TUITION ON ME – Soon it won't be just customers cramming for finals late at night in a Starbucks. After gun culture, gay rights or Washington gridlock, CEO Howard Schulz is taking on the issue of student debt and low college completion rates. Starbucks will pay tuition for its employees seeking to complete a Bachelor's degree from Arizona State University's online program, the company announced last night in a blog post. Starbucks says 70 percent of its workforce are students or aspiring students and notes that tuition has increased 80% in the past decade, "twice the inflation rate of gas, housing and healthcare." The company will pay full tuition for juniors and seniors and partial scholarships and financial aid for freshmen and sophomores who enroll in ASU's online programs across the US. All employees in company-operated stores working more than 20 hours a week are eligible and do not need to commit to staying on with Starbucks or study in fields aligned with the company needs.
The benefits to Starbucks' employer brand and employee retention rates, and even to its consumer brand, are obvious. As for ASU, it expects 15,000 to 20,000 new students and has added 50 teachers and counselors to receive them, the Wall Street Journal reports. A debate will surely ensue on the value of an online degree as opposed to in-class experience, but that stigma is quickly becoming a thing of the past. Let's not be cynical: this seems just pretty good news for 135,000 U.S. Starbucks employees. CEOs out there, pay attention.
GAS ON YOU – Ukraine says Russia has turned off its gas supply after a payment deadline passed and no deal was reached in overnight negotiations. Gas sold to Western Europe transits through Ukraine and that supply is not affected, Russian energy giant Gazprom says. There is no immediate danger to the continent's energy supply, but it could affect the buildup of gas stocks for the winter should the crisis last. Natural gas prices have gone up in Europe – they were particularly low until now thanks to a mild winter – over fears of a third "gas war" in 8 years between the two countries. Each have prompted cries over Europe's urgent need to secure its energy independence from Russia, as will a new summit next week – at current rates, the EU estimates 80% of its energy will be dependent on foreign supply by 2035.
MIRROR MIRROR – Forget everything Mom told you about being humble and succeeding with modesty: the job usually goes to the one who brags loudest, says a new study by the University of British Columbia. When faced with two applicants with equal experience and qualifications, the interviewer will usually pick the more narcissistic of the two, found UBC psychology professor Del Paulhus. The interview room is one place where usual social rules don't apply, he says: what is a turn-off in normal conversation becomes a sign of confidence and competence in a job interview. Paulhus found this had negative consequences for candidates from cultures where modesty is at a premium (East Asia), at least when they interview in North America. It doesn't seem far-fetched to extend that conclusion to women, who as little girls were often told "not to brag." Oh well, I'm still on team humility, as long as it isn't self-deprecation. As is Influencer Bernard Marr.
IF YOU READ JUST TWO STORIES – Lots of chatter about Tim Cook today with a New York Times profile of the elusive Apple CEO and an interesting blog post. Both depict Cook as the operations man who excels where Steve Jobs lacked and now seeks to outsource the creative spark to replace Jobs', which he simply can't mimic. In the New York Times, Matt Richtel and Brian X. Chen write:
Mr. Cook is amassing a creative brain trust, according to Bono, the lead singer of the band U2, who befriended Mr. Jobs and worked closely with him and Apple’s team on developing a U2-branded iPod, as well as on charitable work in Africa. Mr. Cook is not saying “I’m here to replace him,” said Bono, who is a managing director and co-founder of the venture capital firm Elevation Partners. “He’s saying, ‘I’ll try to replace him with five people.’ It explains the acquisition of Beats.” (Read the full profile.)
Daring Fireball's John Gruber echoes:
When Cook succeeded Jobs, the question we all asked was more or less binary: Would Apple decline without Steve Jobs? What seems to have gone largely unconsidered is whether Apple would thrive with Cook at the helm, achieving things the company wasn’t able to do under the leadership of the autocratic and mercurial Jobs.Jobs was a great CEO for leading Apple to become big. But Cook is a great CEO for leading Apple now that it is big, to allow the company to take advantage of its size and success. Matt Drance said it, and so will I:What we saw last week at WWDC 2014 would not have happened under Steve Jobs.This is not to say Apple is better off without Steve Jobs. But I do think it’s becoming clear that the company, today, might be better off with Tim Cook as CEO. If Jobs were still with us, his ideal role today might be that of an éminence grise, muse and partner to Jony Ive in the design of new products, and of course public presenter extraordinaire. Chairman of the board, with Cook as CEO, running the company much as he actually is today. (Read the full essay.)
Will you take advantage of Starbucks' tuition plan? Has your modesty hurt you in job interviews? If you have insider knowledge of these or other topics in the news today, write your own post explaining what's happening. Share the URL here in the comments mentioning me or tweet @LinkedInPulse. (Want to write, but don't yet have access? Leave your info here.)
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