Training 135,000 employees in one day - Starbucks closes stores to do it!

Most of you out there have probably heard the news by now - on Tuesday evening, February 26th, Starbucks closes every store in the US for a few hours to train ALL of their 135,000 employees.

The press release on the Starbucks website can be found here...

Check out this quote from the article...

In one of its most significant efforts to transform the company and reignite its connection with customers, today Starbucks is conducting an unprecedented in-store education and training event for more than 135,000 partners (employees) in U.S. company-operated stores. As part of this major customer-focused initiative, Starbucks is also introducing a promise to exceed customers’ expectations by delivering the perfect drink every time.

At the end of the night, all of Starbucks U.S. partners will pledge their commitment to upholding the uncompromising standards and quality that have made Starbucks the world’s coffee leader. The promise will be prominently posted in every U.S. company-operated store, and baristas will demonstrate a personal commitment to their customers by signing the promise upon completion of tonight’s training.

So, what was your reaction to this?

My first reaction were the numbers. They actually trained 135,000 at the same time - this is unheard of! Secondly, I did the math to show how much it cost Starbucks for this 3 hour training. If I assume that each Starbucks partner (employee) makes $9/hour then they spent about $3.6 million dollars in payroll for this time - all while not selling even one drop of coffee - that's $0 in revenue during this time. Numbers like these truly shows their commitment to rejuvenate their workforce.

For those of you that are Starbucks addicts were you able to tell a difference from Tuesday to Wednesday? Did your coffee taste better? Did their employees appear to be more energized with a new commitment and emphasis on quality?

Since I'm not a coffee drinker I wouldn't be able to tell you. So, if you've got a story to tell, let me know my leaving your comment...

The 25 Top Paying Companies - Did your company make the list?

I just ran across this list on CNN titled 25 top-paying companies.

Once you click through the link you'll do what I did - I quickly scrolled through the top 25 to see if my current employer, previous employer, or major competitor of my company made the list. I was also looking to see if any of these companies had headquarters or offices where I live. For me, none of these applied...no shock to me and now no reason to update my resume...

Below are the top 10 from the list of 25...
1. Bingham McCutchen
2. Arnold & Porter
3. Alston & Byrd
4. Shared Technologies
5. Nixon Peabody
6. Devon Energy
7. Perkins Coie
8. EOG Resources
9. Adobe Systems
10. Goldman Sachs

As I scrolled through the list I was surprised how many I had to click through before I came across a company I recognized or even heard of. The first company I recognized was #9, Adobe Systems. How about you? How many did you have to scroll through?

Next I had to check out #1 from the list, Bingham McCutchen. For more information on them go here...

The first shocker for me was this, their average total pay is $211,017 (For: Associate) - not bad at all!

Check this out from the article - This major corporate law firm brought three firms into its fold in 2007, boosting its staff to more than 1,000 lawyers working in 13 different offices, the largest of which is in Boston. Most hires fresh out of law school start here with a base salary of $160,000, and even the firm's legal secretaries average a not-too-shabby $69,000 a year. And talent looms large - the legal staff includes 72 graduates from Harvard Law, 24 from Yale and 20 from Stanford.

What was your first conclusion from this bit of information? Mine was obviously pay and how they are so willing to pay for and keep their talent. Speaking of retention, their turnover rate is 17%. That's not too bad but with a pay structure like theirs and a #41 ranking of the top companies to work for I would have expected it to be somewhat lower.

Check out the rest of the companies that made the list and see what else they are doing, other than pay, to attract and retain their talent...

Enjoy!