Monthly Archives: January 2008
Leadership Change at Starbucks – The Barista Returns?
Starbucks faced the classic problem of any company scaling up (especially a retail brand) – how to be large without being bureaucratic, how to be efficient without losing the soul of the brand, how to be consistent without losing the differentiation edge. Will this change now, with the return of Schultz at the helm? The other question is whether, for iconic brands that are more than just the physical product or service being sold, can a ‘professional CEO’ ever take the place of the founder(s), replicate their passion & vision and maintain the integrity of the brand? I believe there are examples to support both answers: ‘Yes’ and ‘No’. Continue reading →
Barriers to Becoming an Entrepreneur
One of the thoughts that I shared with a gathering of students of entrepreneurship at a University near Delhi recently… The Top-3 barriers, in my mind, to becoming an entrepreneur are: 1) Success 2) Security 3) Education With success comes … Continue reading →