People want to be part of something larger than themselves. They want to be part of something they're really proud of, that they'll fight for, sacrifice for, that they trust.

Starbucks has changed the rules of engagement for the music industry.

We think of Starbucks not as a coffee company but a media company.

Hiring people is an art, not a science, and resumes can't tell you whether someone will fit into a company's culture.

When I first discovered in the early 1980s the Italian espresso bars in my trip to Italy, the vision was to re-create that for America - a third place that had not existed before. Starbucks re-created that in America in our own image; a place to go other than home or work. We also created an industry that did not exist: specialty coffee.

Europe has always represented a major strategic opportunity to achieve our goal of creating and building an enduring global brand.

Early on I realized that I had to hire people smarter and more qualified than I was in a number of different fields, and I had to let go of a lot of decision-making. I can't tell you how hard that is. But if you've imprinted your values on the people around you, you can dare to trust them to make the right moves.