The changes that Richard Chambers has seen in his five years at #starbucks were hard to miss as the 23-year U.S. Air Force veteran addressed a ceremony held today (March 28) to commemorate 10,000 service members, veterans and military spouses hired by #starbucks as part of an initiative announced in 2013.
Chambers, the chair of the #starbucks Armed Forces Network, recalled finding a sole fellow military retiree at the #starbucks Support Center (headquarters) when he started.
“The Starbucks Armed Forces Network could maybe get 12 veterans in a room,” Chambers recalled. “And then look at the journey since then – all the work that’s gone on with the recruiting team.”
More than three dozen #starbucks partners (employees) and company leaders, many with military backgrounds, gathered at the #starbucks Support Center in Seattle to commemorate the hiring milestone. #starbucks reached 10,000 hires ahead of its initial 2018 goal. A new target of 25,000 by 2025 was announced March 22 at the #starbucks Annual Meeting of Shareholders.
“We are delighted to be able to not only meet and exceed the five-year commitment – we did that in three and a half years – but to also to step back and say, ‘There’s more that we can do,’” said incoming #starbucks ceo Kevin Johnson.
Johnson, who joined in a United States Marine Corps cake-cutting ceremony as part of the event, said #starbucks benefits richly from what the military community brings to the company.
“I’ve had the privilege to meet a number of the great men and women veterans who we’ve hired,” Johnson said. “It’s clear to me that they make us a better company with their discipline, their experience. their knowledge and their commitment to what they do. They are mission-driven and they are wonderful, wonderful partners.”
The ceremony was conducted in front of the #starbucks Honor Wall, where engraved medallions inspired by “challenge coins” used in military culture display the names and military role of #starbucks partners. An additional 600 medallions were hung today.
In addition to its hiring commitment, #starbucks bridges the civilian-military divide through programs such as Adopt a Unit, #starbucks Military Family Stores (100 new stores will open over the next five years), and partnerships with organizations, including Blue Star Families, Team Red, White & Blue, Team Rubicon, The Mission Continues, the USO and Hiring Our Heroes.
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