Military-style rule at Home Depot

[silverweb]

This came in my BuyBlue newsletter. Home Depot is among the reddest of the red, with Lowe's not far behind. Geez....

Before he arrived, managers ran Home Depot's stores on "tribal knowledge," based on years of experience about what sold and what didn't. Now they click nervously through BlackBerrys at the end of each week, hoping they "made plan," a combination of sales and profit targets. The once-heavy ranks of full-time Home Depot store staff have been replaced with part-timers to drive down labor costs. ... As a manager, Nardelli is relentless, demanding, and determined to prove wrong every critic of Home Depot. He treats Saturdays and Sundays as ordinary working days and often expects those around him to do the same.

<snip>

Nardelli's history of surrounding himself with military recruits goes back to his GE days. At GE Transportation in the 1980s, he pioneered a program of hiring junior military officers, in part because few people were willing to move to "Dreary Erie, Pa.," where the unit is headquartered. Former grunts, used to sitting in mud holes, found the locale less of a problem. William J. Conaty, senior vice-president for corporate human resources at GE, says: "Places like Erie or Fort Wayne, Ind., didn't look desolate to these guys." Welch soon expanded the program throughout GE.

<snip>

Some of the same former managers who blame Nardelli's hardball approach for corroding the service ethic at Home Depot describe a culture so paralyzed with fear that they didn't worry about whether they would be terminated, but when. One night last year, an unnamed executive in the lighting department at Home Depot headquarters left fliers on desks and in elevators containing a litany of complaints about Home Depot, including Nardelli's giant pay package and the high level of executive turnover. The rebel, say other former executives, was tracked down by security cameras and immediately fired. Citing concerns about the employee's privacy, Home Depot declined to comment on the incident. In break rooms, the company pipes in HD-TV, short for Home Depot television. But employees have mocked it as "Bobaganda," referring to Nardelli, for its constant drone of tips, warnings, and executive messages.

I haven't been in a Home Depot for years and this just confirms my choice.

[BrklynLiberal]

1. Owner of Home Depot is one of biggest Bushites.

[kaygore]

2. A non-profit spawned from Home Depot is responsible for the felons list

that disenfranchised so many in Florida incorrectly in 2000 and, I believe even in 2004.

Your local Do-It or ACE usually has just as good prices overall and is willing ti help you with any questions.

There is no need to fund the rise of a dictatorship in the uS by buying at Home Depot, Lowe's, WalMart or Sam's Club!

[SmokingJacket]

11. Choicepoint? nt

[BrklynLiberal]

16. I have found that my locally owned Hardware store has better service, and

the prices are just as good.

[kaygore]

21. Exactly!

The big box stores would have us believe that they are cheaper, but they are not--on many fronts...not just the price of the item!

[Warpy]

3. They drove everybody else out of business in this town

and I've noticed they're going to hell lately, with demoralized and unknowledgeable staff, piss poor stock control, and inadequate checkstands.

So they're being run by a military martinet and he's trying to do it with a WalMart-ized staff concept, part timers who get no benefits.

That figures. I just hope True Value or somebody else fills the void and soon.

[Gormy Cuss]

5. They just bought out a great local chain and it's already evident

that they bought it strictly to drive out the competition. There were both large and small footprint stores and HD is closing all the small stores, the hell with the fact that they were very busy and presumably profitable outlets for the old chain. I'm hoping we get a few ACE/True Value franchises taking over the spaces because my experience with HD is similar to yours. Years ago the staff were helpful, knowledgeable, and the stores were orderly. Now the feeling is more akin to Walmart -- messy shelfs, few knowledgeable floor staff, and the checkstand lines are the deal breaker. I'll go everywhere else before I look for something there.

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

8. That is the pattern everywhere, drive out all the

competition with good stuff at low prices, then when everyone is gone, drop the good stuff and raise the prices.

They will not last long.

Someone will hand them their dick.

[SmokingJacket]

12. My local hardware store is hanging on by its fingernails...

I don't know how. Or how much longer...

[pinto]

4. I read a while back about the CEO's intent to upgrade customer service,

especially in light of Lowe's better performance...all I've seen are more TV monitors running ads and more spinning light thingies. Customer service remains out of their grasp, apparently.

[rickrok66]

7. Home Depot, Military, and tort reform

I am in the miitary and I know Home Depot sells itself as a "military friendly" corporation. They still recruit hard for their military - to - management program.

I also hear that they are big backers of the tort reform movement. It seems that Home Depot has problems with large piles of lumber and other crap falling on customers and they don't like it when said customers sue them for damages.

[patrice]

6. When employees in the lumber department can't multiply, someone

had better be in charge somewhere.

[stillcool]

9. Tom Ridge's influence?...

I forget if he's just a member of the board or what his position is....but the duct tape, and plastic sheeting must have sealed his fate.

[silverweb]

10. Yup, he's on the board.

Just 2 years after the duct tape/plastic sheeting thing. It's all documented right _here_.

[SmokingJacket]

13. Damn, that makes such sick sense. nt

[AX10]

14. Nardelli will probably run Home Despot into chapter 11 or worse.

[wakeme2008]

15. The sad part is 10+ years ago

HD was a GREAT place to work with great wages and back then they wanted ppl that knew their areas and paid them well...

:grr:

[peacebaby3]

17. I'm not going to defend HD for being blood red, but I will tell you that

I had one of the best experiences ever when I shopped at Home Depot, but I will mainly credit it to the super guy who worked there.

My husband was in Iraq and the washer stopped and normally it wouldn't have been any kind of emergency, but when you are all alone trying to do everything, many things seem to be more of an emergency. I can't tell you why, but every time my husband's gone every thing breaks down...never fails or they screw up his paycheck or something. Anyway, back to the story. I went to Home Depot to look for a washer on a weekend because I was already behind and had water on my floor, etc. The guy I met there was wonderful. I was on a rather small budget so he searched the warehouse and found a washer that was the least expensive, but I would have to pay a $50 delivery fee and it couldn't be delivered until nearly a week later. I didn't have a truck or anyway to pick it up myself and to be honest, I'm not sure I could have gotten it in and hooked up alone anyway. Well, he said that he was getting off in less than an hour and he would come deliver it to my house. He brought it over on a truck, helped me move out my old washer, and put the new one in. I tried to give him some money, but he completely refused. He said his dad was in the military when he was young and he remember he would have to be away for long periods of time and how his mother needed help. He was a really nice guy and while we didn't get in any kind of in-depth discussion, he didn't seem to be a bushbot or a gung-ho war supporter either. I called the HD headquarters and told them how wonderful he was, but I didn't go back to the store and we have since moved so I have no idea where he is now, but many thanks to Rodrigo (wherever he may be)!!!

So this isn't really a thank you to HD, but I think you can find good people working there. Too bad they are treated poorly.

[CurtEastPoint]

18. Today's AJC had a huge article detailing how Nardelli rakes it in and the

stock suffers. And today I paid a visit to a HD and had a piss poor experience. I went to the website of HD this PM and it was down for 'maintenance' Six hours later it is still down.

Methinks that they are being bombarded with complaints.

As a stockholder (I know, I know) THIS IS F*ING OUTRAGEOUS that this goddamn asshole makes that much and the customer be damned.

[mcscajun]

22. I *was* a stockholder...when their business model seemed to make

sense, profits were UP, and I didn't know they were RED Through and Through.

I sold my stock, all of it, sometime in the last couple of years. I'm ever so grateful. I've been divesting myself of holdings that don't fit my politics.

[SeaBob]

23. stocks

This is a FYI there are numerous companioes whose speciality is investing in socially responsible stocks. I figure you already know this

[hailmary]

19. that's the American Way!

...won't be long before we can buy guns at HD

[Swamp Rat]

20. Welcome to DU!

:hi: