CISB Visits Starbucks Headquarters
Last week, a group of 15 students in the Certificate of International Studies in Business Program (CISB) heard from managers at Starbucks headquarters, followed by a tour of the facility. During the company visit, we learned about different department roles within the company and some of the steps Starbucks takes in doing business internationally.
The first speaker was Daniel Ruiz, a senior financial analyst for LATAM (Latin America). LATAM is one of the three Starbucks global regions; the other two are China-Asia Pacific (CAP) and Europe-Middle East-Asia (EMEA). Ruiz spoke about the differences between a company and a licensed Starbucks, and how the two affect the international market.
Darian Malacher, resources manager from the Global Supply Chain Partner Resources Department, discussed the differences between generalists and specialists in the HR department. His biggest piece of advice to college students is to find a job with self-fulfillment because it is better to enjoy your career than to chase the dollar; college gives students the opportunity to have options.
Amor Cagampang, manager for Research & Development in the beverage R&D department, told us how Starbucks develops drinks for the global market. She also informed us about upcoming roastery openings in Shanghai, Milan and other parts of the world. Erika De la Cruz, a CISB Spanish track alumna, works in the Regulatory & Scientific Affairs department as an international regulatory compliance specialist. Her primary role is to ensure that supplies sent to the LATAM region are compliant with the local regulations. One of biggest struggles she faces is that every foreign market has a registration timeline of their own; some countries take a few months to register products whereas others can take over a year. Speaking Spanish is a key component to her work life because it allows her to communicate with Starbucks partners throughout LATAM.
To wrap up the visit, Kate Lizotte, an administrative assistant in the International Regulatory Compliance team, gave us a tour of the headquarters and provided us with interesting facts about the history and daily routine of the company. We learned than on average, 250 thousand cups of coffee are tasted a year as a test for quality purposes.
The visit overall to Starbucks was a wonderful experience because not only did we learn more of Starbucks as a company, we gained more knowledge of international business.
This blog post was written by Marsella Quinones, CISB French Track
