What great coffee experiences have taught me about creating great workplace environments.

How I discovered Melbourne’s coffee culture?

Sometimes, the best part of my day is the coffee on the way to work. Sounds familiar?

I love visiting my local my local café. I have been going there for years. I don’t feel like I’m just paying for coffee. I’m paying for a coffee experience. I never tire of it. My local café was a life saver during lockdown. I’ve frequented many good coffee houses in Melbourne, including some of Melbourne’s finest coffee institutions. I think most Melburnians agree that we have a great coffee culture. You hear about the great cafes. Have you tried so and so? The best of the best is usually undisputed. Great feedback is often unsolicited. OK, I respect people’s choice to drink 7/11 or BP coffee. It’s just not my thing. And International Roast was fancy for some in the 80s. But still not my thing.

When I was a teenager living in West Brunswick in the 80s. Saturday mornings were spent shopping at Sydney Rd. On Tuesday nights my dad would come visit and take my brother and I out to play pool or pinball at a local café in Sydney Rd, before starting his nightshift. He took us to kind of cafes where you’d find the Vittoria Coffee machine, old style glasses, and the old men playing cards at table down the back of the café. I remember seeing the plume of cigarette smoke that filled the room and the large glass retro ashtrays. My dad took me to all the cafes across the inner Melbourne north. I was a regular at Lygon St, Brunswick St and Smith St from eight years old. And on Sunday afternoons we went to Acland St, which was an institution for Eastern Europeans – cake, coffee and delis. ?

Back to Sydney Rd. At the time, the cafes on Sydney Road had some of the strongest coffee on the planet. And it was the same at my friend’s houses. When my Italian, Greek, Lebanese and Turkish friends invited me over to their place, their parents always offered me something to eat. They would always have a brew of coffee on the old gas stove. My best coffee experiences were in Lygon St in the early 90s - usually between 2am and 3am in the morning after a night out. Entrée size gnocchi ragu and a flat white to finish a great night. And with great company too.

?

How is the magic of a great coffee experiences created? It’s not by chance.

I have found that with the great cafes of Melbourne there’s something that just works. It all comes together. It’s not just about the vibe (sorry Dani Denuto). It’s also the space that’s created, the layout, the colours, the chairs, the service (attentive but discreet), the choice of music, the consistency of the coffee - the people and the team dynamics (all gelling together).

The centrepiece, the X factor, for me has always been the barista. I follow baristas. Once I find a great barista I stay loyal. In the early 2000s, my family would drive 20km on a Saturday morning to have coffee at the Street Café on Lygon St.

Ruth was the barista. She loved making coffee. The coffee was great each time. Ruth had finesse. I remember one time seeing Ruth cry while making coffee. I asked what’s going on? She suffered for her coffee (Seinfeld moment). She was overwhelmed that morning with so many people wanting her coffee. But also driven by perfectionism to make each coffee great. ?The coffee was at perfect temperature, not lukewarm, not too milky or frothy. It had great texture. It had some bite, but not bitter, and had great finish!

A few years ago, the old milk bar that was on the corner, opposite my house, for 30 years was converted to a hip café. Something magical arrived in the burbs. But after a few years, it lost it. The whole system just fell apart. It started with the best and second best barista leaving and then a whole lot of other things. These days, if I’m desperate, I look out the window to see who is making the coffee. Then I decide, YES, great - I’ll go over and get a coffee. Or, NO, looks who’s making the coffee - I’m going to make an instant this time or drive for my second coffee in about an hour. And finally, I have occasionally used a coffee name for all kinds of reasons …….Name Please? Insert favourite singer, author, bushranger or celebrity. I discovered I wasn’t the first one to use a coffee name.

The coffee experience is really important to me. The barista takes people to their happy place. They are a master of their domain. The great baristas work on their magic and understand what the customer likes. You feel confident when you see them in action. They deliver consistently. They are in the business of making people happy. They are truly supported behind the scenes to flourish. A great coffee experience sets up your day. Can workplaces take you to the same place? Do they understand what it takes to make the magic happen?

You can lose the coffee magic in one sip?

One day, I came in to my regular ‘go to’ cafe, and my super awesome barista, Mighty Mouse, was gone! I got a newbie. I was greeted with a grumpy barista and a bitter tasting coffee that lasted my train ride into the city. I was still tasting coffee residue and milk that must have been out all morning for the next 30 minutes. I went back for a second day, and then a third, and the grumpiness was still there. The coffee was bad. And I was grumpy. As were all the customers after me. Grumpiness can be infectious.

I thought to myself and starting internalising and over thinking this experience. I guess because I set this up to be my happy place. I started asking myself - What is this? Am I the only one seeing this? Why am the only one seeing this? Why can’t anyone else see this? Am I being too judgemental? Am I being over the top? Am I expecting too much? Should I do a one star google review? Should I say something? Will me bringing something up make me look like the person with a problem? Is this on me? It’s then difficult to read the situation? Is this a problem directed at me? Or is there something going on in your life?

I felt like a stranger in my own café.

So, the following day, I sailed past, had a quick look in, and kept on walking. I had a ‘bury my head in the sand’ moment. Is it on me? I thought, no, I don’t need to provide an explanation. It’s on you.

A negative workplace experience can feel like a bad taste in your mouth, similar to a bad coffee experience. It’s tastes bitter. The residue stays with you. I remember one workplace where a manager started swearing because the new Director was swearing. Discrimination, inequity, exclusion, bullying, sexual harassment, victimisation, gaslighting or poor behaviours can also affect a workplace and spread like a virus. It’s hard to experience. It’s hard to tackle. It takes effort. And even after 20 years of managing complaints and conducting mediations, I hate conflict. It's like ripping a bandaid off. And when behaviours and actions covert and subtle, the bad taste and residue can last for years. ??

?

The great coffee places understand what it takes to create and sustain the magic ?

I’m in awe of cafes that have survived and thrived over the years. What is that magic they possess? How do they provide that superb and consistent coffee experience? They understand coffee. They understand quality. They practice it. They have discipline. They have a system. They employ great baristas. They have good coffee making culture. One that says, I care about coffee, I’m serious about coffee, coffee runs through my veins and I’m happy to see my customers. I respect my customers. I won’t fail them. They know me and they know what keeps me coming back. And when you love what you do, when you understand what you do, then you have my $5 any day of the week. I’ll keep coming back.

When you experience great workplaces, great people, and achieve great outcomes, it doesn’t happen by accident. There is a complete system that comes together to fully understand, engage and inspire your employees and customers. Like the great coffee places, they understand what it takes to keep make the magic happen and keep the magic alive. They truly understand the coffee experience.

When I seek inspiration, I start my day with an awesome coffee experience. It has taught me how great workplace environments can be created, and how the great ones keep the magic alive.