Company: CarMax, Inc. Richmond, VA
Company Description: CarMax, Inc. is the nation’s largest retailer of used vehicles. We offer consumers a no-hassle, no-haggle, easy and fun car-buying experience where customers can choose from a broad selection of nearly every make and model of vehicle on one lot and more than 20,000 vehicles online.
Nomination Category: Company, Office & Product Awards Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Best Overall Company

Nomination Title: CarMax - A Culture of Integrity

1. Tell the story about what this nominated company achieved in the past year (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

CarMax, Inc. is the only retail business in the automotive industry to give
consumers what they want: great quality cars at great prices with exceptional
customer service. It’s our mission, literally. We addressed the inherent
conflicts in incentives and motivation and worked to eliminate them to become
a company that both our associates and customers are proud to support. With
fairness and transparency that our associates embrace at every level,
consumers really can see the difference between CarMax and some traditional
dealers. It goes back to the fundamental principle of integrity; it’s in
everything we do at CarMax.

Our culture of integrity sets us apart from our competition and it hasn’t gone
unnoticed. CarMax has received recognition from national publications that
set the bar high for excellence. In 2006 alone, CarMax was named one of
Fortune Magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For,” in 2006, 2005 and again
in 2007. CarMax was also honored as the No. 1 “Most Admired Company in
Automotive Retailing Services,” in 2006 by Fortune Magazine, up from No. 4 in
2005. Forbes Magazine also named CarMax as a “Best Managed Company” in 2006.

Beyond national recognition, CarMax won several local Better Business Bureau
Torch Awards for Ethics. In 2006, CarMax won the Torch Award in Atlanta,
Georgia; Greenville, South Carolina; Greensboro, North Carolina; and
Indianapolis, Indiana. CarMax also received the Honorable Mention (second
place) in 2006 for the International BBB Torch Awards for Business Ethics.
Torch Award winners have demonstrated their commitment to ethical business
practices in all aspects of their relationship with customers, associates,
vendors, shareholders, and within the community.

CarMax’s success is directly tied to its associates who have gone above and beyond to create a culture focused on being ethical, trustworthy, and respectful of customers. To demonstrate the commitment CarMax has to its
12,000+ associates nationwide, the company has introduced new benefits in 2006 such as an associate discount program on hundreds of products and services, an expanded associate car discount program that includes part-time and retired associates, and a restricted stock grant program. Associate development is among the top priorities for CarMax and essential to recruit, develop and retain the best associates. Almost every one of the12,000-plus associates completed at least 10 online or classroom courses in the past 12 months, totaling 82 hours of training. Nearly all training is proprietary — developed and delivered by an in-house training department. New training programs launched in 2006 included Culture of Integrity compliance and ethics training and Treating Associates with Respect diversity training. 

Although CarMax is an automotive retailer — an industry not widely known for
encouraging positive work-life practices — the company offers a variety of
programs and policies that help to promote work-life balance for associates
such as Flexible Work Arrangements, Prenatal Educational Classes, an Employee
Assistance Program, and Adoption Assistance. These practices, in addition to
the external honors we receive, continually reinforce our commitment to
integrity and separate CarMax from the competition.

2. List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:

http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=RTD/MG
Article/RTD_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1149193543668

http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=RTD/MG
Article/RTD_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1149192554288

http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=RTD/MG
Article/RTD_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1149192282448

http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=RTD/MG
Article/RTD_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1149192271056

http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=
/www/story/09-18-2006/0004434813&EDATE=

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/bestcompanies/snapshots/3717.html

http://www.kiplinger.com/magazine/archives/2006/12/carmax.html

http://media.carmax.com/pr/carmax/info/awards.asp

http://media.carmax.com/pr/carmax/info/100Best2007.asp

http://media.carmax.com/pr/carmax/info/BestinBirmingham.asp

http://media.carmax.com/pr/carmax/info/greenvilletorchaward.asp

http://media.carmax.com/pr/carmax/info/greensborotorchaward.asp

http://media.carmax.com/pr/carmax/info/ColumbiaBBBTorch.asp

http://media.carmax.com/pr/carmax/info/AtlantaBBB.asp

http://media.carmax.com/pr/carmax/info/indybbb.asp

3. Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the leader of this nominated company:

Thomas J. Folliard
President and Chief Executive Officer
CarMax, Inc.

Tom joined CarMax in 1993 as a buyer and he was became the director of
purchasing in 1994. Tom was promoted to VP of merchandising in 1996, senior
VP of store operations in 2000, and executive vice president, store
operations, in 2001. In 2006, he was elected president and chief executive
officer and a member of the board of directors.

Tom was responsible for the design and development of the CarMax purchasing
process and has played a critical role in the development of the entire CarMax
store operating process. He earned a B.S. in Management from Florida Institute
of Technology.