Over the next few days, I’m going to use my favorite topic (Starbucks!) to discuss some things that Starbucks has figured out that most children’s ministries haven’t. I’m dividing it up into three parts, this post right here being part 1.
What they’ve figured out #1: Train, train, train. Then keep training. Train until you’re blue in the face.
Starbucks obsesses over employee training. Partners (not employees, it’s a way they make employees feel more dedicated to the company) learn intricate details about coffee, equipment, experience, customer service, product quality, and company history. Massive regional training centers ingrain the “Starbucks gospel” into their managers. Periodical checkups are done on every corporate shop. They’re even closing their stores on February 26 from 5:30 to 8:30 PM to do product quality re-training. Training is so key, they sometimes spend up to $3000 per employee just on training.
Starbucks is willing to lose potentially millions of dollars just to retrain their employees for quality. Spending massive amounts of money just to ensure that their employees are the best they can be is no big deal for them. Would you want to visit at a Starbucks where none of the employees had been trained? I think not. However, most ministries don’t even take the time to spend five minutes training their teachers for a class.
Think about it: We’re not willing to eat at a restaurant with untrained employees, but we’re willing to entrust kids’ spiritual well-being with untrained leaders. That seems a little broken, does it not? Why can’t we seem to figure it out?
Train your teachers. Train yourself by learning from those more experienced. You’re dealing with the spiritual life of a child. There’s nothing more important than that. Learn as much as you can, whenever you can. You’re not perfect, and neither is anyone else. And remember to practice this:
Train, train, train. Then keep training. Train until you’re blue in the face.
Looking forward the the next installments…thanks Evan.
Keep up the good writing, Denise
I can tell that these are going to be great! Looking forward to these posts. And now…. i want a Starbucks. Too late….maybe tomorrow.
Travis, it is never too late for a Starbucks:-)
My wife is a shift manager at a Starbucks and she can verify for sure that they care about training. They even allow her to use part of her day while she is scheduled to work to work on her black apron coffee master.
We have incorporated this same idea into our training in our cm. We no longer ask for those going through training to come back at another time to go through training. We instead will find ways to allow them to do it during their scheduled time to volunteer. We just find other volunteers to cover for them now. We have had a great response in this.
I can’t wait to read the rest of this either! I have trouble getting our servants to training. I am starting this year with bringing in some outside trainers instead of just me and our leadership team. I would welcome any ideas and Todd I would like to hear what you are doing! My email is jill@1inchrist.org
I’ve even started looking for retraining for myself. I will be spending time with Craig Jutila and I’m going to try and do the training with Jim Wideman for a year. Hope I can.
Thanks for the blog Evan. Keep up the good work!!
Kid, I don’t understand how your brain comes up with these analogies but I am sure glad it does! As a worker I can testify that it is always better to have distinct direction and guidance to follow! We appreciate and value training, and it promotes a unified goal! Great post!
What makes people willing to pay 4bucks for a coffee? Sure, the coffee’s good (and highly caffeinated :)), but it’s the atmostphere they have created that brings people back. Aside from gaining valuable product knowledge, the training “partners” receive produces two other important results. The employees exude an air of confidence, and they are intentional in their communication with customers, without coming off as stiff or insincere. (a la “Would you like some fries with that?—imagine the “this-is-what-I-am-programmed-to-say-monotone”. . .)
If Starbucks can do it, so can the local church. It is imperative that leaders have proper training in the word and how to present it with kids, but our leaders should also exude the confidence we have in Christ, and be able to develop relationships both with the kids and the parents.
Todd, I am very envious of your Starbucks manager wife. Working at Starbucks seems like it would be lots of fun.
Jill, I’m sure we all can relate to your troubles. You’ve got yourself on a great track training yourself with Jim and Craig. They’re both incredibly wise leaders, and will give you lots of great ideas.
Janine, I couldn’t agree more. Something many people forget in training is not just how to present the Word, but the importance of knowing the Word itself. Part of what makes Starbucks’ partners so passionate is that they have to know their jobs, their coffees, and their products. The same is important for training our workers as well!
I am all for this kind of training but have to agree with Todd. We are using volunteers. We can not make them go to a training. I believe that the best way to train them is on the job. So many of our volunteers are so busy and they dont see the value in training. I am not saying that is a good excuse I am just saying that it is an excuse. Anyway great post but that was a thought I had. Also maybe we should reward them once they have been through all the trainings. Kind of like starbucks black apron. Maybe we give them a nice shirt to wear or a coat or something. Anyway just a thought.
TJ, you make a valid point. The kind of “on the job” training that we need to be careful about is just throwing them in by themselves. It does need to be with someone experienced, so that way they are learning the correct way. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a separate training time. It will be harder to get your current volunteers to go to training, admittedly, whether you make it easy for them or not. Many will be simply stuck in their old habits and refuse to change.
I also understand about what you say about their being busy. As for those who don’t see the value in training, it’s time to talk some sense into them! Share with them the analogy that they wouldn’t want to visit a restaurant with all untrained staff, so the same way someone in charge of the care of a child’s soul should be trained as well. A soul is much more important than coffee! Do make it easy for them to attend, and do whatever you can to make it work for them. Also, a great idea about the rewards.
So that’s my post within a post. Just some thoughts from Evan!
Excellent analogy. Most of the time at church we are overjoyed to get anyone - as long as they don’t have a police record they must be wonderful.
It is sad that we insist on certification for the computer tech to even think of touching your laptop, but those who touch our childrens’ souls don’t need training?
We don’t take our children’s spiritual need seriously. Let’s change that!
Thanks for the post, Evan! We are constantly talking about what the most effective method of training would be. Being located in the fast-paced metroplex of Southern Florida makes getting people to attend “training” very challenging. We have turned to “on the job” training, where we team our new volunteer with a seasoned volunteer for 2-3 weeks before assigning them their own small group. We’re hoping that our retention of veteran volunteers will be higher as we challenge them to take more ownership in the success of the ministry by raising up new leaders. Time will tell!
I am looking forward to the next nuggets of wisdom we are going to learn from Starbucks!