Business and Ethics

· What are some interesting mission statements or values statements of some of the companies in your industry? What do their statements reveal about them?

I was looking at some major retail companies mission statements. I was reading about Target’s, Home Depot and Costco Wholesale mission statements. Home Depot’s statement caught my attention because unlike many other companies, Home Depot breaks down its mission statement into “8 corporate values to guide employees at all levels”. The 8 corporate values are: (1)"Taking care of our people: The key to our success is treating people well. We do this by encouraging associates to speak up and take risks, by recognizing and rewarding good performance and by leading and developing people so they may grow. (2)"Giving back to our communities: An important part of the fabric of The Home Depot is giving our time, talents, energy and resources to worthwhile causes in our communities and society. (3)"Doing the right thing: We exercise good judgment by "doing the right thing" instead of just "doing things right." We strive to understand the impact of our decisions, and we accept responsibility for our actions. (4)"Excellent customer service: Along with our quality products, service, price and selection, we must go the extra mile to give customers knowledgeable advice about merchandise and to help them use those products to their maximum benefit. (5)"Creating shareholder value: The investors who provide the capital necessary to allow our company to grow need and expect a return on their investment. We are committed to providing it. (6)"Building strong relationships: Strong relationships are built on trust, honesty and integrity. We listen and respond to the needs of customers, associates, communities and vendors, treating them as partners. (7)"Entrepreneurial spirit: The Home Depot associates are encouraged to initiate creative and innovative ways of serving our customers and improving the business and to spread best practices throughout the company. (8)"Respect for all people: In order to remain successful, our associates must work in an environment of mutual respect, free of discrimination and harassment where each associate is regarded as a part of The Home Depot team."

This statement reveals that Home Depot is devoted to give back to all of their stakeholders. They focus on costumer satisfaction, by providing good services and on creating loyal costumers for their brand by building strong relationships based on “trust, honesty and integrity”. Their statement also reveals that they base their decision thinking on what is best for their stakeholders, not just taking a decision that can affect the community or environment, for example, to gain a larger profit: “We strive to understand the impact of our decisions, and we accept responsibility for our actions.” Also, I was reading that these values are central to the company’s success. They point out in there website that these values are their “competitive advantage in the market”. As I pointed out in the first posting, companies make profit not only because of selling products. Retailers need to make sure costumers are satisfied with their products and services because this creates loyal costumers and stakeholders for companies, which creates long-term profit. I think Home Depot seems to have values that fulfill this.

Here are some other mission statements:

Target: "Our mission is to make Target the preferred shopping destination for our guests by delivering outstanding value, continuous innovation and an exceptional guest experience by consistently fulfilling our Expect More. Pay Less. ® Brand promise." "To support our mission, we are guided by our commitments to great value, the community, diversity and the environment."

Costco: "Costco's mission is to continually provide our members with quality goods and services at the lowest possible prices. In order to achieve our mission we will conduct our business with the following Code of Ethics in mind: Obey the law, take care of our members, take care of our employees, respect our vendors If we do these four things throughout our organization, then we will realize our ultimate goal, which is to reward our shareholders. "

Links:

https://corporate.homedepot.com/wps/portal/? - Look for values under our company

http://retailindustry.about.com/ - look for TargetCorp. and Costco Wholesale mission statement