...Teams in Production and Operations Management Shericia Bonnett Dr. Victoria Figiel BUS 508 – Contemporary Business 11/12/2011 In order for a retail business to be successful, they must order products from a reputable company that produces quality products and that will only happen if the production company is organized and able to supply the needed products. In order for the products to be produced and delivered on time, the production process must consist of planning, routing, scheduling, dispatching, and follow-up in order to correct any problems and make the necessary adjustments (Boone, 2011). Effective communication is crucial throughout the production process and managers and employees should possess quality communication skills. Communication is basically an exchange of information through messages whether they are relayed in person, over the phone, or via email and it is crucial that everyone involved comprehends the message being relayed (2011). From the production process to the delivery and sale of the products, communication is a key instrument that will eventually cause a retail business to become profitable. In today’s society, there are many retail businesses that exist and offer a variety of products and services for a consumer to select from. Some retail businesses sell food, home improvement items, patio furniture, clothes, sporting goods, and other commodities. Kroger’s, Publix, Lowe’s, Ace Hardware, and Wal-mart are leading retailers that...
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...Company Overview Home Depot, Inc. (Home Depot) was, for the 2008 fiscal year ending in February 2009, the world’s largest home improvement retailer. It is known for its warehouse-style stores offering a wide range of building materials, appliances, and lawn and garden products. Home Depot serves three primary customer groups: Do-It-Yourself (DIY), Do-It-For-Me (DIFM), and Professionals, each of whom have different inventory and customer service needs. As of February, 2009, Home Depot had 1,971 stores in the U.S., including the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the territories of the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam; 176 stores in Canada; 74 stores in Mexico and 12 stores in China. (Home Depot 2008 Annual Report, 2009). The Home Depot, like many large corporate entities, has found purpose in creating a mission statement to drive its future operations. The Home Depot website outlines the Company Mission Statement as follows: “The Home Depot is in the home improvement business and our goal is to provide the highest level of service, the broadest selection of products and the most competitive prices. We are a values-driven company and our eight core values include the following: 1. Excellent customer service 2. Taking care of our people 3. Giving back 4. Doing the “right” thing 5. Creating shareholder value 6. Respect for all people 7. Entrepreneurial spirit (and) 8. Building strong relationships” Fiscal 2008 was a challenging year for the United States economy, and was particularly...
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...Strategic Human Resource Management Case Analysis at Home Depot Company By Musalia Doughty Table of Contents Executive Summary 3 1.0 Overview of the Organization 3 1.1 Corporate Hierarchy of Home Depot 4 2.0 Strategic Human Resource Management at Home Depot 5 2.1 Workforce Diversity Management at Home Depot 5 2.2 Disadvantages of Workforce Diversity 7 3.0 Strategy to Counter Diversity Issue at Home Depot 7 3.1 Employee Relations 8 4.0 Implementing Employee Relations at Home Depot 8 4.1 Team-working 9 4.2 Functional flexibility 10 4.3 Employee Involvement 10 4.4 Reward Mechanisms 10 5.0 Recommendations 11 6.0 Conclusion 11 7.0 List of references 12 Executive Summary Human resource management is a sensitive issue in an organization. The performance of any organization is determined by the workforce management practices in place. Owing to the competitive nature of workforce management, human resources are managed strategically (Aghazadeh 2003, p. 201). In this paper, a case study of strategic human resource management has been done. The company considered is called Home Depot. The paper briefly explores the company and its human resource strategy that was found to be diversity management. Thereafter, the paper has explored possible problems that company faces as a result of its diversity strategy. In response to the problems, the paper suggests inclusion of employee relation model in the diversity strategy already...
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...Background The Home Depot was founded in 1978 by Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank in Atlanta, Georgia after they were fired from their executive post at the Handy Dan Home Improvement Centers in California. The founders began the home improvement company around their vision of “one-stop shopping for the do it yourselfer” opening their first two stores in 1979 in Atlanta, Georgia in a cavernous warehouses that dwarfed the competition stocking 25,000 stock keeping units (SKUs), much more than the average hardware store at that time, and staffing the stores with knowledgeable experts in home improvement and customer service. From the beginning, Home Depot was able to offer not only the best customer service in the industry by hiring employees knowledgeable and experienced in the business and by motivating the sales associates to develop relationships with the customers instead of seeing sales as a transaction, but by popularizing the concept of “do it yourself” (DIY) offering to homeowners and other individuals trainings workshops and clinics so customers could learn how to do it themselves. The Home Depot revolutionized the home improvement industry by bringing the know-how and the tools to the consumer and by saving them money. In 1980, Home Depot opened two more stores achieving annual sales of $22 million from all its four stores. By 1990, the company had opened 145 stores, employing 21,500 people, generating annual sales of $3.8 billion, and becoming the number one U.S. retailer...
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...CONFORMING LETTER Home Depot Inc. Dear Home Depot Inc. Management, As a partner of KNAM LLC, it is my pleasure to present you with the results of our initial review. Included with these results is our assessment of Home Depot Inc.’s performance is our proposition of areas we’d like to review further to determine improvements, efficiency, functionality, and health of your organization. Background Your organization’s core service is in the DIY home improvement market. You sell goods that consumers need for home improvement as well as advice on said projects, contracting services, lawn and garden, and appliances and tools. Your organization was founded in 1978 with the purpose of providing DIY one-stop shopping. Since inception, Home Depot Inc. has grown to become a multinational company with foundations strongly in the United States with roots in the Canadian, Mexican, and Chinese markets. Shortly after inception, Home Depot Inc. enlisted on NASDAQ and the NYSE. Your company has seen considerable growth in its main business as well as developments in subsidiary businesses and services. Home Depot Inc. has become one of the fastest growing retailers in America and as such, you would like to review the operations of your organization to determine areas of further growth and areas that may need to be leaner. Objectives of the Operational Review As a result of our initial review and interviews with your executive management, we believe...
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...Executive Summary Human resource management is a sensitive issue in an organization. The performance of any organization is determined by the workforce management practices in place. Owing to the competitive nature of workforce management, human resources are managed strategically (Aghazadeh 2003, p. 201). In this paper, a case study of strategic human resource management has been done. The company considered is called Home Depot. The paper briefly explores the company and its human resource strategy that was found to be diversity management. Thereafter, the paper has explored possible problems that company faces as a result of its diversity strategy. In response to the problems, the paper suggests inclusion of employee relation model in the diversity strategy already in place before making related recommendations and collusion. 1.0 Overview of the Organization The organization considered in this case study is a retail business company called Home depot. Home Depot is an American company retailing in construction and home improvement products. The company was founded in 1978 by Ron Brill, Bernie Marcus, Pat Farrah, and Arthur Blank. The initial focus during its inception was to come up with a home improvement warehouse. The company commenced with two stores in Metro Atlanta. Going by the success and good market reception from the public, the company invested further within the same line by establishing two more stores in 1979. At the time of its establishment, the company...
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...Home Depot Failed in China Name: Chuanshi Liu ID: h701789460 Course: IB 207 Background Home Depot is the largest home improvement retailer in the world. It has about 2200 stores across the United States, Canada, and Mexican. It targets three main customer groups, which are D-I-Y customers, D-I-F-M customers and professional customers. Home depot is famous for its D-I-Y products and services. In 2006, after housing market turn down in the United States, Home Depot entered into the China home improvement market through a full M&A activity. It has twelve stores in Beijing, Shanghai, and other large cities in China. Home Depot served the similar services and products to Chinese customers, which also include the D-I-Y products. However, Home Depot did not succeed this time in China. From 2006 to 2012, the top managers in China area have been changed three times. Home Depot wanted to find out the solutions to this bad situation in local market. However, the situation was worsened when the building material market turned down in 2012, 12 main stores have been closed in local market. Top managers believe that the main reason for their failure is the cultural difference. The D-I-Y services and products do not fit the local culture. Changes and effects Business Environment There are changes in business environment for Home Depot. In United States, the biggest competitor for the Home Depot is Lowe's. They have very similar products and services. Both...
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...Running Head: Home Depot Talent Practices at Home Depot Shaniekia Moore Strayer University Dr. Sheila Letica Talent Management HRM 532 January 20, 2011 Lockwood, (2006) determine that in a competitive marketplace, the talent management process is one of the most important driver for organizational success. Home Depot maintains its’ competitive edge by using their organizational talent in the Do It Yourself industry. This is achieved by having an exemplary organizational structure of values, principles, and beliefs. In achieving that status, Home Depot’s emphasized the importance of employees’ knowledge of the business and their enthusiasm, (Grow, Brady & Arndt, 2006) and hiring of dependable and knowable older workers (Silzer, & Dowell, 2010). In addition to be effective in maintaining that competitive edge Home Depot has various programs that focused on a wide array of leadership development. They encouraged cross-functionality across the company (Gandossy and Verma, 2005), groomed internal talent to allow for peer tutoring from other executives (Gandossy and Verma, 2005) underscored the importance of human capital and engaged store associates in creating a superior customer experience (Silzer, & Dowell, 2010). The key channels that Home Depot developed for recruiting talent, is focusing its recruiting efforts on older workers by partnering with the senior citizens group, American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), (Tucker, Kao, and Verma...
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...Home Depot, Inc Financial Statements Cari Tenan ACC/497 October 1, 2012 Teresa Jenkinson Home Depot, Inc Financial Statements In 1978 Home Depot, Incorporated was incorporated. Home Depot, Incorporated is the world’s largest home improvement retailer selling an assortment of building materials, home improvement, lawn and garden products plus numerous services. In 2008, Home Depot, Incorporated had 2,233 stores throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, Canada, China, and Mexico plus a website on the Internet. The fiscal year for 2008 ended on February 1, 2009, and the financial statements give an individual an idea of how the corporation did during that fiscal year compared to the previous fiscal year (Phillips, Libby, Libby, 2011). Looking at the three major financial statements the consolidated statement of earnings or the income statement, balance sheet, and the cash flow statement, helps an individual to understand how well or not a company did during the year. An individual can even compare the financial statements with previous years to see where improvements may be needed. The consolidated statement of earnings shows the profitability of a company. The balance sheet shows the financial position of a company. The cash flow statement shows where the cash came from and what the cash was used for during a period. The consolidated statement of earnings for Home Depot Incorporated during the fiscal year 2008 shows revenue...
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...Running head: STRATEGIC DIRECTION—HOME DEPOT Strategic Direction—Home Depot Keller Graduate School of Management J. Lambrou, Professor Strategic Direction Introduction What is Strategic Direction? This means taking your company in a direction related to what’s happening in the dynamic environment of what the business provides (be it in a services, manufacturing, technological, or financial area). (Olsen, 2007) Therefore, the strategy and direction the company take are defined by what established and unique value propositions the company has when compared to competitors; operations executed to provide different and tailored value to customers; clearly identifies any tradeoffs and clarifies what not to do; focuses on activities that fit together and reinforce each other; and is continually driven for improvement within the organization and while moving it toward its defined vision. I use The Home Depot (Home Depot here-out) for this paper as I have a part-time job with them. Strategy Home Depot’s simple and straightforward strategy is to ensure it diversifies its operations by having several businesses competing in the different product markets of home improvement. (Home Depot, 2008) The Home Depot has positioned itself within the industry based on a strategy of cost leadership. This operating strategy allows the company to earn above-average profitability by dictating prices from suppliers lowering input costs and minimizing distribution transactions eliminating...
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...Founded in 1978, The Home Depot, Inc. is the world's largest home improvement specialty retailer with fiscal 2011 retail sales of $70.4 billion and earnings of $3.9 billion. The Home Depot has more than 2,200 retail stores in the United States (including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands and the territory of Guam), Canada, Mexico and China. Therefore, Home Depot main focus of the annual report for 2012 will much higher than 2011. The main focus for 2012 annual report on the financial side is the statement earnings. This includes the Net Sales which includes the cost of sales. Gross Profits are the operating expenses, selling, general administrative, depreciation and amortization it also includes the total of operating expenses. Another focus for Home Depot includes interest as well as other (income) expenses. The income expense also includes interest and investment income. The least annual focus is the earnings from continuing operations before the provision for income taxes. This report only entitles the provision for income taxes. As each selected sales data, and the percentage relationship between net sales and the major categories in the consolidated statements of earnings change for each item it is still important in evaluating the performance of the business operations (homedepot). The business operations of the store had many key factors that would influence the company’s financial performance for this 2012. The four key initiatives they will focus on will be customer...
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...History 2 Top Management Team 3 Conclusion 5 Appendix A – Vertical Analysis 6 Appendix B – Horizontal Analysis 7 Appendix C – Ratio Analysis 8 Appendix D – Strengths and Weaknesses 9 Appendix E – Miscellaneous 10 Footnotes 11 Corporate History The Home Depot was founded in 1978 by Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank. In the late 1970s, they were both officers in a Southern California home-center chain called Handy Dan when turnaround artist Sanford S. Sigoloff took over Handy Dan's ailing parent company, Daylin Inc. The corporate raider was notorious for gutting senior management, but as Marcus writes in the duo's autobiography, Built From Scratch, "Handy Dan made so much money that we thought Sigoloff would be stupid to get rid of us." They thought wrong. In 1978, citing trumped up charges that they had allowed an underling to create a fund improperly used to fight a union at Handy Dan stores in San Jose, California, Sigoloff did fire Marcus and Blank. The Home Depot is a do-it-yourself, home improvement store based on excellent customer service, low prices, and a wide selection of products. The company is headquartered in Atlanta, GA, where the business began with two stores. From the start, associates offered the best customer service in the industry by guiding customers through projects such as laying tile, changing a fill valve, or handling a power tool. Store associates undergo rigorous product knowledge training. The Home Depot revolutionized the home improvement...
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...offers users, such as management, board of directors, and potential investors, information related to the company’s activities and it gives them the ability to make decisions in relation to the company. A certain amount of urgency should exist when providing this useful information because the financial statements are considered to be a powerful and commonly used tool. The most commonly used of all the financial statements would be the income statement because it can be used to examine the profits and losses of a company. Many users do also find that the balance sheets and cash flow statements just as useful in the decision making process. The following will include the analysis of Home Depot’s annual report by examining the income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement and looking at how they can help with business decisions. The Consolidated Statements of Earnings, the income statement, tells the user about the sales and expenses of Home Deport during each fiscal year. Analyzing the income statement for Home Depot, it appears that the company had strong sales numbers of over $71 billion each year. Even though the company was able to keep sales over $71 billion, it is noticeable that the sales and gross profits declined from 2007 to 2009 (The Home Depot, 2009). It also seems that an increase in expenses over the years may have contributed to the drop in sales. Another contribution could have been the decline in residential construction and home improvement markets...
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...The Home Depot, Inc. ACC/497 The Home Depot, Inc. Management, board of directors, and potential investors gain crucial information on the status of a company by reviewing and analyzing the different financial statements. A financial statement allows users a peek into its financial well-being in order to make informed decisions in relation to that company. One of the most common financial statements is the income statement and is frequently referred to as the profit and loss statement. Following the financial statement and/or profit and loss statement is the balance sheet and cash flow statement. Both are equally as useful when making decisions and gaining insight on a company. The following analysis has been put together using the income statement and/or profit and loss statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement for The Home Depot’s Inc 2008 fiscal year. The Consolidated Statement of Earnings gives users insight into the company’s expenses and earnings incurred during a specific fiscal year. After reviewing The Home Depot’s income statement for the 2008 fiscal year, it displays a company with strong sales numbers of $71 billion for the year. While $71 billion in sales seems impressive, The Home Depot Inc. actually had a $6 billion dollar decrease in sales from the previous year. The Home Depot Inc. attributed this considerable decline in sales to the struggling U.S. residential construction and home improvement market. Along with their drop...
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...The two well-known home improvement retailers are Lowes and Home Depot. The two have been the largest retailers in the industry for over a decade. There are several similarities and differences between Home Depot and Lowes regarding market, size, and strategic priorities. One similarity is the size of their stores. Lowes stores have a space of 112,000 square feet and 31000 square feet of garden space, while Home Depot has 24000 square feet of garden space and 104000 square feet of enclosed space (Fernando, 2015). Home Depot offers services to both male and female; nonetheless, it is predominantly made up of men. Home Depot offers a wide array of products to its current market. On the other hand, Lowes offers products and service for both genders. The stores are arranged in such a manner that it is a female friendly environment. This stresses the significance of improving the feel and look...
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