Final answer:
Tensions and collaborations between marketing and operations at Starbucks include new product launches, customer experience, and market research.
Step-by-step explanation:
There are several tension points and collaboration areas between marketing and operations for Starbucks:
- New product launches: Marketing and operations need to collaborate closely to ensure that new products are effectively promoted and smoothly integrated into Starbucks' operations. This includes coordinating the production, supply chain, and distribution logistics to meet the demand generated by marketing campaigns.
- Customer experience: Marketing plays a crucial role in shaping the customer experience through branding, advertising, and promotions. Operations need to align their processes and service delivery to meet the expectations set by marketing. For example, if marketing promotes a specialty drink with a short waiting time, operations must ensure efficient production and service to deliver on that promise.
- Market research and demand forecasting: Marketing relies on operations' insights into production capabilities and constraints to plan and execute research and demand forecasting. Operations, in turn, benefit from marketing's understanding of customer preferences and behavior to optimize production planning and inventory management.