Mission Statements of Technology Companies

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Facebook Mission Statement - Global Sharing, Connections, and Openness

Mission, Vision, Headquarters & History of Facebook Social Media Network
Mission, Vision, Headquarters & History of Facebook Social Media Network. newsroom/Getty Images

The mission of Facebook social media network is all about the global sharing and connections made possible by the Facebook platform. (See the Facebook mission and vision below.)

Facebook Founders Facts and Trivia

Mark Zuckerberg is credited as founding Facebook in 2004​ when he launched a website called "thefacebook," which was designed for the exclusive use of Harvard students. The instant popularity of the website drove it to expand and become accessible to other universities, then high schools, and selected companies such as Microsoft and Apple. In 2006 Facebook became accessible to the entire world's population and by the end of the year,​ it had 12 million users.

Facebook Headquarters

The Facebook corporate headquarters are located in Menlo Park, California. The international headquarters of Facebook are located in Dublin, Ireland.

Facebook Social Media Network Mission and Vision

The mission of the Facebook social media network seems logical and obvious to the users of the Facebook platform...

"Facebook's mission is to give people the power to share and make the world more open and connected."

Additionally, when the Facebook IPO was launched on the NASDAQ stock exchange, founder Mark Zuckerberg posted a vision statement of sorts on his own Facebook profile page which describes more about Facebook's vision, and value to the Facebook user...

"People use Facebook to stay connected with friends and family, to discover what’s going on in the world, and to share and express what matters to them."

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NetFlix Movie Rentals Mission Statement - A Vision, A Promise and Nine Values

In place of a published mission statement, Netflix has a Vision, a Promise, and nine Values, which together provide an idea provide insight about the Netflix mission. (See the complete Netflix mission statement below.)

Founders, Facts and Trivia

Many people think that Zappos.com was founded by its current well-known leader Tony Hsieh, but that isn't the whole story. In 1999 Nick Swinmurn came up with the idea of selling shoes in an Internet store. Tony Hsieh then invested $500,000 in Nick's idea and the two founded and ran the company together, which was originally called ShoeSite.com. When Swinmurn left Hsieh completely in charge of the company in 2006, the annual sales were $252 million.

Netflix.com Corporate Headquarters:
Even though it serves customers in 40 countries, the world headquarters of Netflix remains in the U.s., and is located in Los Gatos, California.

The Mission Statement, Vision, Promise and Values of Netflix:
Netflix doesn't have an "official" published mission statement, but at the Dublin F.ounders conference in October 2011, co-founder and CEO Reed Hastings expressed a clear vision for the future of Netflix which includes...

  • Becoming the best global entertainment distribution service
  • Licensing entertainment content around the world
  • Creating markets that are accessible to filmmakers
  • Helping content creators around the world to find a global audience

Netflix did, at one point, referred to its brand promise as a "quest," which many would equate with a mission statement. The published that Brand Promise was...
We promise our customers stellar service, our suppliers a valuable partner, our investors the prospects of sustained profitable growth, and our employees the allure of huge impact.
Additionally, Netflix has published its company values, which provide further clarification about the principles which guided its employees in their daily decisions and activities. The Netflix Company Values were published as...

  • Judgment
  • Productivity
  • Creativity
  • Intelligence
  • Honesty
  • Communication
  • Selflessness
  • Reliability
  • Passion

More About U.S. Company Mission Statements, History, and Headquarters:

  • Complete List of Entertainment Store Store Mission Statements
  • Oldest Retail Companies in the U.S. - Founding Dates
  • Headquarters and Management Jobs in the U.S. Retail Industry

More About Netflix:

  • The Value of the Netflix Brand
  • Netflix Rewarded for Innovation
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IBM Corporation Mission Statement - 3 Values Created By 319,000 IBM Employees

The mission of the IBM corporation is really three Values that were created with the help of 319,000 IBM employees. (See the IBM corporate mission, vision, and purpose below.)

IBM Founders Facts and Trivia:
IBM was first incorporated in New York state in 1911 as the Computing- Tabulating- recording Company (C-T-R) by Charles R. Flint as the merger of four companies - the Tabulating Machine Company, the International Time Recording Company, the Bundy Manufacturing Company, and the Computing Scale company. The C- T- R company initially sold a wide variety of machines including coffee grinders, and meat slicers, and it provided business services like census tabulation with punched card equipment.

The company changed its name to International Business Machines Corporation in 1924 to better describe the company’s present and future business activities. Today the company refers to itself as IBM and provides a wide variety of technology, products, and services to business customers throughout the world.
IBM Corporation International Headquarters:
The IBM international corporate headquarters are located in Armonk, NY.
IBM Corporation Mission Statement and Values:
The mission, vision, and values of the IBM corporation has been the same since the company was incorporated in 1911. In 2003, more than 319,000 global IBM employees (IBMers) participated in a 72-hour “Values Jam,” which redefined the values which guide IBM in the development and delivery of its technology and business products and services. The Values that were designed from the consensus of the IBMers are:

  • "Dedication to every client's success
  • Innovation that matters, for our company and for the world
  • Trust and personal responsibility in all relationships"

How these IBM values are used by the IBM leadership team is described this way by IBM CEO Samuel J. Palmisano:
”Clearly, leading by values is very different from some kinds of leadership demonstrated in the past by business. It is empowering, and I think that's much healthier. Rather than burden our people with excessive controls, we are trusting them to make decisions and to act based on values - values they themselves shaped." More About the Values and Values Jam of IBM >>

More About U.S. Company Mission Statements, History, and Headquarters:

  • Complete List of Non-Retail Mission Statements
  • Gallery of All Retail Company Mission Statements
  • Oldest Retail Companies in the U.S. - Founding Dates
  • Headquarters and Management Jobs in the U.S. Retail Industry
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Best Buy Mission Statement - Employees Solve Customer Puzzles

Best Buy's mission is customer-focused and employee-executed. "Our formula is simple..." (See Best Buy's mission statement below.)

Best Buy Founder:
Best Buy was founded by Richard Schulze and his business partner in 1966. The first store opened in St. Paul, MN as the Sound of Music.

Best Buy Headquarters:
Richfield, MN is currently the site of the Best Buy headquarters.

Best Buy Mission / Vision Statement:
Although not officially labeled a "mission statement, the Best Buy corporate website declares this to investors and employees:
"Our formula is simple: we’re a growth company focused on better solving the unmet needs of our customers—and we rely on our employees to solve those puzzles. Thanks for stopping."

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Google Mission Statement - Officially About Information, Unofficially About Evil

Google has both an official and an (officially) unofficial company mission statement. Officially the Google Inc. mission is all about information. Unofficially, it’s all about evil. (See the Google, Inc. mission and vision below.)

Google Inc. Founders Facts and Trivia:
Although it is difficult for millions of people to remember what life was like without Google, the history of the Internet information services company only goes back to 1996 when founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin were graduate students at Stanford, and began working on a search engine together which they called “BackRub.” The name of the search engine was changed to “Google” in 1997, a name that was inspired by the mathematical term “googol,” which means the number one followed by 100 zeroes, which represented the infinite amount of information Page and Brin intended to organize.
Google made its first $100,000 a month before there was an official company. Google filed its official incorporation papers on September 4, 1998.

Google Inc. Headquarters:
The first Google headquarters were located in a garage in Menlo Park, California. A staff of eight moved to Google’s first commercial office space in Palo Alto in 1999. The corporation headquarters of Google Inc. are not located in Mountain View, California and the campus is referred to as the Googleplex. Additionally, as of 2012, there were more than 70 international Google offices" located in more than 40 countries.

Google Inc. Mission and Beliefs:
The official mission statement of Google Inc. is just the kind of corporate mission statement that you would expect from an Internet services company like Google...

"Google's mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful."

An (official) unofficial mission statement for Google was included in the company’s 2004 IPO prospectus, backed up by the explanation, "We believe strongly that in the long term, we will be better served — as shareholders and in all other ways — by a company that does good things for the world even if we forgo some short-term gains.” The (official) unofficial mission statement of Google is...

”Don’t Be Evil."

Founder Larry Page had this to say about the unofficial Google mission... "We have a mantra: don't be evil, which is to do the best things we know how for our users, for our customers, for everyone. So I think if we were known for that, it would be a wonderful thing.”

In addition to its mission statement, Google’s founders crafted a document in the early years of the company’s existence which outlines the beliefs of the founders. These beliefs are referred to as “Ten Things We Know to Be True,” and they are still embraced by the founders and the Google employees today. These Google Beliefs are:

  • Focus on the user and all else will follow. - Since the beginning, we’ve focused on providing the best user experience possible....
  • It’s best to do one thing really, really well. - We do search....
  • Fast is better than slow. - We know your time is valuable, so when you’re seeking an answer on the web you want it right away–and we aim to please.
  • Democracy on the web works. - Google search works because it relies on the millions of individuals posting links on websites to help determine which other sites offer content of value.
  • You don’t need to be at your desk to need an answer. - The world is increasingly mobile: people want access to information wherever they are, whenever they need it...
  • You can make money without doing evil.
  • There’s always more information out there. - Once we’d indexed more of the HTML pages on the Internet than any other search service, our engineers turned their attention to information that was not as readily accessible...
  • The need for information crosses all borders. - Our company was founded in California, but our mission is to facilitate access to information for the entire world, and in every language....
  • You can be serious without a suit. - Our founders built Google around the idea that work should be challenging, and the challenge should be fun...
  • Great just isn’t good enough. - We see being great at something as a starting point, not an endpoint..."
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eBay Corporate Mission Statement - Global, Social, Entrepreneurial & Virtual

The corporate mission statement of eBay is a vision of global, social, and entrepreneurial trading that is enabled by eBay's Internet e-commerce systems and services. (See the eBay corporate mission, values, and brand identity below.)

eBay Internet Marketplace Founders Facts and Trivia:
The founder of eBay, Pierre Omidyar claims that first code that he wrote for what he thought could become a virtual global marketplace was an "experiment." But after he sold the first product over Labor Day weekend in 1995 - a broken laser pointer which sold for $14.83 - online using that code, his experiment became an e-commerce website that would eventually grow to be the world's largest Internet auction platform.

But being the world's largest auction marketplace wasn't enough for the visionaries that have led eBay since 1995. The portfolio of virtual businesses which eBay owns and operates in order to enable entrepreneurship in a global virtual marketplace include PayPal, shopping.com, StubHub, and BillMeLater.
eBay Internet Marketplace World Headquarters:
The real world headquarters for the virtual business operations of the eBay corporation are located in San Jose, California.
The Mission Statement, Vision, Values, and Brand Identity of eBay, Inc.:
The mission statement of the eBay corporation clearly defines the vision of what eBay has and will continue to create for buyers and sellers connected in the virtual world:
”At eBay, our mission is to provide a global online marketplace where practically anyone can trade practically anything, enabling economic opportunity around the world.”

To more clearly define the "how" of eBay's business, eBay has fashioned "Who We Are" statements, which are really brand identity statements, even though they may not be officially labeled that by eBay's leaders. Here's what eBay ha to say about "Who We Are”:
"Global Commerce Leadership
We provide a robust platform where merchants of all sizes can compete and win.
Mobile
We pioneer new ways for consumers to shop and pay from any connected device
Innovation
We drive technology advancements that will deliver the next generation of commerce
Consumer Experience
We empower consumers to buy and sell anything, anytime, anywhere"
 

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Intel Mission Statement - A Relentless Mission to Be Essential in Work and Live

The mission of the Intel technology company is about the relentless pursuit to continue to be an essential part of people’s lives and work. (See the Intel mission and values below.)

Intel Founders Facts and Trivia:
Intel was founded in 1968 by Bob Noyce and Gordon Moore who both had previously worked for Fairchild Semiconductor. They named their company NM Electronics, and purchased the right to use the name “Intel” from Intelco later that year. The company’s first product, the 3101 Schottky bipolar random access memory (RAM), was produced in 1969. The Intel corporation became a publicly traded company in 1971.

Intel Corporate Headquarters:
The headquarters of Intel corporation are located in the same city where their first office was opened - in Santa Clara, California.

Intel’s Mission, Values and Objectives:
Instead of focusing on its technologies, the Intel corporate mission statement focuses instead on the people who use its technology products. The Intel company mission statement is:

"Delight our customers, employees, and shareholders by relentlessly delivering the platform and technology advancements that become essential to the way we work and live."

To more specifically define its activities, Intel provides its employees with Objectives, which outline what the Intel company will do to continue to be “essential." The Intel Objectives are:

  • "Extend our silicon technology and manufacturing leadership
  • Deliver unrivaled microprocessors and platforms
  • Grow profitability worldwide
  • Excel in customer orientation"

One more set of guidelines provides Intel employees with the Values that define how Intel employees do their jobs and make their decisions. The Intel Values are:

  • ”Customer orientation
  • Results orientation
  • Risk taking
  • Great place to work
  • Quality
  • Discipline"
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AT&T Mission Statement - Connection, Solutions, Innovation and Doing It Better

The corporate mission statement and vision of AT&T is all about connection, solutions, innovation, and doing all of it better than any other telecommunications, wireless, or entertainment company. (See the AT&T mission and vision below.)

AT&T Founders Facts and Trivia:
AT&T has its roots in the invention of the device that would change the communications history of modern man. After Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in 1876, his father-in-law, Gardiner Greene Hubbard, created the Bell Telephone Company and the New England Telephone and Telegraph Company. The Bell System became the monopoly for telephone communications in the U.S.

In 1885 the American Telephone and Telegraph Company was formed as a subsidiary company to build and operate a long-distance network. The first long distance calling capability was established between New York and Philadelphia and the call capacity was originally just one long distance phone call at a time. The name of the American Telephone and Telegraph Company wasn’t officially changed to AT&T Corp. until 1994.

In 1913 AT&T became a government-sanctioned monopoly. In 1982, an anti-trust lawsuit forced AT&T to divest itself of the Bell System for local calls. Twenty-three years later, that divested local telecommunications company SBC Communications acquired AT&T Corp., and long-distance and local telephone service was once again delivered by one company - AT&T.

As of 2012, there are more than 16,000 AT&T retail outlets including more than 2,200 company-owned and operated stores, along with retail kiosks, authorized retail dealers, and third party retail locations.

AT&T Headquarters:
AT&T corporate headquarters are located in Dallas, Texas.

AT&T Mission Statement, Vision, and Values:
The corporate mission statement of AT&T is...

"Today, our mission is to connect people with their world, everywhere they live and work, and do it better than anyone else. We're fulfilling this vision by creating new solutions for consumers and businesses and by driving innovation in the communications and entertainment industry."

In order to “do it better,” AT&T provides its employees with four Values that assist them in setting priorities and making decisions. The AT&T Values are:

  • Deliver the future first
  • Build strong customer relationships
  • Unleash our human capabilities
  • Operate with integrity and trust


Additionally, the research and development organization - AT&T Labs - has its own mission and vision which guides the people responsible for keeping AT&T on the leading edge of communications and entertainment with product and service innovations. The mission and vision of AT&T Labe is:

Our Mission
Our mission is to exploit technical innovations for the benefit of AT&T and its customers by implementing next-generation technologies and network advancements in AT&T's services and operations.

Our Vision
The AT&T global network was born of the ingenuity of AT&T Labs networking specialists who made disparate systems work together. Being the world's fastest and most reliable global network, our network is the standard against which all others are measured. To maintain our leadership in this arena, we focus on the future and aggressively pursue innovations. Our vision is to design and create in this decade the new global network, processes, and service platforms that maximize automation, allowing for a reallocation of human resources to more complex and productive work."

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Microsoft Mission Statement - Big and Vague Creates Hit and Miss Ups and Downs

The Microsoft vision is an example of how a company mission statement that is big and vague can produce results that are hit and miss. To. (See the Microsoft corporate mission and values below.)

Microsoft Founders Facts and Trivia:
The Microsoft Company has its roots back in 1975 when Bill Gates and his partner Paul Allen sold their first computer software called Altair BASIC to MITS Creative Electronics Company in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Gates was 19 years old and Allen was 22. The first year’s revenue for Gates and Allen was about $16,000.
The Microsoft name was first used in 1976 and the company was first incorporated in 1981.

Microsoft Company Headquarters:
Microsoft corporate headquarters are located in Redmond, Washington.

Microsoft Corporate Mission Statement and Values:
The Microsoft values do provide more definition about what’s important, but it is clear that Microsoft’s biggest failures are at least partially a result of leaders who didn’t value the company’s values. The Microsoft Values are...

”As a company, and as individuals, we value integrity, honesty, openness, personal excellence, constructive self-criticism, continual self-improvement, and mutual respect. We are committed to our customers and partners and have a passion for technology. We take on big challenges and pride ourselves on seeing them through. We hold ourselves accountable to our customers, shareholders, partners, and employees by honoring our commitments, providing results, and striving for the highest quality."

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GameStop Mission Statement - A Statement That Lacks Both Mission and Vision

The mission statement of GameStop is referred to as a vision statement but is worded in such a way that it lacks both a mission and a vision. (See the GameStop mission statement below.)

GameStop Founders Facts and Trivia:
GameStop began as Babbage's, which was a small software retailer founded in 1984 in Dallas, Texas. After a series of mergers with Funco, Inc. and Barnes & Noble, GameStop became its own company and an independent chain of retail stores in the year 2000.

Corporate Headquarters of GameStop:
The GameStop headquarters are located in Grapevine, Texas.

The Mission Statement of GameStop:
GameStop refers to its mission statement as a vision statement. However, when considering the purpose of a company or corporate mission statement, the wording of the GameStop vision statement lacks both a mission and a vision, except in its reference to the gaming industry. According to its website, the GameStop vision statement is:

"Together, we hold a passion for gaming, a commitment to our industry and a disciplined business perspective to continuously drive value with shareholders, customers, vendors and employees."​

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Blockbuster Company Mission Statement - Media Entertainment, Local Convenience

Blockbuster's challenges might be found in a mission statement that lags behind customer needs and lacks vision. (See Blockbuster's mission statement below.)

Blockbuster Founders:
After David Cook sold his oil and gas software business, he used his technology know-how to open a video rental business in 1985 and Blockbuster Video was born.

Blockbuster Headquarters:
Blockbuster's headquarters are located in the city of the chain's first store, Dallas, Texas.

Blockbuster's Mission Statement:
It is evident that Blockbuster's mission statement has changed and evolved in response to the challenges of its competitive environment. According to the Blockbuster website, the company's mission statement is:

"Our corporate mission is to provide our customers with the most convenient access to media entertainment, including movie and game entertainment delivered through multiple distribution channels such as our stores, by-mail, vending and kiosks, online and at home. We believe Blockbuster offers customers a value-prices entertainment experience, combining the broad product depth of a specialty retailer with local neighborhood convenience."

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Radio Shack Mission Statement Is Clear & Simple, Customers and Electronics

The mission statement of Radio Shack is clear and simple and focuses on the core of its retail business - electronics and customers (See the Radio Shack mission statement below.)

Radio Shack Founders Facts and Trivia:
As its name suggests, the original Radio Shack store was opened in 1921 by brothers Theodore and Milton Deutschmann in Boston, Massachusetts to provide products and parts to ham radio operators.

Corporate Headquarters of Radio Shack:
The corporate headquarters of Radio Shack are located in Fort Worth, Texas.

The Mission Statement of Radio Shack:
The mission statement of Radio Shack focuses on the core of its retail business and acknowledges that the delivery of its employees is an essential part of achieving its mission. The mission statement of Radio Shack is:

"Through convenient and comfortable neighborhood stores, knowledgeable sales associates help customers get the most out of their technology products."

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Office Depot Mission Statement - A Global Purpose and Values Build the Brand

Office Depot's mission statement is combined with its corporate values, which clearly define the expectations about how each Office Depot employee will conduct Office Depot business every day. (See the Office Depot mission statement below.)

Office Depot Founders Facts and Trivia:
The first Office Depot store was opened in Fort Lauderdale, Florida in October 1986 by founders and partners Pat Sher, Jack Kopkin and Stephen Dougherty.

Corporate Headquarters for Office Depot:
The headquarters of Office Depot are located in Boca Raton, Florida, not far from where the first Office Depot store location.

The Mission Statement of Office Depot:
The mission statement of Office Depot is intertwined with the Office Depot corporate values. This provides Office Depot employees with a big picture vision and some specific guidelines about how to conduct Office Depot business on a daily basis as well. According to the Office Depot website, the Office Depot mission statement and corporate values are:

Delivering Winning Solutions That Inspire Worklife

- Delivering
Our actions speak louder than words. We are accountable: doing what we say we're going to do efficiently and on time.

- Winning
We act with confidence. We're proud to win. We push ourselves to greater heights. And we don't settle for less than being the best.

- Solutions
We listen to our customers and understand their needs. We offer products, services and innovative thinking that enable our customers to achieve success.

- Inspire
Our inspiration is contagious and enables us to unleash creativity to help people achieve their goals. Our motivation and enthusiasm inspire others to succeed.

- Worklife™
We combine our energy for work with our passion for life. We are creating a fuller, more enriched lifestyle. We share the desire to maximize human potential to achieve personal dreams.”

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Circuit City Mission Statement - Lost Vision Led to Bankruptcy and Liquidation

Circuit City's 2009 bankruptcy and liquidation is a case study of retail demise after a mission statement dies. (See Circuit City's mission statement below.)

Circuit City Founders:
Circuit City was founded in 1949, and went bankrupt and liquidated in 2009. The Circuit City brand and logo were purchased by Systemax Inc., and currently, consumer electronics are being sold through a Circuit City-branded e-commerce website.

Circuit City Headquarters:
The Systemax, Inc. headquarters are in Port Washington, NY.

Circuit City Mission / Vision Statement:
On its corporate website before the company went bankrupt and liquidated all of its brick-and-mortar stores, Circuit City outlined the mission statement that purportedly guided the company's decisions and actions.

"To make sure that we are all working in the same direction, each of us must live and breathe Circuit City's values and use them as a guidepost for our actions and decisions."

To further clarify that mission to all of its employees, the company outlined its corporate values in detail...
"Respect Our Associates are our greatest assets. We expect every Associate to demonstrate that they respect and value others for their efforts, their knowledge, and the diversity that they bring.

Teach
We are a product of our experiences and those around us can benefit from our lessons learned. Pass on to others what you value and learn.

Engage
What's in it for you? We foster an environment of engagement where associates are invested and involved in the future of the company. What you do matters.

Simplify
Use your fresh perspective to look, ask, and learn. We never stop looking at the way we approach our business and ways to simplify processes.

Maintain the highest integrity
We expect all of our associates to maintain the highest of ethical standards. Our integrity must never be compromised. Integrity is the foundation onto which all other values are placed."

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OfficeMax Mission Statement - Too Simple to Inspire, But Defined by Core Values

The mission statement of OfficeMax office is so simple that it neither provides guidance nor inspiration, but is further defined by the OfficeMax Core Values and employee responsibilities. (See the OfficeMax mission statement below.)

OfficeMax Office Supply Stores Founders Facts and Trivia:
OfficeMax, Inc. was founded back in 1931 when it operated as the Boise Payette Lumber Company. After Boise Cascade Corporation acquired the company on December 9, 2003, the name was changed to OfficeMax, Inc.

OfficeMax Office Supply Headquarters:
The headquarters of OfficeMax is located in Naperville, Illinois.

The Mission Statement of OfficeMax Office Supply Stores:
In its simplicity, the OfficeMax mission statement fails to give either guidance or inspiration, two important things that a good company mission statement are supposed to do. The simple OfficeMax mission statement is ...

“We help our customers do their best work.” The hows of the OfficeMax mission statement are more clearly defined, however, by The OfficeMax Core Values...

  • "Integrity & Accountability.
  • Think Company & Customer First.
  • Teamwork & Trust.
  • Focus & Discipline.
  • Sense of Urgency."

And to provide further clarity and guidance, employees are provided with specific responsibilities which will bring the mission statement to life in their everyday tasks. For example, the how-tos of achieving the OfficeMax mission statement for the Director of Retail Sales includes...

  • "Develop and influence through relationship building
  • Analyze categories and prioritize sales opportunities
  • Develop strategies to drive profitable sales
  • Simplify communication and execution
  • Provide feedback to drive continued growth"