Latest news with #corporateculture
The Guardian
a day ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Starbucks tells corporate staff in US and Canada to work in office at least four days a week
Starbucks has ordered its corporate staff to work from the office at least four days a week from late September and is offering cash payments to those who choose to quit instead. Brian Niccol, the chief executive of the Seattle-headquartered coffee chain, said many of its employees would be required to work in the office for a minimum of four days a week, up from three, from Monday to Thursday. The edict will apply to its Seattle and Toronto support centres and its regional offices in North America. The change does not apply to the UK, where Starbucks has its head office in Chiswick, west London. 'We do our best work when we're together,' Niccol said in a message to employees, referred to as 'partners', on the company's website about 're-establishing an in-office culture'. 'We want leaders and people managers to be physically present with their teams.' He added: 'Being in-person also helps us build and strengthen our culture. As we work to turn the business around, all these things matter more than ever.' Starbucks has 16,000 corporate support employees worldwide, including coffee roasters and warehouse staff. It employs about 360,000 people worldwide, including 5,600 in the UK, most of whom work in its cafes. The four-day office policy will come into effect on 29 September. Niccol, who has been in the job for almost a year, has said he wants to take Starbucks back to its coffeehouse roots by improving customers' experience in its cafes and reducing reliance on mobile and takeaway orders. He said: 'We know we're asking a lot of every partner as we work to turn the business around. And we understand that the updated in-office culture may not work for everyone. 'To support those who decide to 'opt out', we're offering a one-time voluntary exit programme with a cash payment for partners who make this choice.' The company did not state the size of the sum. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion A string of businesses in the US and the UK – such as Amazon and HSBC – have ordered their staff back to the office for the majority of the working week. On Tuesday, a survey showed that a fear of having to return to their office desks is having an impact on workers' wellbeing. In February, Starbucks asked its vice-presidents who were working remotely to move to Seattle or Toronto. It is now extending this requirement to all support centre 'people leaders', who are expected to relocate within 12 months. In its previous announcement, Starbucks set out plans to lay off 1,100 corporate employees and close several hundred open or vacant job positions, the biggest job cuts in its history, in order to reduce costs as it struggled with rising inflation and economic uncertainty. Niccol faced environmental criticism last year for his 1,000-mile commute to work in the office three days a week. The company allowed him to travel in from his home in Newport Beach, California, to its head office in Seattle via a private jet instead of relocating. Since then, he has bought a home in Seattle and is frequently seen at the company's headquarters, a spokesperson told Associated Press.
The Guardian
2 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Starbucks tells corporate staff in US and Canada to work in office at least four days a week
Starbucks has ordered its corporate staff to work from the office at least four days a week from late September and is offering cash payments to those who choose to quit instead. Brian Niccol, the chief executive of the Seattle-headquartered coffee chain, said many of its employees would be required to work in the office for a minimum of four days a week, up from three, from Monday to Thursday. This will apply to its Seattle and Toronto support centres and regional offices in North America. 'We do our best work when we're together,' Niccol said in a message to employees, referred to as 'partners', on the company's website on 're-establishing an in-office culture'. 'We want leaders and people managers to be physically present with their teams.' He added: 'Being in person also helps us build and strengthen our culture. As we work to turn the business around, all these things matter more than ever.' The four-day office policy will come into effect on 29 September. Niccol, who has been in the job for almost a year, has said he wants to take Starbucks back to its coffeehouse roots by improving customers' experience in its cafes and reducing reliance on mobile and takeaway orders. He said: 'We know we're asking a lot of every partner as we work to turn the business around. And we understand that the updated in-office culture may not work for everyone. 'To support those who decide to 'opt out', we're offering a one-time voluntary exit programme with a cash payment for partners who make this choice.' The company did not state the size of the sum. In February, the company asked its vice-presidents who were working remotely to move to Seattle or Toronto. It is now extending this requirement to all support centre 'people leaders', who are expected to relocate within 12 months. In its previous announcement, Starbucks set out plans to lay off 1,100 corporate employees and close several hundred open or vacant job positions, the biggest job cuts in its history, in order to reduce costs as it struggled with rising inflation and economic uncertainty. Starbucks has 16,000 corporate support employees worldwide, including coffee roasters and warehouse staff. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion Niccol faced environmental criticism last year for his 1,000-mile commute to work in the office three days a week. The company allowed him to travel in from his home in Newport Beach, California, to its head office in Seattle via a private jet instead of relocating. Since then, he has bought a home in Seattle and is frequently seen at the company's headquarters, a spokesperson told the Associated Press.
Forbes
6 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
‘Inclusivity Is Not Optional' Says E.l.f. Beauty CEO
E.l.f. Beauty (NYSE: ELF) Rings The Opening Bell at the New York Stock Exchange, Monday, March 18, ... More 2024. Diversity, equity and inclusion has become a prime battle ground for corporate America, but E.l.f. Beauty is not backing down from its inclusive positioning. E.l.f. Beauty has never had a formal diversity, equity and inclusion program, according to its CEO, Tarang Amin. But the company culture has been intentionally designed around inclusivity. After all, Amin and his colleagues speak in terms of representing every eye, lip and face. E.l.f. Beauty's workforce is 74% women, over 40% diverse, and over 72% millennial and Gen Z, according to its 2024 DEI policies. 'Inclusivity is not optional. It's fundamental, and our entire business is based on that,' said Amin. And that business is successful, with the company investing resources in demonstrating how diversity and inclusivity are integral to its success. Its latest earnings, released in late May, showed the company's full-year fiscal 2025 net sales grew 28%, with the fourth quarter representing the 25th consecutive quarter of net sales growth and market share gains. Net sales increased 4% to $332.6 million in the fourth quarter. Notably, in May 2024, E.l.f. Beauty released a campaign centered on public board diversity, called 'So Many 'Dicks' So Few of Everyone Else.' Working with purpose-driven agency Oberland, E.l.f. Beauty conducted research on corporate boards in the U.S. learning that men named Richard, Rick, or Dick (Dicks) serving on public company boards outnumbered women and diverse groups. The out-of-home campaign included signage posted in the Financial District of New York City, noting the stats about current boards and inviting others to learn about how diversity can drive profitability for everyone. Additionally, in fiscal year 2024, E.l.f. Beauty donated over $1.2 million to various charities like It Gets Better Project, Project Glimmer, and Pull Up for Change through a combination of formal partnerships and corporate matching of employee donations. Amin spoke with Forbes about DEI, including how the company builds an intentionally inclusive environment, what he thinks of the anti-DEI movement and whether the company's DEI positioning has ever risen to a board-level conversation. Tarang Amin, chairman and CEO of E.l.f. Beauty since 2014. What's the status of the DEI movement within the beauty industry today? Tarang Amin: Well, certainly it's under pressure, like a lot of things going on. We've never actually had a DEI program or quotas or a number of the things that are being attacked. It's much more fundamental than that. Our mission is to make the best of beauty accessible to every eye, lip and face. Fundamentally believe in inclusivity and the power it has in terms of business. And I believe most people also feel that way. I don't know when [culturally] it became a choice of being inclusive or having great business results. We're proof that both go hand in hand, and all the studies show that greater diversity leads to better results compared to homogeneous teams. I don't know any CEO who doesn't want the most talented workforce they can get. [My response is] to some of these attacks on these programs, 'It's in our best interest to have the best possible employees we can have.' How do you integrate the principles of DEI without a formal program? Amin: It comes with great intentionality of being inclusive. Our workforce [in 2025] is comprised of 74% women, 76% Gen Z and millennials, and 44% diverse individuals. It absolutely reflects the community that we serve. But we also believe in inclusivity in terms of leveraging each person's strengths. So I don't care who you are, what you look like, what your background is or what you want to do, because we have such a diverse team; every person leverages their unique strengths. The entire team is stronger. I feel that too many companies might say they care, but they don't really show it through their actions. The most important work is the intention [and] commit[ment] to the ownership for our employees. We're committed to a high-performance team culture. We're one of the few companies that grant equity to every single employee every year, everywhere around the world. Our board of directors is one of only five public companies in the U.S. out of 4,000, that's two-thirds women and 44% diverse. Does being diverse or inclusive beget a more diverse pool of employee candidates? Amin: I think there's some truth to that. People tend to [hire] those whom they're more comfortable. Yet, when you come and interview with E.l.f. Beauty, you're interviewed by a diverse slate of people who are talking about the culture. [Our employees] are our best ambassadors. It certainly gives us an advantage there. I also think it helps when it comes to the mindset of those who are interviewing. It directly relates to our [internal survey] engagement scores, where over 94% were highly positive, and 98% commended E.l.f. Beauty as a place to work. Has DEI and the company's approach ever been discussed at a C-Suite or board-level conversation? Amin: No, not for us. We're 100% committed to this because it relates to our mission. If anything, we've been more vocal on this topic because businesses have either retreated or had to change their language. I get it -- different companies are under different pressures. However, we've been authentically inclusive for 21 years as a business, and if we change that stance, or if we said something different, I think that would be a violation of the community we serve. What do you make of the broader anti-DEI conversation? Amin: Even if you're not at E.l.f., if you're not in the beauty space, and your audience is not our audience, I would still argue that reflecting the community you serve is good business. And having a workforce that reflects your community is good business. People aren't talking those terms nearly enough – what you believe in and what you really stand for. And why? I call it the 'case for inclusiveness,' because the case for not being inclusive is highly suspect. What's wrong with representing the people you serve? Like most things, there's a pendulum. Over time, people are going to see how [diversity] actually delivers great results, and we will absolutely be able to point to inclusivity that was a big part of those results. Let's get away from the rhetoric, and let's actually look at the real facts. The noise subsides over time. I always say facts are friends. And the data here is incredibly conversation has been slightly edited and condensed for clarity.
Fast Company
03-07-2025
- Business
- Fast Company
Leaders, here's how to close the gap between your words and actions
It's one thing to declare, 'We care about our people.' It's entirely different to prove it in messy, unscripted moments, especially when no one is watching. Too often, corporate messaging about empathy and respect falters under pressure. We proclaim well-being, then demand overtime. We champion inclusion, then maintain biased systems. We insist on dignity, then terminate employees over Zoom. This disconnect, which I call corporate message incongruency, erodes trust, corrodes culture, and ultimately undermines everyone's performance. The Cost of Incongruency When organizations fail to live up to their own rhetoric, employees notice, and they don't stay quiet about it. A 2024 study found that perceiving corporate hypocrisy (characterized by gaps between stated values and actual behavior) is strongly linked to increased employee cynicism, disengagement, and a higher risk of turnover. Meanwhile, only 23% of workers worldwide are engaged in their work, according to Gallup—meaning the vast majority are either emotionally detached or actively disengaged. Executives often overestimate their impact. In its 2024 Well-Being at Work Survey conducted in the U.S., U.K., Canada, and Australia, Deloitte found that 90% of executives believe working for their company 'has a positive effect on worker well-being, skills development, career advancement, inclusion and belonging, and [employees'] sense of purpose and meaning.' At the same time, just 60% (or fewer) of workers agree, according to the survey. That gap isn't just a miscommunication; it's a structural signal. And when leaders default to convenience over care in high-stakes moments, the message reverberates far beyond a single event. Consider the now-infamous 2021 Zoom layoffs at where 900 employees were let go in a terse three-minute video. The backlash was swift and severe, spotlighting a painful truth: When corporate actions contradict their stated values, their reputation takes a hit. There Doesn't Have to Be a Disconnect Most misalignment stems from good intentions, not malice. But business values must be lived in practice, not just in glossy branding. And regardless of your role—whether you're a CEO, director, manager, or individual contributor—you have the power to bridge the gap. 1. Audit intent versus impact. Start with brutal honesty. Map your organization's stated values against real moments where behaviors diverge—vacation policies that go unused, diversity statements that don't reflect candidate slates. In my leadership sessions, consistently mapping these dissonances reveals opportunities to realign, rather than rebrand. Invite feedback from across levels and treat misalignment not as a failure, but as data. 2. Lead with ritual integrity. Values don't stick—they ritualize. Meaningful, small-scale rituals reinforce intent: a weekly check-in circle to honor well-being, 'no-meeting' afternoons to protect focus, transparent sharing of equity data even when it stings. Culture is less magic and more habit. These rituals become touchpoints for trust and vehicles for transformation. 3. Embed accountability. Accountability is the bridge from talk to trust. Expand success metrics to include psychological safety, sense of belonging, and alignment of personal narratives, a practice I call story audits. Nearly 85% of large U.S. employers offer workplace wellness programs; despite this, anticipated improvements in well-being are not being realized, indicating a mismatch between investment and outcomes. Measuring the invisible matters because it makes visible what is valued. This grassroots approach doesn't just uncover pain points; it creates buy-in and shared ownership for change. 4. Empower action at all levels. Aligned culture isn't a top-down decree; it's a distributed commitment. Empower 'alignment champions' across departments. At one biotech firm I advised, peer-led story circles uncovered voice imbalances more effectively than any digital survey and enabled real-time corrections. 5. Normalize vulnerability and repair. Inevitably, we slip. The question isn't whether it happens, but what happens next. Acknowledge missteps publicly. Leaders who say 'I was wrong' often deepen trust more than those who avoid the subject. Vulnerability is strength, not weakness. Repair strengthens culture when it's visible and sincere. Cultural congruence isn't a quarterly campaign; it's a daily practice. Every decision, conversation, and interaction carries a message. When we treat values as design principles rather than billboards, we build systems that reinforce them. Words shape our intentions, but actions shape our outcomes. Try this in your next meeting: Ask, 'Where are we out of sync, and what might it take to realign?' It's a simple question, but it signals a profound commitment. When organizations align their words with their actions, they do more than retain loyalty. They earn trust.
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bolt CEO says unlimited PTO is a 'totally broken' policy — so he killed it in favor of 4 mandatory paid weeks off
Bolt's CEO said he's ending unlimited PTO at the company. CEO Ryan Breslow said undefined PTO policies mean "the good ones don't take PTO" and "the bad ones take too much." Instead, Bolt employees will get four mandatory paid weeks off, the CEO said. "It sounds progressive, but it's totally broken." That's how Bolt's CEO described unlimited paid time off while saying he had just "killed" the policy at the company. On Tuesday, CEO Ryan Breslow said that the San Francisco-based checkout and payments technology company would instead move to a PTO policy that offered four paid weeks off. "When time off is undefined, the good ones don't take PTO. The bad ones take too much," the CEO wrote in a message shared to his LinkedIn profile. "This leads to A-performer burnout. B-performer luxuries. And feelings of unfairness across the board." "So we're flipping the script: no more confusion. Every Bolter now gets 4 weeks of paid vacation (yes, the traditional corporate standard), with the opportunity to accrue more with tenure. Not optional," Breslow added. "We mandate everyone take all 4 weeks off." Unlimited PTO is a perk that a growing number of companies have offered over the last decade. Studies in recent years have examined the perk and its impact on the number of paid days off employees take. A survey from HR platform Namely found that in 2022, employees with unlimited PTO policies took 12.09 days off per year, on average, compared to 11.36 days for their peers with a PTO limit. Similarly, a survey by Expedia found that, compared to the national average in the US, those with unlimited PTO took 3.5 more days off on average in 2022. However, a 2022 report from job search site Joblist found that full-time US employees with unlimited PTO took an average of 10 days off, compared to an average of 11 paid days off work across all vacation policies. A common criticism of an unlimited vacation time policy is that, without the guidance of a set number of days, employees can be unsure how much PTO to take. "We believe a team executing at the pace and scale we do deserves real, protected time off, not vague promises," a Bolt spokesperson told Business Insider. "When we saw in our own data that our A-players weren't taking enough time away, we knew we had to fix it." Bolt, founded in 2014, has raised $957.5 million as of January 2024, according to PitchBook data. In June, the company announced a partnership with Klarna, which will see Klarna's payment plans offered in Bolt's checkout devices. "If we're asking people to move fast, build hard, and operate at the highest level, we need to protect their recovery time with the same intensity," Breslow said. "Execution requires clarity. That applies to PTO, too." Read the original article on Business Insider
