The Home Depot is a business entity that takes part in the improvement of homes and retailing of construction products. The company also offers other construction services such as consultancy and delivery. The company has many stores in the United States of America. The stores exist in all the states of the country. In addition, the company runs stores in the provinces of Canada, and Mexico. The company’s headquarters are in Atlanta, where there is Support Center for all the company’s stores.
The Home Depot has a good financial record. According to the commission of the United States Securities and Exchange, the company takes credit for being the largest retailer of home improvement and equipment in the country. Its ability to generate a high amount of revenues keeps it ahead of other players in the industry like Lowes.
Ethical Responsibility
Identification
Just like any other business entity or corporation, it is important for a company to adhere to business and corporate ethics in the course and scope of its daily operations. The company owes its client a duty to good and ethical business as stipulated within the law. There are also principles enshrined within the rules of the company. The principles lay down all the moral standards that employees have to adhere to as they about in their daily duties.
The company seeks to maintain ethical standards through corporate governance. Corporate governance is part of the culture that the company nurtures as the years pass. The company commits to principals and living values that identify the ethical duties to all the stakeholders of the company. Its stakeholders include shareholders, creditors, debtors, employees, associates, and business partners.
Consideration
First, the company ensures that there is full disclosure to the shareholders. The disclosure relates to the major investments and transactions that the company takes part in, during the financial year. The shareholders have a right to annually financial statements, sales reports and other relevant information that may affect how much they wish to invest in the company. Good ethics requires the company to disclose the information periodically.
It is unethical for the company’s management to venture into projects that endanger the wealth of the shareholders without disclosure and consultation. As a result, of the need for full disclosure, the company’s management formed a Disclosure Committee in the between 2002 and 2003. The committee ensured that the there was accuracy in the disclosure made to the shareholders and investors. The information also has to be complete.
In addition to full disclosure, the company has clear policies and procedures on the retention of its independent auditors. The policy helps the company to reduce the risk of fraudulent transactions because the auditors have good experience regarding the major transactions of the company.
The company also has an ethical responsibility towards its employees. The management of the company dedicates good leadership to the business. Corporate governance sets the pace for the implementation of policies that guard the employees against unethical and unprofessional malpractices. For instance, the management must ensure that the employees work in a good environment. They have a right to the right attire, safe clothing, and safe workplace free from the risk of health injuries and infection. The company’s premises must fulfill all the ethical requirements of the employees.
Conclusion
In May 2012, The Home Depot had a revision of its code of business conduct and business ethics. Ethics is important for the company because they guide the way the management and employees should behave towards the stakeholders of the company. Ethics is also important because the set the moral standard. No one acts below what the moral standard requires him or her to do. They govern the level of integrity in the company. When the code of ethics underwent revision in the company, the management ensured that the code was more interactive. The content became simple for the associates of the company to understand it with ease.
Revising the policies indicated how much the company values the maintenance of ethics. The company ensured that the code of conduct and ethics had an alignment to the culture and the values that the company has upheld over the years. The revision covers change within the administration of the company. Such changes include the format of carrying out duties, the layout of the administration and the interaction with other employees.
Legal Responsibilities
Identification
All countries have rules and regulations that govern the way business transactions go on in the economy. There are also other laws that relate to the formation and administration of business entities. For instance, the government requires a certain minimum number of directors during the formation of public and private companies. Companies and other business entities have a duty to obey and adhere to the laws set forward by the specific companies. In this light, many companies have legal consultants who offer legal advice to the management relating to matters of the law. In some cases, the company may have to pay damages after taking part in legal proceedings. The penalties may result from breaching certain contracts on accusation in court following dissatisfaction by clients of the company.
Consideration
The company has a Corporate Compliance Council. The council examines the policies regarding the company’s compliance responsibilities. It ensures that the company complies with all the regulations set forward by the state and the federal government. Currently, the company changed the name of the council to the Enterprise Risk Council although it performs the same functions.
The most essential legal obligation of the company is the rights of the employees. Employees have certain rights and freedoms when they are at work. Most constitutions have chapters on the labour sector of the economy. The section provides for all the rights, which all employees have a title to in the course of their employment. Basic employee rights include the right to reasonable and timely remuneration, the right to express their grievances at work, the right to peaceful and meaningful demonstration, and the right to belong to a registered trade union.
As companies formulate their memorandum, they must ensure that they cover all the legal aspects relating to their employees. Failure to include this fundamental part would result into legal; obligations whenever there is a breach of any of the rights of the employees.
The Home Depot must also fulfill other vital legal obligations. In the United States, there are 50 states. All the states have state laws. The state laws are not uniform since there are variations in the population and jurisdiction of the state. The company must comply with each of the state laws whenever they have a branch or store. For instance, if the state levies rent on the premises, the company has a legal obligation to pay the statutory rent.
The company also has a legal responsibility to all its clients. The Home Depot needs to deliver quality goods and services to all its clients. Due to the health variations of the clients, there are some products made by the company that may lead to some medical conditions. In such cases, the company must prepare disclaimer messages to accompany products that may contain special chemical contents. On a purchase, lease, or hiring of such products, the sales department must notify the customer that the product contains a certain chemical. If the customer suffers any injury, the court may exempt the company from paying the damages.
Consideration
It is important for a company to understand its legal obligations. The company’s management should know the specific parties to whom they owe the specific legal duty. Since the law is specific, the company must keep track of all the individual transactions that go on because an individual has the power to institute legal proceedings against the company. Legal cases against the company often destroy the reputation of the company. Bad reputation lowers the value of the goodwill of the company. When the value of the goodwill reduces, it affects the efficiency and level of the company’s ability to generate profit.
Legalities connect directly to revenue generation. The company incurs many expenses whenever there are many people who need to receive compensation from the company. It is important for a company to have good legal advisors and consultants who understand the legal system of the country and the states.
Social Responsibility
Identification
Social responsibility at The Home Depot comes with the corporate responsibility doctrine that governs all entities. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) describes the manner in which most business entities give back to the society. Since the society gives business entities a platform to trade on a daily basis, it is the responsibility of the business to ensure that members of the society benefit from the business. However, some businesses do not give back to the society. Corporate Social Responsibility is an advanced form of business ethics.
In addition, it is important to note that business entities are the ones that benefit from corporate social responsibility. When a society feels that a business is socially responsible, they are ready and willing to consume the goods that it produces. In the end, the business ends up having a huge market and improving its revenue generation.
Consideration
The Home Depot has a simple corporate social responsibility policy. The company has a foundation tasked with ensuring that corporate social responsibility takes precedence. The foundation has carried out its operations in the last ten years.
First, the company insists on action. CSR is of no use to the society f they hear it in theory without seeing anything actionable. The company’s foundation on social responsibility has a simple mission. The mission states that the foundation should get dirty and do well. The foundation works towards doing what they know. The company workers have vast experience in building and repairing structures. When they go to a place, the core objective is to leave the structure better than they found them. In the volunteer program at the foundation, the projects undertaken by the company improve the physical outlook of t6he lace that the workers go to in the course of duty.
Secondly, the company undertakes CSR by staying true to the culture of the business. The Home Depot conducts its business based on the values. The founders of the company set up its values approximately four decades ago. The core values of the CSR foundation is giving back to the society, building strong and lasting relationships and doing what is right for the community. The foundation gives back to the society through voluntary projects. It also provides job opportunities for the members of the society in the particular areas that they visit.
The third attribute of social responsibility at the company is paying attention to the needs of the customers and all the associates. The company takes pride in listening to the specific needs of the customer and delivering the services in the exact manner that the client requires them to do it. The company commits to customer satisfaction, which is a good practice that many other businesses do not care about in service delivery.
Conclusion
Corporate social responsibility is an important aspect of the company’s business. Through CSR, the company can easily identify business opportunities in the community. CSR allows the company to work very closely with the community. As a result, people open up about areas that they feel the company may benefit if it pumps in some capital. At first, taking on social responsibility objectives may prove costly and expensive for the company. However, the company should focus on what it will achieve in the end.
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