Business Analysis: Home DepotIntroductionWhen two upper-level managers decided to leave their jobs at the small hardware store where they worked, "Handy Dandy" had a vision and decided to develop a company which was aimed at "do-it-yourself" and with that idea The Home Depot was born. As the company grew from one store to hundreds, it soon became the largest supplier of building materials and home improvement supplies in the United States. However, this was short-lived, other companies were coming around to the same idea and the market was shrinking. Planners at the time needed to develop a strategic plan for The Home Depot that would take advantage of the current business landscape, "globalization, technological change, the importance of knowledge and ideas, and collaboration beyond “ “organizational” boundaries ( Bateman and Snell, p. 6). In today's business culture, many more industries are going global. U.S. retailers are looking internationally not only for sourcing and outsourcing of products and services, but also for new markets for consumption and growth. The author of this article will describe how The Home Depot functions in the globalized world and keeps pace with the global business community through innovation and diversity. Finally, the authors will discuss how The Home Depot is going “green” with the help of today's technology. Globalization Globalization is a prevalent factor for companies that want to gain a competitive advantage over their competition. Exploiting foreign markets can be a process that can serve a company well. Home Depot is no different. In 1998, the company saw the opportunity and seized it, opening stores in Santiago, Chile, and San Juan, Puerto Rico. To avoid the obvious obstacles related to cultural and language barriers, as well as product barriers, the company entered into an alliance with a local retail chain. Prior to the opening of these stores, The Home Depot's international portfolio consisted of stores located exclusively in Canada (Johnson, 1998). The company had the foresight to realize that some obstacles would likely arise with the location of these stores and planned to partner with a local retail chain to alleviate some of the challenges. This move allowed The Home Depot to control the external factors involved in openings. While the company is making the leap into international chain stores, the percentage of its inventory made outside of the U.S. remains low.