Community and Education

Community Outreach Reporting Structure

While many functions and departments help OfficeMax engage with its communities, the community outreach activities of our U.S. Operations are guided primarily by two functions: Community Affairs and External Relations. In addition, there are many other internal partners that assist the company’s effort to support K-12 educators. Our MaxPerks Rewards for Teachers program, for example, is administered by our Marketing department.

Our Community Affairs function was integrated into the Office of Diversity and Inclusion in 2006, from Human Resources. This change underscores our commitment to diversity. While education is our primary focus, diversity considerations underpin the choice of educational bodies with which we will engage. The Community Affairs department is also responsible for planning and researching opportunities to establish ties with organizations that represent diverse communities.

The director of Community Affairs reports to the chief diversity officer/vice president Diversity and Inclusion, who reports directly to the CEO. As part of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, the mission of Community Affairs is to position OfficeMax as a leading corporate citizen by engaging associates and developing strategic partnerships to achieve a positive social and business impact.

The senior director of External Relations reports to the senior vice president, Marketing, who reports to the chief Merchandising officer, who reports to the COO, who reports to the CEO. As part of the Marketing department, the External Relations group is responsible for the company’s cause-marketing initiatives. Both groups collaborate heavily in order to help the company in supporting teachers, as was the case with A Day Made Better.

Our subsidiaries in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and our majority-owned joint venture in Mexico, manage their own charitable and community outreach activities, much of which supports the company’s emphasis on education.