Business Strategic Initiative in Relation to Business Finance

Lowes’ Strategic Initiative Paper

Learning Team A

BUS FIN 370

October 24, 2011

Ms. Diane Rector-Washington

Lowe’s Strategic Initiative

Learning team alpha will describe the relationship between strategic and financial planning.

Lowe’s Strategic Planning Initiative

In the year of 2010, Lowes took the first step to transform itself from a home improvement retailer to a home improvement company. As Robert Niblock, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, explains in his 2010 letter to shareholders, Lowe’s would move from being a successful home improvement retailer just stocking shelves with inventory customers want and providing great service. He wrote that a home improvement company stretches beyond the confines of brick and mortar stores to provide inspiration, products and support to customers whenever and wherever they choose, often still in their local store – or perhaps through the Lowes contact center, on the Web, or with a Lowes representative in their home or at their job site.

Lowe’s Annual Report

According to Lowe’s’ annual report one of the several initiatives launched in early 2011 entitled, Support a Homeowner with a Community of Expertise This initiative launched a tool for all product categories on Lowes.com that gave customers the ability to ask product-specific questions and receive answers from a variety of sources, including the Lowes.com community, and Lowe’s employees or product vendors. With these systems, their employees can provide more in-depth advice in the store or wherever the customer needs, allowing customers to more easily complete their home improvement projects (Lowe’s, 2010).

Initiative Sales Impact

With the system Lowe’s has put in place, employees have the capability to tap several resources to gain more knowledge and understanding of consumers’ needs. The concept of being able to provide a more in-depth level of customer service allows the consumers to have a...