| Starbucks Enthusiastic Partner |
[Tuesday
Aug 19th, 2008 at 1:39pm
] |
I have been wanting to write!!! It's been forever!!!
Firstly, I have already crossed the line from a newbie to a regular partner at Starbucks! Woo hoo!!! Yes yes, I'm now the favourite partner. Hehe. Cuz apparently, I buy food! Bleah. Those greedy monsters.
There have been many changes in the store too. New partners are hired, training, last minute disappearances, shift manager movement, and even store manager changes. It's like a massive overhaul for the store in terms of human resources, if you ask me. And the partner appraisal was just held so it was quite interesting as I rated myself and charted my growth as a partner. Frankly, I am extremely pleased with my performance. I've always been driven by results and performance and my progress is clearly demarcated, no doubt about it.
To share a bit more on the store, I miss those people who have left. The reason for the sudden drop in the number of available partners is also due to school re-opening after the holidays. Majority of the partner age group hinges around the tertiary range, so the impact to the store was quite hefty and I felt a large brunt of it as I covered many empty slots. It was because of this that my skills improved by leaps and bounds, and also grew my passion to improve customer service in times of major resource deprivation. Somehow, the tougher the challenge, the more eager I find myself in terms of delivering. Psychotic, maybe, but, very wildly fun! Haha.
I hold pretty mixed feelings to the new partners who have joined. My personal take is to never scream down at anyone, whether they're new, amateurs, experienced, or veterans. Who doesn't make mistakes? All humans do! So treat each one with the due respect you would want others to give you. Thus, my demeanour to all is one of fun and to never be afraid to ask, and I think I'm quite good at that in, creating a positive environment where people are not afraid to make mistakes, and learn from them.
During supper with my store manager, I shared with her how I felt so stressed and pressured during my first month with the store cuz of the expectation they placed on me. Even she noticed that the new partner was shaking whenever he holds the pitcher to steam the milk. I know how he feels cuz I went through that. I think it was Sarah who commented that my hand was shaking when I was at the bar making drinks. How would you feel if someone shouted at you and said things like, "Aiya, you ah." I mean, the person already feels lousy for not being able to perform up to standards, but why do you wanna add on to it and make the person feel worse? That Sat, I was so fedup that by noon, my face was black as thunder when I took customers' orders at the POS. It really sucks. But hey, what a big difference it would have made if they had encouraged and said, "Ok. Don't worry about it. Just remember next time ok." And say it with a smile and sincerity.
How can you expect a 1-month old partner to behave and act as efficiently and fast as a 2-year old partner? It's just not realistic and only serves as a deterrent to the new partner's learning curve. We all learn faster when the environment is positive and our minds are open to taking in valuable feedback and criticism with the motive of improvement. Sometimes I feel like retorting, "Ok. So I forgot his coffee. Instead of harping on how I missed the mark, what do you suggest I can improve on the next time?" Instead of dwelling on what has already happened, why don't you comment on what should have been done right? How does, "You always forget the coffee!" help in any way?
Yeah well, the good thing is, my store manager has an extremely radical approach to resolve such matters. To her, the worse you are something, the more practise she will make you go through in order to hone your skills. That is the right way to improve overall store performance. All along, whenever I am unable to cope with the overflowing orders, they will typically send me out to clear tables or other roles and take over the bar. When I told her that's what usually happens to me, she shared her totally opposite view, which I fully agreed with. The store is gonna go through a massive makeover in the culture, attitude, and process. I for one, am looking forward to it with much delight.
So now, I am capable enough to handle the entire floor on my own, in exclusion of the internal store per se. I was able to flow smoothly along the food, POS, bar, and frap. Even I was amazed and impressed with myself. Hehe. And guess what, I even received an offer to work at another cafe. Keke. Brazenly attempting to poach me across the counter! Hee. My energy and enthusiasm is at such a climax now that I constantly smile and holler greetings to customers. I think my next POS greeting is to invite them to step up and purchase a drink, and then con them to include syrups and upsize their drinks to earn the additional few cents of revenue each transaction. The store's success is my success cuz without the store, I wouldn't have a Starbucks to work at. To more great shifts at the store. I am looking forward to Dec where the school holidays are up again and the HP 1 week shutdown. Think I shall be at the store in full force! Whoopee!
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peaceful
cheerful
peaceful
jubilant
nervous