Pewaukee Dunn Bros. Coffee Owner , Todd Williams Speaks at MSOE
The second speaker for our class was Todd Williams, MSOE Graduate (Mechanical Engineering) and Proprieter of the Pewaukee Dunn Bros. Coffee Shop.
Todd described his journey to business ownership from that of sales engineer to coffee shop owner.
His passion for coffee was obvious as he brought coffee for the entire class, which we sipped as he told us about the process of building the business through its first year as well as the daily routine. He described how important his wonderful staff is and the importance of customer relationships.
The shop is a franchise of Dunn Bros. Coffee.
Your task here is to describe your thoughts on the Leadership and Management of a business such as Todd's after learning a bit more about the culture and business of Dunn Bros. by reading about its History.
You may also want to learn a bit about the culture as well.
Gene A. Wright
PS If you would like to read a bit about coffee, the website does have a nice collection of information about the fruit itself and its History.
posted by Gene A. Wright @ 8:48 AM
8 Comments:
Clearly, Todd is selling more than just coffee at his location. Like the television bar, Cheers, this is a coffee shop that is striving to be the place where everyone (at least the employees) knows your name. I was amazed at the discussion of how his customers appreciate being remembered and greeted. I think that this aspect of the business parallels Servant Leadship from the standpoint of “What can I do to help you?” From our discussion, my impression is that Todd is enjoying this part of the business, wearing the “social scientist” hat, almost as much as he is enjoying the science of coffee. Certainly, being better able to read the customer has the potential to increase sales as well.
I tried the Mocha IceCrema with my coupon…outstanding!!!...possibly addicting.
Just wondering if Todd promotes the local music and artist in his coffee shop? If so how does he go about determining was is appropriate for his shop. I really think that is a unique way to promote the community.
Dunn Bros. Coffee really looks to support its community the way the community will support the local coffee shop. To me this really seems like the coffee shop is developing a partnership with it's community. What a great way to be connected.
RB
I agree with Ty. More is being sold than coffee. His passion for the product and concern and interest in the customer make the experience different and pleasent. He understands that and pushes that into his employees to really serve the customer.
As I write this I think of something Lorraine Hoffman of Harri Hoffman Company said in our last class 20-June. She said that anything made in the US would have to be based on quality and not cost. She indicated that people are willing to pay a premium for the extra that they value.
Certainly sounds wise to think about when developing a buisiness strategy.
--bod
Todd is in the business of providing exceptional customer service so that his customer's keep coming back for more. During his speech, I thought to myself about Todd "leading by example." His attitude towards his business and employees must be postive for his business to be a success. Its almost facinating how he remembers not only the names of his frequent visitors, but also the drink they buy from his shop.
Todd also illustrates how to manage a coffee shop effectively. At one point, he says that hiring women over men proves to be an advantage for his shop. From Todd's point of view, he seems to believe that women are just more personalble than men are, which is true to a certain degree.
Most importantly, Todd seems like a friend first and boss second with the people he works with. After all, a positive attitude attacts customers, and great customer service keeps them coming back.
SM
I'm going to post another comment here, although it's off topic, since I can't associate the observation with any of the other threads...
When Manette Martin from GE Healthcare spoke with us, she made the comment that to be successful, you need to communicate or share all information, up, down, and sideways. However, she later said that it was important to differentiate yourself within the organization: create a niche position.
I've witnessed sharing information that freely to be a challenge for many people, including myself. More commonly, people tend to want to hold information as a means to make themselves more valuable to the organization and are sometimes reluctant to share. I think that attitude may be how some people create a niche for themselves. I know this is not what Ms Martin meant as differentiating oneself, but on the surface the concepts seems to be at odds.
Finally made it to get my Dunn Brothers coffee and see the shop. What a positive experience. While drinking my great tasting coffee I was wondering what to write about Todd and his establishment. Backtracking, I interviewed with a president of a brake component company and he mentioned 21 specific qualities of a leader. My job was to search out a find what these 21 qualities of a leader are and see which ones Todd possessed. Here is my take:
Commitment – Todd is committed to this product, process, and people. Commitment separates the doers from the dreamers.
Passion - He loves it and gives everything he’s got.
Courage – Conquering an inner battle leaving behind a career and starting a franchise investment.
Generosity – Helping in community events.
Initiative – Success is connected with action.
Positive Attitude – His people are a mirror of his attitude.
Responsible – Willing to do any of the work to make his organization successful.
Servant hood – I don’t think Todd views his rank as owner important but is most willing to help others.
-jjr
When Dunn Bros. was founded, the interest was in the customer experience as much as a high quality cup of coffee. As we know, smell is a large part of our perceived taste. Walking into a Dunn Bros. coffee shop and smelling freshly roasted coffee beans and being serviced by a friendly staff that wants to take the time to call you by name provides a level of service at a competitive price which should create a loyal customer base. Todd, with his technical sales background, took a natural interest in the roasting and equipment process. Plus he had a natural interest in people.
I appreciated that Todd is very committed to working hard, typically opening the shop and working 12 hour days. But he had a regular quitting time (5 PM) and he took Wednesday’s off, to spend with family or enjoy a round of golf. Todd had a sense of balance in his life and it was refreshing to see that.
While Todd has mastered the understanding of the customer and the intimacys of the products it seem it has become overwelling to him personally and fiancially. An article entitled "Books that Matter" http://www.businessweek.com/print/magazine/content/06_25/b3989649.htm?chan=gl
in the Small Biz magazine popped out with a Cold Stone Creamery CEO referencing the most influential book on his shelf is The Effective Executive, by Peter F. Drucker. The book helped guide him to control the business and his life.
akk
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