topic internal and external weaknesses in communication of highlands coffee

Starting with packaged coffee products in Hanoi in 2000, Highlands hasquickly developed into a famous coffee shop chain and has continuously expanded itsoperations domestically and inter

ADVANCED ENGLISH PROGRAM

TOPIC: Internal and External Weaknesses in Communication

of Highlands CoffeeGROUP 7

TABLE OF FIGURES ii

INTRODUCTION 1

PROBLEMS 3

Problem 1: Highlands Coffee chased customer away 3

1 Description of the situation 3

2 Rationale of analyzing this problem 4

3 Analyzing the problem 5

4 Consequences 8

5 Recommended solution to similar situation in the future 11

Problem 2: Highlands discriminated against disabled people 12

1 Description of the situation 12

2 Rationale of analyzing this problem 13

3 Analyzing the problem 14

4 Consequences 16

5 Recommended solution to similar situation in the future 18

CONCLUSION 20

1 Brands should be careful when communicating with external stakeholders 20

2 Proper training is essential 20

REFERENCES 21

i

TABLE OF FIGURES

Picture 1 Complaint of the female customer 4

Picture 2 The Female customer's post about Highlands' delay in disclosure 8

Picture 3 Comments about the Situation 10

Picture 4 Complaint of the disabled customer 13

Picture 5 Supports for Boycotting Highlands Coffee 17

Picture 6 Netizens react to Highlands' official apology 18

Figure 1 The 3X3 Writing Process Model 6

Figure 2 The Communication Process Model 14

Highlands Coffee is the brand of Viet Thai International Joint Stock Company(VTI), founded in Hanoi in 1999 by overseas Vietnamese businessman - David Thai.Originating from the love for Vietnam and passion for coffee, the Highlands Coffeebrand was born with the desire to enhance Vietnam's long-standing coffee heritageand spread the spirit of pride and harmonious connection between traditions withmodernity

1

Starting with packaged coffee products in Hanoi in 2000, Highlands hasquickly developed into a famous coffee shop chain and has continuously expanded itsoperations domestically and internationally since 2002 Currently, Highlands Coffee is

present in 32 provinces and cities and has more than 500 stores nationwide, especially

in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi In 2020, the brand still achieved revenue of morethan 2,100 billion VND, while others struggled because of the epidemic

Throughout the journey, Highlands Coffee continuously brings quality,luxurious coffee products in a comfortable and elegant space Coffee cups are notsimply a familiar drink but also carry a cultural mission, reflecting a corner of modernVietnamese life

Problem 1: Highlands Coffee chased customer away

1 Description of the situation

At noon on June 29, 2021, a post appeared on social network by a femalecustomer named P.H complaining about an experience she described as "bad" at aHighlands Coffee shop (299 Cau Giay, Hanoi)

According to Ms P.H, early this morning (June 29), she came to this store toorder drinks and work She starts working at 8:40 a.m Ms H also shared that sheoften chooses Highlands stores to work because this store is right on the first floor ofher building At 9:24 a.m a store employee informed her that "your one-hour sittingtime has ended If you want to sit more, please order more." Ms H said that at thattime, her working time was just under 45 minutes and there were 15 minutes left.However, what made Ms H angry was that this coffee shop did not notify customersabout the seating hours limit Ms H also expressed questions about whether thispolicy only applies to the store or the entire Highlands Coffee chain

The post was quickly shared on famous dining groups on social networks andattracted a lot of attention from the online community, with many people expressingtheir outrage at this action

2 Rationale of analyzing this problem

External communication plays a vital role in the success of any organization Itserves as a bridge between the company and its stakeholders, including customers,investors, suppliers, and the general public Effective external communication helpsbuild and maintain strong relationships with these stakeholders, which directlyimpacts the company's reputation, brand image, and overall business growth This isparticularly true for F&B companies like Highlands Coffee

5

The incident reflected how poor communication could damage the business’sreputation By analyzing this case, companies can avoid these common businesscommunication problems and enhance customer service.

3 Analyzing the problem

In this situation, the employee's intention is clear, which was a consideration ofthe store's profits Considering that the store has no reason to behave like that with afirst-time customer, the assumption here is that this female customer is a regularcustomer of the store and ordered a bottle of mineral water and then sat in the store,repeated several times, making the restaurant staff upset

It can be seen that this is a difficult problem for every business in the F&Bsector For Highlands Coffee, things become much more complicated Because thefacilities of this chain of stores are all located in highly recognizable places, denselypopulated areas and office buildings, with spacious frontages and parking spaces, theburden of space costs is huge On the other hand, the time the incident took place inthe midst of the Covid - 19 pandemic In this period, people had to limit going out andgathering, causing the chain's revenue to decline However, those difficulties are notenough to explain Highlands Coffee's unprofessional handling This incident is aresult of problems in external communication, specifically between Highlandsemployees and customers

In this case can apply the 3x3 writing process model to address weaknesses ofHighlands Coffee in communicating

In Phase 1 - Prewriting, it can be seen that the employee, a representative ofHighlands Coffee, has made a careless decision

In this first phase, it is necessary to analyze the news and consider its effect onthe receiver in order to select the best approach There are two strategies for deliveringnews: direct and indirect A direct strategy is often used when the news is neutral andpositive On the other hand, an indirect strategy is used when the news is negative orcan easily irritate the receiver In this case, the news is not something easy to be heard,

so the staff should have used the indirect strategy, rather than the direct one Inaddition, it is important to carefully consider the content of the message and thereceiver's preferences before selecting an appropriate communication channel It wasfrom this part, things became problematic As mentioned above, this customer is aregular customer of Highlands Coffee, and is also quite troublesome, from the staff'sperspective Here we come to the second assumption: From the employee's

7

perspective, she is not aware that her behavior is causing damage to the shop Thisassumption is the reason why the employee decided to directly remind her.

It can be said that this is a bad decision, because the issue mentioned is quitesensitive and touching As can be seen from the situation description, the employee'swords were implying that the female customer was a troublesome person who onlyordered a bottle of water but wanted to enjoy Highlands's services for a long time.How will this customer react to this approach? It is clear that there will be a negativereaction, because no one likes to be criticized directly Furthermore, the employee alsochose to loudly announce in the middle of the shop, making the targeted femalecustomer feel embarrassed because of being discriminated against The purpose of thisaction is to put pressure on the guest, forcing her to choose with the weight of thecrowd It can be assumed that this "reminder" is intended to drive away the customerrather than give a choice, because no one will dare to continue staying after being

"reminded" like that

In Phase 2 - Writing, the employee was careless in using words,unintentionally damaging the brand

In this phase, the sender will gather information and brainstorm for ideas It isnoticeable that the reason included should be clear to avoid unnecessary confusion.Readers also accept bad news more easily if they recognize that someone orsomething else benefits Therefore, it is recommended to include the receiver'sbenefits to ease the situation Moreover, the sender should avoid exposing themselves

to legal liability by not using abusive or careless language

In this situation, the employee did not have a clear reason for his reminder Itcan be seen through the female customer's post that she was not informed in any wayabout such a regulation from Highlands Benefits are not attached but are offered asoptions, causing resistance from her On the other hand, what the employee said can

be understood as : if Highlands Coffee has a rule that when buying a bottle of water,customers can only sit for 1 hour, it can be informed that the price of the bottle ofwater includes service costs That would make customers wonder if they buy take-away products, could they get a discount or refund of the service costs In this case,

the employee has attached his own meaning to the sentence, which might lead tobypassing when interpreting the message The misunderstanding might affect thecompany's business, if the customer really misunderstands and asks the company toreturn the service fee.

In Phase 3 - Revising, it can be clearly seen that the employee does not review

the word usage before speaking

Phase 3 requires the sender to make any necessary edits to the messages If themessage is delivered in a kind and courteous manner, the recipient is more inclined toaccept it

It seems the employee forgot this step The proof is that the way he conveyedinformation to the female guest did not show a bit of kindness or courteous, but evenrude and unethical

4 Consequences

4.1 The chain stores is exposed to weakness in crisis handling

9

Although facing a wave of opposition from public opinion, Highlands Coffee'sofficial fanpage just issued an official statement after several days: “Highlands Coffeealways wants to bring the best experience to its customers and would like to confirmthat there is no such regulation in the entire chain of Highlands Coffee stores.”.Meanwhile, the store representative at 299 Cau Giay explained the incident requiringcustomers to sit within one hour, saying that this is "a bounded period, in which thecustomers are encouraged to stay within one hour, prioritize takeaway transactions;though it does not have to be one hour exactly " In addition, the store encouragescustomers to buy take away and limit the use at the store Regarding asking customers

to order more drinks, the store representative said, "The customer mentioned aboveonly used one bottle of Dasani pure water, so the shop came out to invite customers touse other drinks."

These responses of the brand indicated weakness in handling crises First, thechain did not immediately respond to the situation, which led to dissatisfaction of thefemale customer Second, through the way Highlands answered the press, the chainhas unintentionally affirmed that although the business is in a chain, the processes andregulations at each store are not consistent Moreover, the company has leaked out thebill information of the female customer, which must be kept confidentially Whetherintentional or not, this action can be derived as an attempt to lighten the problem bydepicting the customer as a troublesome person

4.2 Highlands' reputation is damaged and there is a risk of losing many potential customers

Picture 3 Comments about the Situation

It can be seen that many Facebook users express dissatisfaction with HighlandsCoffee As an inevitable consequence of weakness in crisis management, these peoplemay leave the brand Moreover, negative online posts are real-time sharing ofexperience and can cost Highlands many potential customers as word of mouth can

11

spread like wildfire Because not everyone comes to the shop to experience theirservice, many people only read comments or reviews on social media.

5 Recommended solution to similar situation in the future

Firstly, Highlands needs to resolve customer dissatisfaction, particularly thefemale customer in this situation Highlands should organize a three-party meeting toexplain and compensate the guest appropriately Agility and a sincere attitude willsend to the guest the message that Highlands cares about customer experience andalways strives to improve its service quality In addition, if the incident is resolvedsatisfactorily, the brand can avoid future scandals by asking the customer to delete thepost

Next, Highlands needs to issue an official notice about the responsibilities andtake measures to handle responsible people, in this case the employees and managers

of the Cau Giay branch All information needs to be clear and transparent, avoidinginconsistency by letting only one representative respond to the press This sends amessage that inappropriate words will not be tolerated and that a positive andrespectful communication environment is maintained It also helps to prevent similarincidents from occurring in the future

Finally, if this situation is repeated afterward, Highlands should choose a wiserway to deal with it The brand can learn from Starbucks with the 1-hour wifi code, orissue a clear regulation on this to avoid leaving customers in the dark aboutinformation If Highlands wants to adjust customer behavior, it needs to be very subtle

so that customers can recognize it themselves In addition, the shop's staff need to beaware that, in the process of serving customers, each of them represents the HighlandsCoffee brand, so they need to be considered and careful in every statement and action

Problem 2: Highlands discriminated against disabled people

1 Description of the situation

On Feb 17th, 2020, a Facebook user named "Le Van Truong" posted a situation

he encountered when entering a coffee shop belonging to the Highlands Coffee chain

in Ho Chi Minh City (located at 370 Tan Son Nhi)

This user said that when he entered the shop, the security guard asked him if hewas in the shop to sell lottery tickets Although this person denied and said that he had

a meeting with friends, another shop employee stopped him and said that sellinglottery tickets was not allowed there and asked him to leave the shop Even when thisman was upset and asked to see the manager, the employee did not let him see themanager

According to Highlands, this store previously received many complaints fromcustomers about being frequently harassed by lottery ticket sellers and fortune tellerspretending to be customers in the store For that reason, the store manager asked thestaff here to pay attention and try to minimize this situation from happening, so thatthe experience of customers is ensured

13