An Essay on talk show as a part of the public sphere Essays

An Essay on talk show as a part of the public sphere Essays An Essay on talk show as a part of the public sphere Essay An Essay on talk show as a part of the public sphere Essay Essay Topic: Public Speaking Talk Has the holy book not lament that the people will not believe except the gospel is preached to them? Has it not also said that people perish for lack of knowledge? Talk show should be classified as a part of public sphere and in discussing this one should note that there is hardly any piece of work which relates to talk show as a public sphere that does not lay emphasis on Habermass theory. Habermas said that the media shows blurring activities in the public sphere: as it is being trivialized with unimportant news, activities rather than serious political issues. This was disputed by others who thought that even though talk shows did not meet Habermass criteria, it still contributes meaningfully to the public sphere through means of active public participation. In this essay Habermas would be a central figure in the discussion and also other theorist whose academic literature discusses on pubic sphere would be considered. There would be vast discussion on the dimensions that make up the public sphere other academic and popular literature would be used, history, benefits of talk show, analysis of a talk show amongst others would also be discussed. Tyra banks show and Oprah Winfrey show would be used as yard sticks to measure Habermas theory of rational critical public sphere. What then is talk show and what is public sphere. First let us examine talk show. Talk show A talk show is a television or radio program were one person or group of people come together to discuss topics put forth by a talk show host. Some times, talk shows feature a panel of guests, usually consisting of a group of people who are learned or have great experience in relation to whatever issue is being discussed. (Wikipedia). It can be said to a forum where certain individuals are called upon by an initiator to deliberate over issue(s). The oxford advance learners dictionary defines talk show as a television or radio program in which a presenter introduces a particular topic which is then discuss by the audience. The Museum of Broadcast Communication sees talk show as any unscripted conversation directed to the audience. Talk show is therefore a show organized principally around talk. Certain points are common in all these definitions the fact that talk show involves people, talking, audience, media, issues and host. Usually, talk show features a panel of guests consisting of people who are learned, relevant and experienced in relation to the topic on the show for that episode, at other times, a single guest is asked to discuss his work or area of expertise with the host. For instance, a gynecologist may be asked to speak on the issue of pregnancy and other related issues on the female human being or a lawyer having to speak on the issue of human rights. Talk show can be regarded as a part of journalism which has evolved in a popular direction as its tentacles are spread across the different issues of societal concerns ranging from public affairs(politics) to entertainment Forms of Talk Show There are several types of talk shows. Some are outlandish like the defunct the Graham Newton Effect while others are traditional like the Late Night Show with David Letterman but the common ones now is the informal guest host format in which the host welcomes celebrities or other talk worthy individuals in an informal discussion like Kakaki Africa shown daily on AIT. The second most common form of talk show is the Public Affair in which a host(s) interviews people in the news, shows of this format are Good Morning America or Meet the People and Peoples Parliament shown daily on AIT. Others are issue oriented talk shows like Oprah Winfrey, Jerry Springer, Ricki Lake, Maury, Tyra Banks, Rachael Ray shows and many others. Public Sphere First and foremost when we use the word publics it is people who are not in the same families, communities, and clubs; people who are not the same as each other. As such, they are central to the functioning of modern societies. The term public sphere is a metaphor that we use to think about the way that information and ideas circulate in larger societies, it is used in everyday to describe information when it is made generally available to the public. When referring to the term it could also be seen as a forum or arena or aspect of political life where people come together to freely discuss and identify societal problems and through these discussions political decision may or may not be influenced. Political sphere is a contrast to personal, domestic, individual or private issues; it bothers on any issue that occupies public space and interest. Public sphere is therefore formed around the dialogue surrounding issues rather than the identity of the population engaging in the discourse . Though public sphere is ignored in dictionaries, it is at the centre of any democratic society, it is therefore a discursive arena in which the talking populace converges to discuss matters of public interest and where possible reach a common judgment. The public sphere is seen as a theatre in modern society in which political participation is enacted through talking, a place where public opinion is formed; a bridge between the ruled and the rulers. Through the vehicle of opinion, public sphere puts the State in touch with the needs and aspirations of the society creating impression that the populace has a voice in the affair of the country. How did talk show in public sphere begin? What is known as talk show in public sphere today can be traced back to history to the time when men began to exist having to deliberate on issues affecting their common interest. The term talk show was a relatively late invention coming into the media in the mid 1960s. Before then some spontaneous talks was common in broadcasting for instance, all radio program from 1927 1956 talk show of one kind or another made up 40 60% of the day time schedule comprising general variety, human participation and human interest. From 1973 1974, networking television filled over half of its day time program hours and 15 -20% of its evening schedule with talk shows of assorted types. By the summer of 1993, the television page of USA today had listed seventeen (17) talk shows and from 1948 1993, over two hundred talk shows had appear on the air. Talk shows as a part of public sphere has indeed pass through a lot of circles, to get to the present stage. The first circle starting from 1948 1952 and feature hosts like Authur Godfrey, Dare Garroway, and Edward B. Murrow. These were the pioneers of talk shows in public sphere. The second circle covers the period from 1952 1972 and features great hosts like Johnny Carson, Barbara Walters and Mike Wallace among others. These persons were linked to programs that became an established profit centre for their networks. The third circle was from 1970 1980. This was a boom period, a time that saw the birth of new technologies of production and cheaper television studio, new methods of distribution via satellite and cable transmission and regulatory decisions. Chief among the host of this period was Phil Donahue. The fourth and last circle commonly referred to a post network era 1980 till date. Donahues success was emulated by others, the most notable being Oprah Winfrey whose popularity in talk show business has make her the most financially successful talk show host in TV. Others are Racheal Ray and Ricki Lake whose popular chips include issues on international conflict such as homosexuality and bisexuality. Taking us to the foreign scene, let us speak about how talk show began and evolved in Nigeria. Talk show as a part of public sphere in Nigeria can be dated back to the beginning of mass media. A major breakthrough of talk show in public sphere began in April 2000 with the birth of New Dawn with nearly one thousand shows. Top among the hosts of this period was Funmi Iyanda. Today, it is on record that Bunmis television talk show grew to become a strong voice of the people, a beckon of hope and a brand with integrity. Bunmis show came to limelight when she featured an eight year old Senu Gonoda who suffered from a congenital hole in the heart the effect of the show on the society was indeed overwhelming. People who are considered as the marginalized voice have used talk show as a means to reach out to high power (the government) to air their own opinion which in turn positively influenced the decision about the issue of concern. Talk show can thus be seen as a part of the public spher e because the media here has been used as a means of resolving an issue which was a problem of the society Are talk shows a part of the public sphere? In the work of a German philosopher Jurgen Habermas (who is a central figure in this discussion) in his theory of public sphere (1964/1989) he conceptualizes the public sphere as that realm of social life where the exchange of information and views of questions of common concern can take place so that public opinion can be formed. The public sphere takes place when citizens exercising the rights of assembly association gather as public bodies to discuss issues of the day specifically those of political concern. Yet his concepts of public sphere insists on the analytic centrality of reasoned, critical discourse, it exists in the active reasoning of the public and it is in such discourse that public opinion is generated which in turn shapes the policies of the state and the development of society as a whole. Public sphere is not of course a sphere; it is a metaphorical term that is used to describe the virtual space where people can interact (Hartley, 1992: pp1). A place where peoples conversations, ideas and minds meet- that is public space (Robbins, 1993: xvi). It is the place where information, ideas and debate circulate in society and where political opinion can be formed (Dahlgren, 1995: ix). Speaking in terms of interaction, there are three areas of analytic concern within the interaction dimension of the public sphere: discursive, spatial and communal. The discursive has to do with the nature of the talk which circulates, is the talk political, social and therapeutic? In the discussion of a particular topic there has to be unity and coherence in the questions, views and suggestion; spatial refers to the sites and settings of the social interaction. Where do people meet? What factors foster of hinder their interaction in these spaces? The spatial is seldom separable form the discursive, both together serve to define contexts and occasions, for example, an emotional type of talk the atmosphere would be conducive enough, the people would be comfortably sited; the communal aspect has to do with the nature of the social bonds between citizens, there has to be oneness amongst the people, that is having similar opinions on a particular issue, people talk to each other and thus give each other a sense of how there are thinking. Thus, the term public sphere, there must be interaction to permit and foster the processes of sense-making. The talk show clearly fits into the description mentioned above; as interaction is the key element, the site or the show is clearly defined and different issues are discussed in the shows. For public sphere theorist there are two dominant models of how such a sphere would operate to serve democratic ends. In Habermas view, the goal to be achieved would be an arena in which every voice was given equal access and all opinion would be heard and deliberated on, in ways that allowed for the development of public opinion. However, following a more Gramascian view how hegemonic norms- which are always unstable, dynamic and contested- develop, work through a process by various groups with varying agendas and view contest for a voice with an always negotiated, multifaceted and contradictory results. There are some major themes which are pertinent in both academic literature and popular saying about the public sphere, these are; that the public sphere is too trivialized- consumers are more interested in unimportant information about celebrity, scandals rather than the more serious issues (public affairs); it is too commercialized- critics thought that through the commercialization of the public sphere, it began to represent public opinion rather than to provide a free forum for the emergence of public opinion and also the media do not care about the material in the public sphere, it focuses more on monetary value; it depends greatly on spectacle instead of ratio argumentation; it is too fragmented- and it has caused people to become apathetic about serious public issues- people no longer care about the important issues. But other critics have said the public sphere been trivialized is not entirely bad as it has paved way for feminist in public debates. Habermass writing provides a vision of the ideal public sphere- a vision that is common both to academic and popular thinking. the public sphere should ideally deal only with serious issues of real importance- only party politics and not celebrity issues, sport or entertainment. It should not be sensational, easily accessible or commercialized. It should refuse to dumb down to consumers and rather demand that they work harder to improve themselves. It should only engage in rational, logical arguments: not emotional or spectacular appeals. And it should be unified and different kinds of culture. Despite the fact that Habermas stressed the standard that cuts out to be public sphere one should not forget the fact that talk shows also contribute immensely to public participation and expression. It has also been conceived that talk show may be considered as a different form of public sphere. According to Livingstone and Lunt (1993), they suggested that talk shows are a candidate for oppositional public sphere, emphasizing the expression of interested point of view that give voice to participants perspectives and aiming at compromise rather than consensus. Habermass bourgeois theory is different for the oppositional public sphere, while Habermass theory centers on rational critical discussion in which in an argument other position should be considered, the oppositional public sphere just aims for negotiation compromise. The oppositional public sphere favors feminist theory and women, the female viewers love the chance to hear the voices of ordinary people speak on everyday life Gerard Hauser proposed a different direction for the public sphere than previous models. He proposed that public spheres were formed around the dialogue surrounding issues, rather than the identity of the population that is engaging in the discourse. Emphasizing the rhetorically of public spheres foregrounds their activity. Rather than arguing for an all inclusive public sphere, or the analysis of tension between public spheres, he suggested that publics were formed by active members of society around issues. They are a group of interested individuals who engage in vernacular discourse about a specific issue. Publics may be repressed, distorted, or responsible, but any evaluation of their actual state requires that we inspect the rhetorical environment as well as the rhetorical act out of which they evolved, for these are the conditions that constitute their individual character. These people formed rhetorical public spheres that were based in discourse, not necessarily orderly discourse but any interactions whereby the interested public engages each other. This interaction can take the form of institutional actors as well as the basic street rhetoric that open[s] a dialogue between competing factions. The spheres themselves formed around the issues that were being deliberated. The discussion itself would reproduce itself across the spectrum of interested publics even though we lack personal acquaintance with all but a few of its participants and are seldom in contexts where we and they directly interact, we join these exchanges because they are discussing the same matters. In order to communicate within the public sphere, those who enter any given arena must share a reference world for their discourse to produce awareness for shared interests and public opinions about them. There are different genre of talk shows which can be divided into different spectrums; Public affairs format, conflict issue oriented (trash talk show) therapeutic format which centers on social problems in personal perspective. Most of the scholarly writings available labels talk show as trash television but it is worthy to note that one mans trash is another mans pot of gold, there is this conjured image of talk show as a place were demented individual with deviant behaviors scream at each other but this is not the case all the time as some have been seen to depict positive effects and enhances public participation which can be termed as public sphere. Studies have shown that talk shows offer potential for public sphering because it is one of the few spaces were ordinary people engage in conversation on television or radio, creates awareness of certain issues that are rarely included in topics of other forms of public sphere. Leurdijk (2000) qualifies talk shows as a postmodern public platform for debate; she concludes that the talk shows offers opportunity for women and men of different background to get their own voices heard, in a framework that allows for more diversity than traditional news media do. In other words, talk shows should be seen not just in the light of it been a public sphere but as a way in which voice is given to those who would not ordinarily be heard (an ordinary citizen is given a microphone an has the opportunity to ask a top government official a question), it gives people the opportunity to express their opinion /views on issue of concern. Talk show are more like a college of opinion, experiences and thru the sharing of individual experiences it allows not only new topics but different styles of talking about them. The restrictions of the bourgeois public sphere as discussed in the work of Habermas (1989) and his critics Calhorn (1992) are alleviated in favor of a more diverse spectrum of topics and styles considered appropriate for public concern and debate. Carpignano et al (1990) privilege the talk show as a new site within the public sphere which embodies strong democratic potentials. Amongst other things, they point to the fact that these programs are geared towards public debate using conversational discursive modes- they establish bonds of familiarity with television audience and the studio audience via its talk; also most times common sense prevails over expertise.

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The bargaining power of suppliers to the specialty coffee industry would be exerted by either an increase in the price of the beans which are used in the production process, or by a threat of decline in the quality or quantity of the coffee beans themselves. An over-populated market could also give the suppliers more bargaining power. Starbucks needs to be aware of supplier power and potential price increases. Power of Buyers/Customers: A buyer group is powerful if the industrys product does not save the buyer money (Pearce and Robinson, 2007) This is a plus for Starbucks as their coffee products are higher in price and considered a luxury brand. Starbucks is much more concerned with the quality of their product versus price. However; the other consideration is small local coffee companies that were around before Starbucks took over the marketplace. These smaller coffee shops may have their core customers who will not give their business to anyone else. Available Substitutes: Starbucks must be aware of substitute products. Given the current grave economic crisis, consumers are vying towards less expensive alternatives than the luxury coffee Starbucks provides. This effect could alter Starbucks current pricing strategies.   As more substitutes become available, the current pricing model would become more elastic since customers have more alternatives.   Potential substitutes include bottled water, healthy water/juice drinks, and at home espresso machines.  Ã‚   Current Competitors: While companies like Dazbog and Caribou Coffee appear to be the most obvious competitors, McDonalds and Dunkin Doughnuts are Starbucks tops competitors. Both these organizations can compete with Starbucks in terms of sandwich items and coffee related products. More of a concern with these two competitors is their pricing modules. Both competitors are priced less than Starbucks products. Threat of New Entrants: Starbucks provides a luxury good that consumers often scale back on when they want to save money. In 2007, Starbucks saw its shares fall more than 30% partly down to customers deserting it for cheaper rivals. As McDonalds and other chains like Dunkin Doughnuts realize the money in luxury coffee more companies will begin to enter the marketplace offering similar product lines for less cost. Remote Environmental Factors Economic- Economic factors concern the nature and direction of the economy in which a firm operates. Current recession trends imply a reason for concern for a luxury brand like Starbucks with regard to the companys financials. Social- Promoting the health benefits of coffee remains a challenge for the industry and consumers are often confused with the myths propagated by the media. Social concerns regarding caffeine, and it addictive properties also need to be considered. Political-Current tensions in the Middle East and boycotts of American made products are strategic concerns for Starbucks globalization plans. Starbucks also imports their coffee beans and thus any changes in import laws should also demand special attention.    Ecological Factors- Starbucks also has a strong environmental mission statement. Starbucks promotes ethical sourcing, contributes heavily to their communities, as well as continually strives to buy, sell and use environmentally friendly products. Starbucks uses key performance indicators to be sure they are measuring the degree to which they fulfill their social and environmental responsibilities. Starbucks should maintain abreast of any changing environmental legislation that could impact their corporate strategies.   Ã‚   Technological Factors -Starbucks has been continually looking for ways to enhance the customer experience. They have also expanded their partnership with ATT. ATT offered consumers WiFi service in more than 7,000 Starbucks locations in the U.S. in spring of 2008. Industry and Competitive Environments When in a recession, luxury products tend to decline and coffee is no exception. Consumers dont find as much worth in spending $4.35 for a cup of coffee when they can purchase the same size coffee at 7-eleven for $1. 75. However, Starbucks has an immediate plan for continued growth including the introduction of its instant coffee line. Despite the challenging economic environment, Starbucks is profitable, has a strong balance sheet and generates solid cash from operations, said Schultz, CEO of Starbucks Corporation. 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International Environment Starbucks is an organization that operates in an international market both with regard to retail locations and use of international suppliers. Thus, Starbucks needs to consider the countries involved in its international partnerships and the impact it can have on their business strategies with regard to political, social, economic and legal locality concerns and events. Internal Analysis SWOT is an acronym for the internal strengths and weaknesses of a firm and the environmental opportunities and threats facing that firm (Pearce Robinson, 2007, p.153). Starbucks has several strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats that are listed in Appendix B. Strengths: Key strengths for Starbucks include the value of their employees and their corporate culture. Starbucks considers its employees partners which provides a sense of inclusion for those who work there. Also, Starbucks was one of the first organizations to offer full benefits for part-time employees. Another key strength for Starbucks is brand loyalty and name recognition. Howard Schultz, CEO, has created an every day item and turned it into a mega brand similar to Nike. Starbucks is on every street corner, in your local supermarket, and in your bookstores and campuses nation wide. Weaknesses: A key weakness for Starbucks is weakened innovation and creativity. According to Schultz, the Starbucks experience is about passion for a quality product, excellent customer service, and people. With over 4500 coffeehouses in 47 countries Starbucks coffee becomes somewhat of a commodity. In a February 2007 memo, Schultz warned top executives about over saturation of the brand. Diminishing growth opportunities are likely. Opportunities: Starbucks is a global corporation that sells its coffee in more than 16,000 coffee shops in more than 35 countries. Continued global expansion is an important opportunity. Starbucks has established relationships with PepsiCo, Barnes and Nobles, Dreyers Ice Cream and other major brands. Opportunities include continued co-branding with major manufacturers of food and drinks that have greater potential and enable further global expansion. Finally, another key opportunity is the creation of additional coffee related products and an expanded menu. Threats: Substitute products influence the demand for a companys product. More substitutes offer a bigger choice for customers and thus Starbucks has to be aware of potential substitutes available. Given the weakened economy, these substitutes become more desirable if they are a lesser cost than Starbucks offerings. With a weakened economy also comes an increase in purchasing cost for coffee related products and dairy products; both of which impact the return on investment and profits for Starbucks. Resource Based View (RBV) Analysis Resources are the distinct combination of assets, skills, capabilities and intangibles of an organization (Pearce Robinsons, 2007, p. 164). Examination of Starbucks resources can provide a method to analyze strategic advantages and assist with strategic planning. There are three basic resources reviewed when using this method; tangible assets, intangible assets, and organizational capabilities. Tangible Resources-Tangible resources are the physical and financial means a company uses to provide value to its customers (Pearce Robinsons, 2007, p. 165). Examination of Starbucks balance sheet shows inventories make up largest portion of their assets at 692.8 million of the 1, 748 billion in total current assets. Interestingly, cash and cash equivalents make up a mere 269.8 million of current assets. Starbucks owns 5 Roasting and Distribution locations, 9000, company operated retail stores, 205, 000 sq foot office building with 36,000 sq ft plot of land totally 2,956.4 million in net assets. Intangible Resources: A companys intangible resources are also important to the overall business advantage. Brand recognition is a key intangible resource for Starbucks. Starbucks reputation is positive and they are known for high quality coffee coupled with high quality customer service day in and day out. Starbucks has also used their brand recognition to introduce new products including bottled coffee drinks ice-cream products, and home espresso machines, and this intangible asset provides overall reliability that is difficult for competitors to penetrate. Other intangibles include quality of locations; skill at citing new shops; employee training, skill at customer service, and morale; employer of choice-Forbes 100 Best Companies to Work for 2007, 2008. Organizational Capabilities: Howard Schultz continues to strengthen Starbucks top management team, hiring people with extensive experience in managing and expanding retail chains. Starbucks also maintains and continues to expand its ownership of desirable locations so location analysis is a capability which allows the company the ability to increase quality of the same input factors as their competitors. Value Chain Analysis The term value chain describes a way of looking at a business as a chain of activities that transform inputs into outputs that customers value (Pearce and Robinson, 2007, p.158). Primary Functions Include: High quality product, Ethical coffee sourcing and fair trade, global responsibility, and Baristas (quality of customer service).  Inbound logistics: negotiation with coffee providers, purchasing, receiving, processing, distributing raw materials to service sites.   Support Functions Include: Coffee Master training program, desirable locations, and modern technologies and research and development. Plus traditional organizational support functions such as HR admin, accounting and finance, marketing, etc. Strengths of the value chain for Starbucks include their high quality product and the sourcing and creation of their product. Starbucks is committed to ethical sourcing and fair trade. Starbucks is also globally responsible and has introduced a shared planet program thus producing a sustainable image. This differentiates their product from their competitors. Weakness of the value chain for Starbucks include over saturation of the brand and diminishing growth opportunities due to buying out their competitors in prime real estate locations. Financial Analysis Liquidity Starbucks 2008 Industry Median Current Ratio 0.80 0.89 Quick Ratio 0.50 0.50 A current ratio measures how well Starbucks is able to meet its short term obligations. A quick ratio measures the same, minus inventories. Starbucks current ratio aligns with the industry median which means their current ratio is considered a norm for the industry. Their quick ratio also aligns with the industry median suggesting that the company doesnt have too much of its liquid assets tied up in inventory and that they are not dependent on the sale of that inventory to finance operations. The ratios above generally imply that Starbucks is able to pay its short term obligations including items such as vendor bills, rent, utilities and payroll. This number also indicates that Starbucks is credit worthy because they have enough cash to pay off their short term debt and suggestive that they pay their bills on time. Activity Starbucks 2008 Industry Median Inventory Turnover 8.3 29.2 Total Asset Turnover 1 1.2 Inventory Turnover Ratio describes how quickly product is being sold. Starbucks inventory turnover is 8.3. The industry median is 29.2; suggesting that Starbucks is lagging in ability to turn over its inventory compared to its competitors. With a ratio of 8.3, Starbucks essentially filled and sold everything on its shelves eight times in the year 2008, while the competition filled and sold 29 times. Total Asset Turnover offers managers a measure of how well the firm is utilizing its assets in order to generate sales revenue. An increasing ratio would indicate that the firm is using its assets more efficiently. Starbucks 2008 ratio was 1, slightly lower than the industry median, and their 2007 ratio was 1. This implies that Starbucks hasnt changed the way its using its assets. As this number also indicates pricing strategy and thus suggests that Starbucks has not changed its pricing strategy in the past two years of data. Profitability Starbucks 2008 Industry Median Gross Profit Margin 55.30% 42.16% Net Profit Margin 0.88% 7.67% Gross Profit Margin represents a firms money left over after the cost of goods sold. Gross Profit Margin helps the company pay for future liabilities and future savings. Starbucks earned 10,383 million in revenue for 2008. Their ratio of 55% indicates that they made roughly a little more than 50 cents for every dollar earned after the cost of goods sold was subtracted. Net Profit Margin Ratio depicts how much of every dollar earned a company keeps in earnings. Starbucks is much lower than its industry median. A higher profit margin indicates a more profitable company that  has better control over  its costs compared to  its competitors. As Starbucks markets itself as a luxury brand and charges on average four dollars for a cup of coffee, its no wonder its much lower than its competitors. This number can also indicate that Starbucks operating costs to produce their luxury coffee is increasing in cost. These items include dairy products, coffee beans, cups, syrups etc. Finally Starbucks has a high gross profit compared to a low net profit. This could suggest that Starbucks isnt very good a controlling their expenses. Leverage, Earnings Per Share, Price/Earnings Starbucks 2008 Industry Median Debt to Equity 1.28 1.17 Debt to Assets 0.56 The debt/equity ratio shows how much a firm has borrowed as a percentage of its stock equity. Often, the lower, the better. Starbucks ratio suggests that it is not borrowing heavily against the stock equity compared to its competitors. Debt to assets ratio shows what portion of funds is being provided by creditors. Starbucks ratio shows that they are using very little credit. Price to Earnings Ratio: 127 According to Benjamin Graham, and investment is considered speculative stock when it has a P/E higher than 15, regardless of industry. Warren Buffet currently trades on this rationale. Using this rationale, that would suggest that Starbucks is severely overvalued. If we were to follow Benjamin Grahams theory on speculative stock, Starbucks should be trading at a 1.80 per share. The industry average for P/E is approx 20-25 under current finance ratios. This number fluctuates based on current stock price. Therefore Starbucks range should be from 2.40-3.00 per share. Earnings Per Share-12 Cents (1 Q, 2009) Earnings Per Share shows how many dollars in profit were earned per outstanding shares of the common stock. The current EPS would show that Starbucks business has pulled back considered since 2008s quarterly reports which listed EPS at 43 cents per share. Therefore, based on this information, an investor could make the assumption that Starbucks debt is virtually equal to there income. And given one more or two more quarters of loss, the income would be less than the debt and would set the company up for a loss. This could generate from closed stores, overstock of inventory, and inflation. Strategy Recommendation A generic strategy is a core idea about how a firm can best compete in its current marketplace (Pearce Robinson, 2007). While Starbucks has many different strategies to consider, a generic strategy is currently recommended below given the research found in this report. Recommended Strategy For Starbucks: Differentiation Starbucks can best achieve its long terms strategies by continuing to strive to create and market unique coffee based products to varied customer groups through differentiation. The following direction points will be the basis for the competitive strategy: Rivalry will be reduced with successful differentiation. As Starbucks markets itself as a luxury brand and experience, customers will be less sensitive to prices if Starbucks products are successfully differentiated. Starbucks differentiation and focus strategy pushes customers to brand loyalty which will make it difficult for new entrants to overcome. Starbucks currently exhibits and utilizes both differentiation strategy and the focus strategy. Starbucks has developed a customer loyalty that enables the firm to charge a premium price for its products. Starbucks demographic composition of their consumer base is narrow in direction. Their target consumer is middle to upper class and an educated coffee drinker who prefers quality and customer service over a low-cost price. This suggests that the firm is using a focus strategy anchored in a differentiation base because they attend to the needs of this demographic. Starbucks has differentiated themselves from their competitors by providing an image of the luxury coffee experience and should continue this approach for long term growth and profit. Implementation With regard to implementation, the following outline is recommended. initiate specific functional tactics outsource nonessential functions communicate policies to all partners design effective rewards Starbucks can successfully implement their implementation plan by turning their strategy into action by following the steps below: continue to provide and create new products perceived of higher value to buyers create a new products business unit for streamlined product development introduction analyze current economies of scale to reduce costs continue to develop and motivate there partners as they are there best assets. continue closing of under performing stores as needed increase global presence in prime locations to wash out weakening domestic economy issues Evaluation and Control Starbucks should evaluate these goals quarterly beginning in 2009 to avoid potential losses and provide for ample time for development of contingency controls. Starbucks can measure success by analyzing the following metrics with regard to new strategies and products: Return on Investment Net Profits Partner Feedback-Starbucks values its partners and considers and considers them one of their greatest strengths. Customer Feedback-Continued customer satisfaction is key to the success of the business. Leadership and Ethical Concerns Howard Schultz is a CEO who embraces change and someone who has a strong strategic plan. His vision is currently being announced in his transformation agenda which essential brings Starbucks backs to its roots. It is a simple plan and it is compelling. His ethical standards are directly tied to the culture of the company and at present is not a concern. Starbucks guiding principles found in Appendix A keep the company focus driven on providing high ethical standards across all business operations.