX will begin sharing a portion
of each transaction with non-profit programs Operation GoodJobs and
Vested in Vets as part of a commitment to establish five such stores in
joint base communities around the United States.
“The value we are creating for shareholders is tied to the values that
guide us as an organization. As I look at the opportunity ahead of us,
we’re going to need to hire men and women with like-minded values and
the right job skills in order to continue our current levels of growth,”
said Howard Schultz, Starbucks chairman, president and chief executive
officer. “The more than one million transitioning U.S. veterans and
almost one and half million military spouses – with their diverse
background and experience – share our mission-driven sensibility and
work ethic and can build long-term careers at Starbucks as they return
home.”
This multi-year hiring and career development strategy will focus on
establishing an internal infrastructure dedicated to matching the
transferable skill sets of veterans and military spouses with the
specific talent needed across the Starbucks enterprise. It will also
build upon and expand the company’s specialized mentoring programs as
provided via the Armed Forces Network (AFN), a peer organization whose
emphasis is to ensure new hires have access to the information and
resources they need to be successful. The AFN has been a part of
Starbucks since 2007, supporting transitioning military and has led the
company’s efforts to make it an employer of choice for new hires.
“One of the most significant challenges our veterans face is a
corporation’s inability to understand and translate the skills of
military service into a meaningful private sector role,” said former
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates. “Veterans and military spouses
represent one of the most underutilized talent pools in our country and,
without the proper career path, will continue to go untapped. Companies
like Starbucks recognize this opportunity and are moving swiftly and
aggressively to match the jobs they will create in the future with the
talent returning to America over the next several years.”
As an organization with nearly 200,000 partners (employees) worldwide,
Starbucks growth and leadership opportunities will be as diverse as the
backgrounds required of them. From running a million dollar enterprise
as a store manager to specialized supply chain, manufacturing or
logistics roles, the portfolio of careers available at Starbucks
reflects the need for highly skilled applicants. This, in collaboration
with flexible work schedules and comprehensive benefit packages, makes
Starbucks an employer of choice for the more than 100,000 partners who
wear the green apron across the United States. Prospective candidates
can learn more about how their backgrounds align with Starbucks
positions through a jobs skills translator that is available on
Starbucks veterans hiring website: Starbucks.com/veterans
“On behalf of the First Lady and Dr. Biden, Joining Forces applauds
Starbucks commitment to support our nation’s veterans. All over the
country, companies like Starbucks are stepping up to serve our veterans
and military families the same way they’ve served our country. Our
servicemen and women lead in complex environments, build teams, and are
natural managers of people and resources to get things done. That’s why
hiring veterans isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s also a smart
business decision,” said Colonel Rich Morales, Executive Director,
Joining Forces.
“Companies that fail to engage the military community to identify
quality job candidates are doing themselves a tremendous disservice,”
said Marjorie James, Executive Director of Hire America’s Heroes.
“Veterans and military spouses are valued members of mission driven
teams and working with an organization like Starbucks gives them an
opportunity to establish a long term career that builds on that sense of
purpose in pursuit of a common goal.”
In collaboration with this internal hiring infrastructure, Starbucks is
leveraging one of its innovative community engagement models, the
community store, to support the development of external career resources
for service members and their spouses. Built upon a model of shared
responsibility, a portion of each transaction within a community store
is directed to a local nonprofit to assist in meeting the specific needs
and opportunities of that community.
Neighborhoods in joint base locations offer significant opportunities to
work with programs that have established tools targeting returning
service members trying to achieve long-term economic security but
lacking the necessary or consistent funding to maintain or grow these
initiatives. Vested in Vets based out of San Antonio, TX and Operation
GoodJobs, based out of Tacoma, WA, both programs of Goodwill, provide
localized, positive learning environments with a proven track record of
success. For example, between April 2012 and July 2013, Operation Good
Jobs served over three hundred veterans and family members placing over
220 in local jobs.
In addition to these strategic initiatives, and as exemplified by the
recent Come Together campaign, small gestures of kindness and compassion
can bring people together and serve as a catalyst for conversation in
the neighborhoods where they live and work. It is in this spirit that,
on Veterans Day, all U.S. company owned locations will offer a free tall
(12 fl. oz.) coffee to veterans, active duty military and military
spouses in the United States as a gesture of thanks for their service.
We are humbly indebted to their commitment, every day, and have never
lost sight that the freedoms we enjoy are due in no small part to the
sacrifices our veterans and their families have made over the years.
About Starbucks
Since 1971, Starbucks Coffee Company has been committed to ethically
sourcing and roasting the highest quality arabica coffee in the
world. Today, with stores around the globe, the company is the premier
roaster and retailer of specialty coffee in the world. Through our
unwavering commitment to excellence and our guiding principles, we bring
the unique Starbucks Experience to life for every customer
through every cup. To share in the experience, please visit us in our
stores or online at starbucks.com.
Copyright Business Wire 2013