I applied through an employee referral. The process took 1 day. I interviewed at Starbucks (Banning, CA) in Jan 2011
Interview
My interview process was practically non- existent. A shift supervisor highly recommended me and his judgement was trustworthy to the manager. Starbucks looks for highly passionate people who interact easily with others and are pleasant. The more outgoing you are, the better your chances of being hired. Also, presentation is vital. This may be part of the food industry, but Starbucks prides itself on "legendary customer service,' and if you show up casually dressed, they'll assume you're not enthusiastic or invested.
I applied in-person. The process took 5 days. I interviewed at Starbucks (Michigan City, IN) in Jul 2011
Interview
I walked in to a store, asked for the manager. I said i was in search of work as a manager. They pretty much hired me on the spot. I was asked to come back for a formal interview. When I returned there was a manager from another store there. I sat through a round of typical questions from a book. Not very much nuance or subtlety. Everything was canned and prepared in a book sent down from corporate.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
The usual round of 'what would you do in this kind of situation.' Fairly easy questions. What would you do in a precarious situation. How would you handle an unruly employee. How well do you handle ambiguity?
I applied in-person. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Starbucks (San Leandro, CA)
Interview
Three store managers and a District Manager interviewed me. They have a list of specific interview questions, but each manager approaches it in their own way.
After the interview phase I began training and I had the opportunity to work at several stores. These each served as secondary interviews to see which store I would transfer to when I completed my training.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
I wasn't expecting to have my personal life evaluated, but in a customer-oriented and community-involved corporation, it makes sense. The managers were experienced interviewers based on the quickness with which they interpreted my responses.