Last Saturday of the month and its time for a book review. Onward is written by Howard Schultz, the former CEO of Starbucks [brownie points for guessing the nationality of the current CEO]. It is a book that takes you on a journey through the ups and downs of Starbucks during Schultz's return as CEO in 2008. It's a story of how the company faced challenges like the global financial crisis and managed to not only survive but thrive under Schultz's leadership.
Schultz talks a lot about how Starbucks stayed ahead of the game through innovation. Whether it was introducing new technology for roasting coffee or creating popular drinks like Frappuccinos or introducing the reward cards, Starbucks always aimed to keep things fresh and exciting for its customers.
A big part of Starbucks' success, according to Schultz, is their focus on making customers happy. They did this through loyalty programs, listening to feedback, and even redesigning their breakfast sandwich process to make sure everything smelled good in their stores.
The book also highlights Starbucks' efforts to give back to society, like supporting hurricane relief efforts and promoting environmental sustainability.
However, as pointed by other readers on goodreads, Onward is written in a very self congratulatory tone. Starbucks comes across as a religion in Schultz writing, 80% of the book is Schultz congratulating himself and justifying his decisions., which comes across as repetitive. A user on goodreads rightly captures the tone of the book -
My only criticism of the book is that it comes across as a lot of corporate speak. I'm not saying it's inauthentic, just that the kind of language that he needs to motivate his employees is likely different what what he needed to put in this book. But he's clearly an inspirational leader.
They say it reads like corporate propaganda and that Schultz spends too much time patting himself on the back. While he might be an inspiring leader, I wish the book had a more down-to-earth tone.
Overall, "Onward" offers insights into the inner workings of one of the world's most recognizable brands and the leadership behind its success. If you're interested in a good success story, it's worth a read.
I have got two recommendations for you this week -
[1] I came across this podcast series called “Stories of Mahabharata” and it is one of the most beautiful narrations of Mahabharata. The episodes are small, 15-20 minutes mostly, and Sudipta ji narrates this unparalleled story in world literature with utmost clarity.
[2] This is another gem of a conversation. Kunal talks about how envy is hyperlocal, value system and obedience in a founder, changing indian landscape, why its important to ask good questions, the second order effects. No new insights per se, but Kunal always make it quite interesting. Also, he gives analogies of Mahabharata :)
What I read this week…
Top tweets of the week