Starbucks has more than 383,000 employees and looks to be hiring more in the future.
With more than 34,000 stores across the country and internationally, it’s become a job-maker in several states and countries.
Starbucks is a roaster and retailer for all types of different coffees.
Its coffee baristas are the faces of the stores, but there are other positions within the company as well.
Here are 10 reasons Starbucks is a good place to work.
Is Starbucks A Good Place to Work? (10 Reasons It Is)
1. Have Fun With Customers
A problem with retail and customer service jobs is that you’re dealing with people non-stop.
While most people are usually polite or even kind, others can be rude.
Working at Starbucks gives you the ability to have a little fun with customers.
A notorious part of the Starbucks experience is receiving a cup with your name spelled incredibly wrong or even a different name altogether.
While some employees do this simply because they don’t know how to spell your name, others do it for fun on occasion.
After all, it helps put a spotlight on Starbucks now and then.
People don’t usually take photos of their drinks if their names are correct.
However, if their name has a ridiculous spelling, then you can be sure it’s probably going on social media.
That’s free marketing for Starbucks.
If you’re working at Starbucks, then you can have this sort of fun with customers.
While you shouldn’t do it all the time, it can be a fun little way to break up the monotony of the day.
Starbucks is a good place to work because you can have fun with customers now and then with a harmless prank.
2. Fast-Paced
Starbucks has a few times of the day when it’s incredibly busy.
The morning hours are the busiest with everyone looking to buy coffee to start their day.
There’s also usually a spike in traffic at lunch and around dinner, too.
If you work during those hours, then you can expect mayhem.
Most Starbucks stores don’t have enough workers.
As a result, there’s a small team trying to handle everything at the front of the store.
With tons of customers expecting their drinks quickly, workers have to move fast.
While there are moments when Starbucks is quiet, most of the time, you can expect a fast-paced environment.
This is an ideal situation for people who love fast-paced environments.
It can make the day go a lot faster since you’re going from one thing to the next with little time to check the clock.
While you may be doing similar things, working in a fast-paced environment also means that you’re rushing around and taking part in different aspects of running the shop at any one time.
For a few minutes, you might be taking orders, but then you may suddenly find yourself mixing the drinks.
You could be on the drive-thru window but then find yourself stocking.
Due to the fast-paced nature of the store, it can be perfect for those who like working hard and fast.
3. Coffee-Making Expert
One thing Starbucks has a reputation for is the huge number of different coffees that you can order.
Every variation of coffee has its own name and recipe.
As a Starbucks barista, you have to learn them all.
The good news is that they have helpful guides that can ensure you get the right recipe around.
After you make the orders over and over, however, you won’t need the guide any longer.
You’ll become a coffee-making expert.
Depending on the frequency and complexity of the drink, you may end up hating certain types of coffee.
However, working at Starbucks can also introduce you to new types of coffee that you may never have heard of before.
Besides becoming a coffee-making expert, you might become a coffee expert as a whole.
While coffee is a specific niche market, for the right enterprising individual, you might be able to open up your own coffee business one day.
At the very least, you can use your new skills to impress at parties.
While someone else takes care of the alcoholic drinks, you can impress everyone with your vast knowledge of different coffee brews.
You’ll be the reason that the party keeps going.
Starbucks is a good place to work because you’ll get to learn all manner of different types of coffee and how to brew them.
4. Great Relationships With Customers
Although rude customers are common at Starbucks, many employees end up making great friendships with regular customers.
Because coffee is routine for many people, it also means that they routinely go to Starbucks to get their fix.
As such, they often see the same employees working particular shifts.
It’s only natural that Starbucks employees and regular customers form friendships.
It’s a chance for customers to learn more about employees and for employees to learn more about customers.
It’s this type of relationship that Starbucks Corporation wants to push.
It prefers its employees to make connections with the customers.
That’s easier to do when customers are regulars and polite.
Some Starbucks employees report that if they’re not on a shift, a regular might say to another employee that they miss them.
Others wish the employee well if they’re out sick.
A few even stated that some regular customers get small Christmas gifts for their favorite baristas.
Not every place of employment has repeat customers as often as Starbucks.
Since coffee is usually part of someone’s morning routine, however, it’s more likely for customers to become regulars at their local Starbucks.
This is also true for those who prefer to use the area to work, socialize, or work on projects together.
When they’re there frequently, it’s only natural that they and the employees start to bond.
Starbucks is a good place to work because it allows you to make real and lasting friendships with regular customers.
5. Creative Opportunities
While Starbucks has a long list of different types of coffee that you can order, they also make custom orders.
As long as a customer comes in with a recipe in mind, the barista can make the coffee for them.
It becomes a little harder when they only have a name for a coffee that they found online and expect the employee to just know what they’re talking about.
However, one of the benefits of working at Starbucks is that you can unleash your own creativity when it comes to making coffee.
If you style yourself as a mixologist, then you can have the same creative influence in Starbucks.
You can try out different ingredients and recipes and see if you can invent the next big coffee trend.
Some customers may even ask for your own unique blend.
You can show off your mixology skills and wow them with your new brew.
If you have an interest in trying out new coffee blends, then working at Starbucks may be ideal for you.
If you make a successful brew, then it might even become a new official coffee served at Starbucks.
Starbucks is a good place to work because it encourages creativity.
You can have a bit of fun trying out different brews and seeing if interested customers enjoy them.
6. Thorough Training
A problem that some stores have is that they don’t train their employees well enough.
At most, employees will have a day of training and then get thrown to the wolves.
That isn’t the case at Starbucks.
Because Starbucks is such a fast-paced environment, it needs all of its employees ready to go from the start.
If you’re not properly trained, then you’re going to slow everyone else down.
That’s why Starbucks emphasizes its training.
New hires are trained for two weeks.
It’s an intense two weeks where new hires learn how to make every drink on the menu.
Because it’s fast-paced, they usually feel some of the stress and pressure that experienced employees face every day.
However, they’re given the support they need to make it through.
By the time the two weeks are over, new hires are ready to join the team in full.
As long as you can make it through those two weeks, you’ll survive working at Starbucks without any problems.
Starbucks is a good place to work because it takes its training seriously.
It doesn’t let its new employees feel lost or out of control.
They’re given the support they need during their training to become an expert in just two weeks.
7. Dental And Health Insurance
Starbucks has a few perks for working at its stores.
One of the best benefits is its dental and health insurance.
As a full-time employee, you can qualify for their dental and health insurance plans.
As anyone knows, having health insurance can be the difference between bankruptcy and living a healthy life.
Health insurance can cover expensive medical costs that might add sizable debt to your name otherwise.
Another perk is the fact that you also get dental insurance from them.
Not every employer offers dental insurance as well as health insurance.
Dental insurance is ideal since it allows employees to get more regular check-ups on their dental health.
They can take care of their teeth which means they’re less likely to experience cavities or tooth loss later in life.
Dental issues have also been known to cause or indicate other, more serious medical concerns.
With their health insurance, Starbucks employees can pursue preventative health measures that allow them to live longer, healthier, lives when they’re older.
Considering the stress that they put on their bodies by working at Starbucks, having health and dental insurance are both great perks.
Starbucks is a good place to work because it offers both dental and health insurance.
8. Tuition Coverage
Perhaps one of the biggest benefits of working at Starbucks is that they cover 100% of your tuition.
There is one major stipulation, however.
They only cover 100% tuition from Arizona State University.
The good news is that this also includes their online degrees.
It doesn’t matter if the employee is part-time or full-time.
As long as they qualify and have their application accepted at ASU, Starbucks will cover their tuition completely.
There are two main reasons that Starbucks started this program.
The first is that it believes in the future of its employees.
Even if their degree takes them away from Starbucks, the company has an interest in building a better future for its employees.
The second reason is that this attracts employees to Starbucks.
It also keeps them there.
Tuition coverage lasts for only as long as they work at Starbucks.
If they quit, then they no longer have their coverage.
This also applies to those who get fired.
As such, it encourages its employees to work hard and stay employed by Starbucks for at least four years.
Starbucks covers tuition for the first Bachelor’s degree employees earn at Arizona State University.
That means if someone wants to double major, then Starbucks won’t cover the cost of that second degree.
It also means they won’t cover the cost of a Master’s or Doctorate.
That said, Starbucks employees can get a Bachelor’s degree completely free while working at the coffee house.
Even better, it’s available for both full-time and part-time workers.
It’s worth checking the online degrees available at ASU to first determine if the tuition coverage is worth it.
If they don’t have a degree that you’re interested in, then the tuition coverage might not mean a lot to you.
For everyone else, it’s a great reason to work at Starbucks.
Starbucks is a good place to work because it will cover 100% of your college tuition for a Bachelor’s degree at Arizona State University.
9. Parental Leave
Starbucks also gives its employees paid parental leave.
Many employers tend to only give their employees a week or two of paid leave after becoming a new parent.
Starbucks supports its employees by giving them a longer time to adjust to being a new parent.
They also have wider coverage than most employers.
For example, some employers may only grant paid parental leave if the birth is natural.
They don’t cover things like new foster children or adoptions.
Starbucks does.
When a newborn joins your household, it doesn’t matter to them if it was a natural birth, adoption, or a new foster care child, they’re willing to give you paid parental leave.
At Starbucks, employees who work in the retail part of the store, including managers, can receive up to six weeks of paid parental leave.
They can also receive up to 12 weeks of unpaid parental leave.
That’s more than a month of paid leave to take care of your baby and adjust to being a new parent.
For Starbucks employees who don’t work in the retail part of the company, you can get up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave.
Depending on the child’s delivery, birth parents are also eligible to get an additional six to eight weeks of paid leave.
That makes Starbucks an ideal place for young workers who are looking to start their families.
They may not be comfortable starting a family simply because they’re unsure how much leave they’re going to get.
Starbucks supports its employees and their life goals by giving them a healthy amount of parental leave that’s paid.
Starbucks is a good place to work if you plan on having a baby any time soon.
They offer six weeks of paid parental leave.
10. Free Drinks And Food
One of the benefits that Starbucks employees likely take advantage of the most is the fact that they can get free drinks and food.
Starbucks allows its employees to get one free drink every shift they work.
They’re also able to eat food that isn’t formed correctly or that isn’t suitable for display.
That means the average Starbucks worker can get a free cup of coffee every day and come home with a good amount of baked goods.
Since Starbucks freezes its food, in most cases, employees can enjoy a relatively healthy snack while on the job or back at home.
They can dish out the goods to their friends who are sure to love the free pastries and cookies.
Having a free drink also helps the employees stay on their feet during the crunch work hours of the day.
Starbucks is a good place to work because you can get free food and drinks.
Conclusion
There are a lot of benefits that Starbucks offers its employees.
As long as you can stand the fast-paced environment and the occasional rude customers, working there may be a great option for the creative baristas out there.
At the very least, you can enjoy free food and drinks during your employment.
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