Stuart Ramgolam
9/24/14
Ethnography Report
Ordering a Drink from the Curry Student Center Starbucks
Introduction
The Starbucks store located in the Curry Student Center is especially busy. Along with the normal stream of customers a Starbucks location would expect, this location is also subject to the influxes of customers that happens directly after a class period ends. This is something that I have experienced first-hand seeing as how I work at that Starbucks location. One of the activities of the Starbucks experience that I find most interesting is how orders are taken when the line is especially backed up. Not only do I believe that this is an inefficient system, but I also think that it is subject to error and leads to confusion.
Overview
Ordering a drink from the Starbucks in Curry typically can be categorized into two scenarios of interaction: the first being when the line is not busy, and the second when it is. When the line is not busy, the interaction will be fairly straightforward. The customer walks up to the counter, either by taking the rounded ramp to the side of the store, or by using the stairs in front of the counter. The customer will then greet the cashier, and then ask for their drink. The cashier will then mark the cup that their drink will be made in with the details of their order, then pass it on to another team member for the drink to be made. Obviously this is not the end of the interaction, there is still the act of paying and picking up the drink later, but for the purposes of this report, the other interactions are not important.
In the case where the line is long, the interaction changes. The line typically stretches around the length of the ramp to the side of the store. When this is the case, one team member who is not particularly busy, will begin asking people along the length of the line what their order is, and mark a cup accordingly. This person typically only takes the orders of customers 4-5 places from the front of the line. This is because the team member can only see so far past the store front without leaving the area. The customer will then continue to wait in line while their cup is passed to the other workers so that it can begin being prepared. When the customer gets to the counter to pay for their drink, the cashier should ask or know that their cup has already been marked. If this is the case, the customer will just pay. However, there is a chance for error because if the cashier marks a second cup without knowing, or rings up an incorrect order based on what the customer says, then a mistake can occur. There is also the possibility that the customer’s order can be finished being made before they have paid. This is also a potential problem because it disrupts the order of the line.
People involved
The people who are involved in this activity are the students and the employees at the location. The students typically have come from class or are planning on studying nearby in Curry or at the library. These students normally have their backpacks with them and occasionally come as a group of friends. There are typically only one to two employees involved with this activity: The cashier, and the employee who is at a station that is calm enough for them to have time to take orders.
Artifacts Used
The only artifacts used in this activity are the cups and markers used by the employees. The cups are kept next to the cashier, and the markers are typically either left on the counter or held in the apron of the employees who need to use them.
Individuals and Interviews
For the purposes of the interviews I chose to speak with two of the employees at Starbucks and one of the students who ordered while the line was long.
The first interview I had was with the employee marking the cups while the line was long. The employee turned out to be the manager of the store. She was a short middle-aged lady wearing a blue shirt. I began by asking if she typically took the cup orders. She said not normally, she only did this when the line was long and that it was not always her taking the cup orders. I went on to ask why it was important to mark the cups when the line was long. She said it was because it helped the other employees not get backed up or slowed down by the cashier taking too long. Then I finally asked if there were any problems with the process. She said that occasionally customers will forget what they ordered, or between the workers it will be hard to keep track of when a cup was or was not already marked.
My second interview was with the cashier. The woman working the register today was a tall black woman with red hair. She was very friendly and outspoken. I asked her why it was that somebody marked cups when the line was very long. She said it was because they could mark cups and make orders faster than one person could ring up a customer, and also that it would be more efficient if there was just a second person on the other register, but that the manager did not know how to operate the register. I then asked her if there were any problem with the process. She replied with the same concerns that the manager had listed.
My final interview was with a student who had ordered from the Starbucks. I spoke to them after they had received their coffee and paid. The student was a tall, dark-haired guy wearing business casual wear and carrying a backpack. I began by asking him what he thought about the experience of having his cup marked before paying. He said that he didn’t mind, but that he just wasn’t expecting to be asked while he was still in line. Then I asked him how he would feel if he could place his order without talking to somebody. He said that he would prefer this because it seemed confusing the way it was.
Description of the Activity & Variations
For the length of time that I observed the location, I sat directly next to the spot where the person marking cups would stand when they were marking cups. I paid specific attention to the person marking cups even when they weren’t marking cups.
The activity remained mostly consistent as I continued watching. For the most part, the person who was going to mark the cups would leave their current station and walk to the area right behind the food display. The person would then ask a customer in line what their order was. Most of the time this interaction came as a surprise to the customer in line. Occasionally the customer would take some time to answer, I’m assuming because they may not have known at that time what they wanted to order. The cup-marker would then grab an appropriate sized cup and use their marker to mark the cup. The person marking the cups would continue to do so far about 3-5 people, then go back to their assigned station. Occasionally the cashier would ask the person marking the cups whether or not a customer’s cup was marked. That is about it for variation, the activity is fairly straightforward.