Because our department needs are so varied, Lakeshore invites talent from a wide range of disciplines—from product development and graphic design to information systems and accounting. There’s a place for you in one of our many varied departments.

Accounting
More than just number crunchers, our Accounting Department is responsible for the preparation and analysis of financial statements, tax preparation and internal audit, accounts payable, store audit, and cash application.

Art
Home to a variety of creative types, our Art departments include product artists who design new products and packaging for Lakeshore-original items, as well as graphic designers and photographers who are responsible for catalog layout, retail signage, special sale brochures, and more.

Circulation
Getting millions of catalogs and brochures into our customers’ hands every year is no small task. By developing strong relationships with many of the nation’s leading printers and the postal service, Circulation has made Lakeshore a welcome presence in schools and homes for decades.

Customer Service
We can’t say it enough: Customer satisfaction is our number-one priority. As such, our Customer Service representatives are multifaceted individuals who go out of their way to provide a peak experience for every customer.

Customized Learning Solutions
In addition to the materials you find online, in our catalogs and in our stores, we publish and customize educational products for a variety of different audiences…from child development centers and elementary schools to special education programs. Our Solutions team works hand-in-hand with customers around the country to provide them with exactly the materials they need!

Editorial
These are the word people. Our Editorial Department composes all catalog and website copy, along with any written materials in our products, including product guides, student readers, big books, leveled reading passages, game cards—and even the copy that you’re reading right now.

Human Resources
These people put the “human” in human resources. In addition to recruiting and hiring the best employees to meet our needs, the HR department provides a number of services throughout the company, including benefits administration, employee relations, and development of the policies and procedures that make Lakeshore run smoothly. Essentially, HR’s goal is to make life easier for everybody who works here.

Information Systems
What’s your pleasure: hardware or software? Our I.S. departments handle it all. Here, the hardware people are part of I.S. Operations, and the software people, I.S. Development. Hardware includes servers and workstations (Linux, Windows, and HP-UX), databases (SQL 2005, MySql, and Data Warehouse), and application servers (Web logic). Software applications are programmed using the .NET suite (AJAX, ASP, C#, and VB), Java (J2EE and SOAP), C++, and XML/CXML.

Marketing
Telling the world about Lakeshore and all we have to offer is a full-time job. This creative group works tirelessly to get the word out to teachers and parents—through innovative advertising, conferences, retail events, online promotions, brochures, social & mobile marketing efforts and more!

Merchandising
Our buyers and merchandisers shop the international marketplace to find the world’s best educational products to buy and sell. Ultimately, they enrich our catalogs and retail stores with all the outstanding products they find outside the walls of Lakeshore.

Operations
In short, these are the people who run the show. They’re the chief problem solvers, employee trainers, building maintainers, retrievers of lost vending machine coins, purveyors of company fun…whatever you want to call our Operations Department employees, they ensure the smooth operation of Lakeshore’s processes and procedures—from the inside out.

Order Department
Every order we receive—by phone, fax, mail or online—is processed by this amazing team. Not only do they feed the Warehouse & Distribution Center with all of its work, but the Order Department is also the true voice of Lakeshore, providing customers with a great shopping experience…and detailed product knowledge!

Purchasing
Keeping our products in stock is no easy task, but our Purchasing Department tackles it successfully every day—taking care of all the ordering and management of Lakeshore’s inventory.

Quality Assurance
Safety, durability and function—these are words that Quality Assurance lives by. As anyone in the department will tell you, our expectations regarding the materials we offer are exceptionally high. Working together with our product developers, materials vendors, and independent laboratories, this group helps to set the tone for the entire company.

Research & Development
With classroom experience ranging from preschool to elementary grades, our product developers are all former educators—making them highly qualified to determine the needs of today’s teachers. Product developers are responsible for generating ideas for exclusive Lakeshore products, then developing those ideas into viable products that actually work in the classroom. In the process, they work with vendors in a variety of manufacturing modalities, from printed materials to classroom furniture—and manage the production of each product from start to finish.

Retail
Our network of retail stores is big and getting bigger, and our Retail Department has its hands in all stages of development—including real estate, recruiting and training, marketing, promotions, visual merchandising, internal and field operations, and purchasing and product distribution.

Sales
Our Sales Department consists of a nationwide sales force as well as inside sales partners who support the team out in the field. The very best in the business, these two groups use their considerable expertise to provide our customers with unparalleled service.

Traffic
Some people get out of traffic when they get to work, but not our Traffic Department—and you have to appreciate them for it. They monitor all incoming and outgoing freight, servicing the Warehouse as well as Customer Service, Retail, Research & Development, and other departments at Lakeshore.

Vendor Relations
Dealing with vendors is second nature to our Vendor Relations Department. They negotiate pricing for all of Lakeshore’s products, maintaining profit margins, sourcing new products, and establishing new business relationships around the world.

Warehouse & Distribution
If you’re in Warehouse & Distribution at Lakeshore, you think big—given the more than 1 million square feet of warehouse space. These dedicated individuals are responsible for all incoming and outgoing shipments, including customer and store orders and customer returns—as well as storage management, data entry, and warehouse maintenance.

Web Development
What you see on our websites is what you get from our Web Department—and what you get is an easy-to-navigate, user-friendly platform in which customers can shop, obtain free classroom resources, design their classrooms, and get all their questions answered. The department includes programmers, designers, and marketers who maintain our websites and develop special features and promotions for our online customers.