Visiting Home Depot Corporate Headquarters

After the Carter Center visit, we went to the Home Depot Corporate Headquarters. We learnt about their corporate values, which include “take care of people”, “giving back to our communities”and “creating shareholder value”. The full list can be seen in the picture below –

(Image courtesy : http://media.corporateir.net/media_files/IROL/63/63646/corpGov/value_wheel.gif)

From the corporate values, we understand Home Depot has built a strong focus of their corporate culture around Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). In many scenarios, Home Depot has proactively reached out to serve the needed through the Home Depot Foundation. This foundation partners with local charities, as well as manages the Team Depot project which encourages associates’ participation in charities. This year the foundation is dedicated to help veterans. In addition to the foundation, Home Depot also reached out to serve communities in cases of emergencies – such as hurricanes . For example, they have dedicated plans to ensure emergency supplies can reach the needed consumers timely in case of emergencies. To do this they pledge to have their stores – in the condition framed by safety – open till the latest and re-open the earliest.

Internally, Home Depot has also strived to ensure its employees are well treated and cared. In particular, Home Depot has a “Homer Fund” set up. This fund is contributed by the Home Depot associates, where they choose to contribute part of their paycheck. The contributed money will then be utilized to provide assistance to associates who are in desperate situation, for example when their child is ill, or when their spouse loose a job. Additionally, when associates choose to personally contribute money to their friend associate, the fund will match the money donated, turning a $1 help to $2.

We have learnt Home Depot as a corporation is responsible, caring, and loving. Profits are important – however they should not be the whole picture. A corporation should be judged not only by its shareholder value and return, but also on the efforts it has contributed back to the society.

– Kelvin Ha (hakelvin@gmail.com)

16 Jun This entry was published on June 16, 2012 at 3:35 am and is filed under Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post.