Case Analysis of Home Depot"The Home Depot NYSE:HD, headquartered in Vinings, Georgia, is a home improvement retailer that caters to both DIY consumers and home improvement and construction professionals It is the second largest retailer in the United States, behind Wal-Mart and the third largest retailer in the world, behind Wal-Mart and; French company Carrefour, which operates approximately 1,900 stores in North America. The company operates stores in the United States (including all 50 states, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands), Canada and Mexico. The Home Depot also operates EXPO Design Center stores in select U.S. markets, offering high-end home decor products and services. Its sales in 2004 totaled $73.1 billion. FORTUNE 500 from FORTUNE magazine. Home Depot also owns a chain of high-end home decor and appliance stores. Home Depot employs more than 325,000 people. /en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_Depot#The_Home_Depot_today The company was founded in 1978 in Atlanta, Georgia, by Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank, and grew rapidly, with sales exceeding $1 billion annually by 1986 Since its founding, HD has continued to grow steadily by targeting strong markets with many new and young owners like New Orleans. Home Depot has managed to grow rapidly by quickly adapting to change and has continued to succeed by remaining true to the organization's culture and values. renewal and work to maintain a culture that produces great products, employees and customers has helped Home Depot maintain its competitive advantage and become the leader in the retail construction industry. The company's management placed emphasis on caring for its employees, encouraging entrepreneurship. , treating each other with respect and committing to the highest standards. The stores and their merchandise were set up so that all stores looked very similar. Operational efficiency has been a crucial element in achieving low prices while providing a high level of customer service. The company was evaluating and upgrading its information to support growth, control costs and enable better decision-making. The company continued to see greater efficiencies from its electronic data interchange program..