Category: Walmart

Strategic Overview

Walmart Stores, Inc. is a global retail chain that prides in being the largest company in the industry throughout the world. Walmart is headquartered in the United States of America, but runs its stores in Europe, Asia, and South America.

The company sells a wide range of products and services, including foodstuffs, electronics, furniture, apparel, toys, video games, shoes and jewellery, books, music, as well as music and office supplies among many other products.

Among the range of services provided by the firm include financial, such as bill payment, credit cards, money transfers, and debit cards, wireless services where the company has entered into partnership with T-mobile to provide wireless phone service, and photo services such as developing and uploading digital photos through the corporate website (Walmart, 2009).

Walmart is famous worldwide for its low price market strategy that mainly seeks to offer its products and services to clients at the lowest prices compared to its competitors. The company has segmented its market into three main categories that include low, average, and high-income earners.

The firms value proposition is tied to its marketing strategy, where it promises everyday low prices, abbreviated as EVLP. Up to 33% of the US retail market is strongly under Walmarts control. Walmart pursues a differentiation strategy that has earned it an edge in terms of competitive differentiation.

This includes the provision of unique warranties, as well as brand images that make their customers believe they are receiving unique services that may not be accessed from other industry players.

Walmart is structured into four main divisions of Realty, Specialty Stores, Sams Club, and International. The divisions are headed by Senior Vice Presidents or Divisional Presidents. Several stores make up a district that is headed by Market Managers. At the stores level, each one of them is headed by a General or Store Manager.

Larger stores have Co-Managers who are directly answerable to the General/Store Manager. Other levels of management in the stores include Assistant Manager, Support Manager, and the Customer Service Manager.

Supply Chain Analysis

Key Inputs

People

Walmart sources its workforce through job advertisements and interviews that target the selection of the best individuals. The workers are trained to be equipped with appropriate skills on service delivery before being deployed to the shop floors where they meet customers and offer services to them.

Buildings

Business sites, including retail stores and warehouses that are branded with the Walmart logo are either purchased by the company or leased. The Walmart Realty is a division of the company that is charged with the responsibility of purchasing and leasing buildings occupied by Walmart. The firm chooses building assets that are strategically located within the market and undertakes its own modifications. This transforms the buildings to the intended standards set out by Walmart.

Raw materials

The raw materials acquired by Walmart are often in the form of processed products from different manufacturers and producers. These materials are sourced, although Walmart adds more value to the products by branding and repackaging them before stocking on the stores shelves.

Information

Walmart has an elaborate information communication technology that links its operations with those of its business partners. This ICT infrastructure provides information to the firm in the form of supply quantities, stock levels, and demand levels, among other forms.

Walmart analyzes the data and draws out summaries that indicate demand, supply, and distribution statistics for each product. The information also helps in drawing out sales amount and the necessary statutory payments.

Key Value Addition Processes

Human resources management

Walmart employees are entitled to comprehensive benefits, in addition to competitive wages in order to provide them with job satisfaction and limit their chances of being lured by other employers.

The firm encourages them to provide new ideas, enjoy themselves, communicate openly, and strive for excellence to ensure their service to customers is highly efficient. This, in turn, provides the workers with the right motivation to perform at their best while serving customers.

Technology Development

The technology development process enables Walmart to initiate its own technological systems for purposes of enhancing efficiency. The firm developed its own satellite, as well as radio frequency identification technologies that it uses to track its products. The technology development process ensures Walmart enjoys competitive advantage by virtue of having the ability to control and effectively plan the flow of its products.

It also pays relatively less to manage the technology, unlike its competitors who mainly acquire technology from third party developers. The company employs its own IT specialists and spends a significant amount of resources in performing researches in order to establish highly functioning IT systems.

Procurement

The procurement process at Walmart only involves the firm itself and the manufacturers. The firm does not buy products from distributors or wholesalers.

This enables it to avoid inconveniences, such as product delays and the additional costs that come with distributor channels. The products are procured only in the right quantities and shipped to the distribution centers where cross docking is done before they are supplied to the individual stores.

Flow-time Analysis

Walmart stores are fitted with Point-of-Sale systems that enable real-time data capturing immediately purchases are made. The information is relayed to the supplier who immediately manufactures a new product based on the real data that is acquired, as well as from historical records.

The merchandise is dispatched to the distribution centre or directly to the particular store to replenish the stock. This process enables Walmart to achieve competitive advantage in the sense that the supply process of the company operates in real time. Thus, there are limited chances of stock outs ever being experienced in the stores.

Logistics

Walmart owns distribution centers that are centrally placed to serve about 150 stores. The firm uses both third party supplier companies and privately owned trucks in ferrying goods to the distribution centers. This enhances the competitive advantage of the company as it increases reliability. The distribution centers undertake cross docking on the products before they are processed and shipped immediately to the stores.

No inventory is held at the distribution centers. Each of the distribution centers employ the radio frequency identification (RFID) that helps in segregating products, updating relevant information, as well as identifying pallets used by its employees through their mobile systems (Richardson, 2005).

The Role of Information Technology and e-Commerce in Serving Customers

The information technology system mainly enables efficient communication between Walmart and its suppliers. As goods are purchased from the stores shelves, the IT system through the help of the Point-of-Sale coordination tracks the movement of products indicating the specific items and the quantities available in stock.

Suppliers have their systems linked directly to Walmarts internal system through IT technology and produce and deliver products basing on how product movement is tracked at the stores.

Customers benefit from this in terms of low product costs because the firm does not hold any inventory in its stores. Additionally, while the system eliminates the need to hold inventory and thus the inventory costs it benefits customers in the sense that Walmart does not experience any stock outs.

Walmart has also introduced e-commerce services that allow its customers to buy products online. This enables customers to buy products stocked by the company without necessarily visiting any of the store locations.

It enhances convenience on the part of customers because they can do shopping even in the comfort of their offices or houses and at their own convenient time. Delivery of the goods is also organized by the company to further enhance the customers own convenience.

Key Performance Measures for Evaluating the Supply Chain

Cost of inventory

This is the cost paid by the company because of handling stock after acquisition from the manufacturers but before being sold out to the customers.

When this cost increases, it means the supply chain is less efficient while it implies that the supply chain is efficient when it is maintained to the lowest possible level. Walmarts inventory costs are the most competitive in the industry as the company maintains leadership in this front (Flexible Packaging 2012).

Consistent product stocks

Consistency in product supply and availability implies that the firms supply chain is efficiently performing. On the other hand, constant product stock outs indicate failure by the supply chain to perform efficiently. This will result in poorly timed reordering process with inaccurate figures. Walmart leads its competitors in maintaining efficient and consistent lean stock (Flexible Packaging 2012).

Diminishing customer numbers

Walmart has managed to attract and keep majority of its customers because of its ability to maintain low prices. The supply chain enables this because it has managed to maintain costs at low levels.

An inefficient supply chain will, thus, see the number of customers grow less because the company will no longer have the ability to limit costs and achieve low prices. According to Flexible Packaging (2012), Walmart has the highest number of customers in the retail industry as the company continuously maintains its everyday low price policy. This attracts more customers for the company.

Plan to Improve Operating Processes

Targets for Improvement

Distribution centers

Walmart can improve its operations even further by eliminating the distribution centers as they only add costs. Instead, the cross docking and product segregation that occurs in the distribution centers can be handled right at the manufacturers sight before the products are shipped directly to the individual stores.

This will increase speed in delivery because trucks will directly serve the stores from the suppliers locations without having to make stops at the distribution centers. This will also increase efficiency in terms of cutting costs even further because the company will no longer pay the cost of maintaining the delivery centers.

Transport

Walmart currently owns a fleet of trucks that are used for shipping goods to the stores. Although the firm also relies on outsourcers, this is done only partly as it also maintains its own trucks. An alternative practice should see Walmart fully outsource this service instead of privately owning its trucks. This will eliminate the burden to manage so many business processes on the part of the management.

With a third party fully in charge of the transportation sector, the company sets out its quality and efficiency standards that it demands from the transport company. Walmarts management, on the other hand, will fully have the opportunity to concentrate on the stores operations, thus enabling the company to achieve increased efficiency and productivity.

Technology development

Walmart is a retail company that fully concentrates on its core retail business. Dividing the managements attention by formulating and running a technology development department is not a good move for the company. The firm should, instead, outsource the technology development role to a fully established IT firm to enhance its services.

This will see it eliminate the need to employ many IT experts who are expensive to maintain. It may only need to keep a lean internal IT team of about three people who will liaise with the outsourced IT firm and offer them their suggestions and ideas about how to improve the firm.

Apart from quality service delivery, this move will also see Walmart reduce its operation costs further because of the highly efficient IT system that it will have at its disposal.

Results of Performance Improvements Regarding Product or Service

How product and service will be improved because of these changes to the supply chain activities

Distribution centers

Although Walmart does not hold any inventory, the existence of its numerous distribution centers increases the operation costs to some degree. This means the firm has to pay huge amounts in leasing or purchasing buildings that it later on transforms into the distribution centers. Additionally, other expenses such as security and fixture costs continuously inflate the overall operation costs of the firm.

However, Walmart will achieve leaner costs in terms of operations by abolishing the existence of these delivery centers and instead performing product segregation and cross docking at the manufacturers sites. The saved expenditure can in turn be passed to the customers in form of even much lower product prices. It will also take less time to ship products from the manufacturer to the stores.

Transport

Maintaining a fleet of privately owned trucks means that Walmart must have an internal division that manages transportation. This department will require an additional number of employees, including department managers as well as drivers who will be in charge of the trucks.

The divided management attention will have an effect on the overall company management because the trucks will have to be maintained in good mechanical condition always and purchase of spare parts will also have to be done constantly. This is a challenge to Walmarts management given that the firms core business practice involves running a retail business.

However, contracting an independent transport company will increase service performance and delivery in the firm because the firm will have to be a specialist in the industry. This means their core business activity is transportation and they have all the necessary measures in place to ensure a highly efficient transportation service.

The company will have special carriers that limit product damages during transportation to almost zero. In essence, the quality of the products will be assured even where the transportation distance to be covered will be long.

Technology development

Technology is a very demanding sector that involves employing highly trained experts, as well as acquiring very expensive equipments and gadgets. It is also time consuming as experts have to take their time doing extensive research in order to determine an effective new technology that may accurately perform the needs of Walmart. This is difficult to achieve if Walmart maintains this as part of its internal business.

It will also end up being expensive because technology development is not a core retail business. However, outsourcing the service to an expert third party firm will increase efficiency in terms of more reliable technology at less cost.

When this is applied to the firm, it will provide Walmart with even greater ability to lower costs as well as increase reliability in integrating business activities between Walmart and its main partners.

How the specific features or attributes of the products and service will be altered

Applying these changes in the supply chain will mainly see Walmart maintain prices of its products at competitively lower prices. The changes target cost reduction, thus these benefits will be passed to the customers in form of low prices.

Why these specific changes are important to customers

Customers are continuously seeking for products with lower prices, but with uncompromised quality. The cost of living is becoming expensive as prices of commodities continue to rise every day. This is affecting consumers because they are forced to do without some basic commodities as prices grow out of their reach.

How these changes enhance the value proposition and competitive position of the company

Walmarts value proposition is to maintain low prices every day. Thus, with these changes seeking to lower prices even further, the company will succeed greatly in enhancing its position as the industrys leader in terms of offering low commodity prices.

The specific lasting capabilities and improvement that I am introducing in Walmart through these changes

The company will continuously enjoy the advantage of initiating new practices that aim at lowering prices once these changes are effectively implemented at Walmart. Walmart will have immense new ideas that will be continuously offered to the firm to enable it constantly change operations that fail to improve on the operation cost, while adopting others that are leaner.

How scope and impact of the improvements will be measured: My key performance indicators

The main measure of success in terms of scope and impact of the new changes that I will use will be the overall cost amount. If the company will manage to post even lower operation costs with an improved business scale, it will be a good indicator that the changes adopted in the supply chain will have yielded positive results.

Assessment of the Impact on Human Resources

The HR roles and responsibilities in Walmart have been properly defined and aligned to accommodate these new changes. The two departments of IT development and transport that will be affected by these changes will have to either lay off their staffs or redeploy them to other departments currently experiencing under performance due to minimal staff size.

The purchase and supplies department will mainly take the leading responsibility of looking for highly ranked third party companies to undertake the outsourced services. The purchase and supplies department will have the full authority of directly managing the outsourcer companies because it has individuals with the right qualities and skills to effectively handle the necessary requirements.

Customers will be motivated by these new changes because efficiency in service delivery and low prices will be achieved. Suppliers will have reliable systems that relay accurate and reliable data concerning stock movements at Walmart. Employees can enjoy increased salaries and benefits because more customers will translate into increased.

References

Flexible packaging. (2012). Walmart continues as a leader in sustainability. Flexible Packaging, 14(5), 10-10.

Richardson, L. (2005). Wal-Mart: Benefits will be shared. SN: Supermarket News, 53(10), 6-63.

Walmart. (2009). Walmart. Drug Store News, 31(4A), 23-50.

Relationship between Job Satisfaction, Job motivation and Job Performance

is a set of energetic forces that develop both within and beyond someone, to influence work-related behaviour, and to determine its form, direction, intensity and time (Doyle, 2012). Job satisfaction is how an individual is contented with his or her job. Job performance is an individual output in terms of quality and quantity in a particular job (Doyle, 2012).

This discussion explores a problem of employee motivation at Wal-Mart retail chain in China. It also connects the issues with Herzbergs Motivation Theory (Doyle, 2012). Basing on Herzberg theory of motivation, the paper explores the relationship between Job performance, Job Satisfaction, Job motivation and Job Performance using Wal-Mart practices as a case in point.

Motivation Theory

According to Herzberg motivation theory the motivating factors comprise recognition, achievement, form of work done, accountability, growth and advancement (Doyle, 2012).

As Herzberg indicated, the sanitation aspects of his model include the rules and administrational aspects, life of the employees, favourable conditions at work, closeness or connection with the administration, payment matters, and work to work relationship (Doyle, 2012).

As emphasized by Herzberg, motivating factors are all company aspects that aim at helping employees meet their needs (Doyle, 2012). When both sanitation or hygiene and motivating factors are not handled well, employees are not likely to be motivated and as such their performance will not be to the maximum.

Employee motivation issue in Wal-Mart China

At the turn of 21^st century, Wal-Mart became one of the largest retail chains worldwide. However, in order to reduce operating expenses and maintain prices to a minimum, Wal-Mart pays very low salaries, offers minimal benefits to its workforce, and applies punitive policies that do not support employees at all (Chen, 2013).

For instance, in China, the corporation replicated its corporate practice of low-cost, high -bulk model to a high-cost Chinese market. This practice has led to a conflict, and as the result the company is facing many challenges relating to labour, salaries and wages (Chen, 2013). That is, the companys mission is to meet the expectations of its clients and not employees.

The company pays its employees very low salaries and does not recognize the leadership of workers union (Chen, 2013). Based on this practice, there is inequality, tensions around labour and workplace rights (Chen, 2013).

The labour activist called Wang was sacked for agitating for the rights of his fellow workers, and lately he was leading demonstrations with the aim of forcing the Wal-Mart management not to cut pay of the employees. So far, the company has recorded many demonstrations by workers demanding for better pay, a good compensations scheme and good working conditions (Chen, 2013).

In Wal-Mart, workers are not encouraged or satisfied by the amount of money paid to them. The organization demands a lot from workers yet it pays minimum salaries. These low salaries and wages have direct impact on the ability of employees of Wal-Mart to satisfy their needs (Rosenfeld, 2012). The company majorly emphasizes just one outcome of business, while overlooking other performance aspects.

The organization remunerates employees poorly in order to record higher returns. Based on the fact that Wal-Mart has failed to meet the needs of its staff, and certainly has de-motivated them, the employees resort to such anti-work behaviours like prolonged strikes, late-coming, non-attendance and inability to meet company deadlines (Doyle, 2012). Further, they have been displaying open frustration aspects that negatively contribute to the credibility and performance of the organization.

Herzberg categorized motivational and hygiene aspects as the most significant motivational theory, particularly, when there is uncertainty and challenges can occur (Rosenfeld, 2012). In most cases, if workers are concerned that their work is insecure, they may be discouraged to produce to their maximum.

An employee cannot be motivated without protection. In other words, if the factors that motivate employees are fully provided, they are likely to become motivated and in the end the company is likely to record high work performance (Rosenfeld, 2012). The work setting in Wal-Mart is not conducive that is why employees working in Chinese retail shops are finding it hard to continue working. Even with this situation, Wal-Mart does not involve itself in things that do not help employees meet their needs.

The company cuts the health cover of its workers making it hard for them to access affordable healthcare. In most cases companies from western nations have policies that do favour people from the east. Because, they are after profits, yet eastern cultures emphasize service. Such organizations also think that employees are satisfied with a job they have been offered and other work-related issues.

In fact, the interests of such organizations are not about creating space for people to enrich themselves but about getting the best out of them (Rosenfeld, 2012).

Because of lack of motivational factors for workers, a good number of employees started to dislike their jobs, giving an unimpressed emotional connection to their works, as well as being discontented with their responsibility in the place of work (Doyle, 2012). With all these unenthusiastic and unattractive factors of being an employee at Wal-Mart, it is unimaginable that Wal-Mart will at any given time provide incentives that motivate employees.

Conclusion

Herzberg argues that in order to maximally encourage people a business organization is supposed to have all factors checked and positioned. That is, it needs to take into account such factors like hygiene aspects and motivational factors which will be employed to motivate employees.

However, in absence of these factors, it is hard to motivate employees. Wal-Mart, however, pays lower salaries to employees, thus, reducing their willpower. Under such circumstances, most of the workers start to dislike their jobs, as well as being discontented with the responsibility in the place of work. All this happens because the company is always after minimizing costs in order to take home exorbitant profits.

Employees are a big asset in the company. That is, the way they feel and act impacts the outcome of the company. If the workforce is encouraged to work through incentives and other things, they are likely to work hard in order to achieve the targets of their company on top of helping the company stay ahead of competition in the industry. In most cases, only two undertakings can build a very strong business.

A business that recognizes its employees is not likely to be susceptible to challenges as workers are fully committed to achieve the organizational goals. In other words, a business that is not stable can not perform and as such cannot meet its goals. When the productivity of an organization reduces, it is put in a position that cannot help it surmount internal and external challenges and above all, its future success and sustenance will be unclear.

Reference List

Chen, M. (2013). Wal-Mart Empire Clashes with China. The Progressive Magazine, Web.

Doyle, G. (2012). Motivational Processes. In D. Baack, Organizational behavior (pp.99-124). New York, USA: Bridgepoint Education.

Rosenfeld, M. (2012). What employees perceive and how they learn. In D. Baack, Organizational Behaviour (pp.65-98). New York, USA: Bridgepoint Education.

Introduction

Appropriate management of organizations incorporates a variety of domains, including the development of organizational structure, job design, and reward system that will enable goal attainment. Walmart is considered one of the biggest companies working in the contemporary retail industry. This paper aims to provide a brief description of Walmart, evaluate its structure and current issues, provide recommendations for improvement, and discuss compensation packages for employees and executives.

Company Description

Walmart is an organization operating in the retail industry, both online and offline, that sells a wide range of products at affordable prices. For an extensive period, this organization focused solely on operating its physical store locations, but in recent years, the shifting consumer demand urged it to explore online shopping. Efron (2017) describes the goal of the company in the following manner  Wal-Mart improves its profit and loss (P&L) every time it is able to save customer money (para. 10). Therefore, the focus of daily work for this establishment, which shapes its structure and people management strategies, is the ability to present essential products to their customers at convenient locations for affordable prices.

Being the largest retailer in the country, this company has to focus on managerial excellence in regards to organizational structure and human resources to ensure the retention of its competitive advantage. According to Efron (2017), approximately 1% of the US population is employed by this organization. Thus, millions of people work for Walmart and fulfill the daily tasks to ensure that customers at these supermarkets can receive desired products. The number of stores that operate under this brand name in 2019 is estimated at 4,769 locations (Total number of Walmart stores, 2019). The type of organizational structure that Walmart has is a functional hierarchy, which incorporates crucial components such as vertical authority structure and the ability to impact the entire company simultaneously. More specifically, this business has a structure that implies strict division for each domain of work, for instance, human resources or logistics. Additionally, apart from the CEO, each employee has a supervisor or manager who oversees the work and ensures that the current goals are reached. These regional and store managers can communicate with the head office and efficiently implement changes or new strategies on site.

It can be argued that the organizational structure chosen by this company, together with its culture, allows it to remain highly competitive and retain its leadership position for years. It is because managing over four thousand supermarkets across the world requires a cohesive workflow organization in which each employee knows what he or she has to do. Through this approach, companies can minimize the number of errors that may occur.

One issue that arises from the existing structure that Walmart applies to lack of flexibility. The organizational model and top-down approach do not allow this establishment to react to changes in its external environment quickly. This is reflected in the inability of the regional managers to offer and discuss changes rapidly, as the process requires approval and extensive communication with executives. This issue will be further explored in the following sections of this paper. Brickley, Zimmerman, and Smith (2016) argue that apart from the general description of the organizational structure, it is crucial to examine the architecture, which encompasses how Walmart assigns decisions, rewards its employees for excellent work, and evaluates the performance of both individuals and business units.

Agency Problem

It should be noted that despite the overall decline in sales in the industry, Walmart was able to retain and even improve its position, which is partially a result of appropriate managerial decisions. Efron (2017) states that the organizations online sales increased by 63%, and earnings per share exceeded expectations by $0.04. The author suggests that the current strategy and adherence to the purpose of operations are the vital elements allowing Walmart to thrive in the declining market of retail.

The agency problem of Walmart is inefficient cooperation between the head office working in on the administrative matters and regional managers and employees. This is especially evident in the stores located overseas that require a significantly different approach to management. The cause of the issue outlined above is an outdated organizational structure that does not allow quick adoption of innovation and new strategies. Changes to this structure and investment in employee training can help control the problem better because smaller administrative units will have the authority to react to specific challenges of the retail industry in their geographic area without a need to obtain permission from the CEO.

Job Design

Due to a large number of employees working for Walmart, its job dimensions incorporate several essential skills, including the ability to resolve problems independently. Brickley et al. (2016) state that the aspects include two critical components  task variety and authority to make and carry out decisions. A variety of combinations for the mentioned elements exist, each presenting a specific organizational issue, while a general trend is to develop positions where individuals have both a large number of tasks to perform and an appropriate authority to fulfill them. At Walmart, the current structure does not allow staff to work in accordance with a proper combination of authority and tasks. Mourdoukoutas (2016) states that many in-store employees have a problem with a lack of training and power despite being challenged continuously to assist customers with a variety of matters. This indicates the absence of authority provided to these employees. Tasks variety, however, is sufficient at Walmart because individuals can sign up to work in different departments and choose their preferred areas of operations.

The job design incorporates a connection of work responsibilities developed by human resource managers and their correlation with the actual tasks that have to be performed to fulfill the goals of an organization. For Walmart, this function is critical because this business has to ensure efficient operations of thousands of its stores, which includes managing the supply, ensuring that products are stored on shelves, and helping customers check out. Within the administrative units, the organizations job design should be improved to ensure that employees provide better service to customers. This will require granting them authority to assist and answer questions and provide the additional training that will result in the improvement of skills and knowledge.

Thus, the current design is not appropriate for Walmart because it obstructs the organization from adopting innovative strategies and rapidly transforming in accordance with the demands of the retail environment. A more appropriate structure would involve grouping current departments and branches by geography instead of the current matrix organization. Mourdoukoutas (2016) states that the companys large stores, which worked nicely in rural areas, do not fit well in big cities (para. 2). Moreover, locations opened overseas do not bring substantial revenue due to issues connected to different legal regulations and cultural differences that impact the shopping habits of individuals in a specific state.

Additionally, it is vital for Walmart to review the structure of supervisors and their responsibilities. Cain (2018) states that in-store employees struggle due to a need to adhere to recommendations of a variety of managers, which indicates a significant issue of the design and structure. Additionally, despite having a large number of executives working on ensuring the efficiency of operations, many supermarkets experience understaffing resulting in larger volumes of work for employees and long lines of customers.

However, despite the suggestions for possible improvements, it should be noted that Walmart remains to be an efficient organization. Cain (2018) states that the current system allows existing employees to apply and be considered for a new job opening right away, which provides additional incentives for work quality. The ability to maintain effective operations despite the fact that other retailers in the industry experience significant sales decline, which was discussed above, is another factor suggesting the efficiency of the current system.

Compensations

Similar to other retailers, Walmart developed a system of rewards that is designed to incentivize employees to perform better. Brickley et al. (2016) state that it is difficult to devise compensation plans that motivate managers in large companies (p. 119). Thus, this aspect of management is especially complex for Walmart because of a large number of difficulties connected to a need for ensuring that employees behave in a manner that benefits the company arise. Firstly, for the staff, the company offers trading and career advancement opportunities as the primary benefit (Opportunity & advancement, n.d.). Additionally, prevention care and medical plans are estimated at $26 per day and cover a large number of procedures, including dental care and vision are included. The reimbursement package offers a health savings plan and a matching system that allocates up to $700 to an employees medical expenses. Finally, the Resource for the Living system is a program that aims to provide counseling services to Walmarts staff.

The compensation package for executives involves more benefits when compared to that of employees. For instance, the CEO was paid $22.8 million in 2018, including $15.69 million in stock-based pay, $4.74 million in non-equity incentive pay and another $1.1 million other compensation (Walmart CEOs salary, 2018, para. 2). Thus, the executives receive both a salary and additional incentives such as company stock, which provides valid motivation for them to work on improving the companys market share and revenue because they can receive financial benefits from these improvements.

While Walmart offers substantial benefits, several improvements can be made to improved employer satisfaction. The most significant issue is that the wage rates provided by the company to its on-site employees are low and should be increased. Additionally, while the executives and managers receive substantial compensation and benefits, those offered to other staff members are basic and could be improved by allowing better health care and pension plans.

Conclusion

Overall, the organization discussed in this paper is among the biggest companies in the world that employs millions of people. While Walmart remains to be a successful retailer, there are several issues that can improve its operations. The current structure and hob design do not provide enough authority to employees and obstruct innovation. Additionally, compensation for employees is insufficient and can be improved by offering higher wages and improved healthcare and pension opportunities.

References

Brickley, K., Zimmerman, J., & Smith, C. (2016). Managerial economics & organizational architecture (6th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Cain, A. (2018). Walmart employees dish on what its actually like to work at the retail giant.Web.

Efron, L. (2017). Why Wal-Mart is winning in a losing industry. Web.

Mourdoukoutas, P. (2016). Walmarts outdated management style is failing customers. Web.

Opportunity & advancement. (n.d.). Web.

Total number of Walmart stores in the United States from 2012 to 2019, by type. (2019). Web.

Walmart CEOs salary is 1,188 times the median employees. (2018). Web.

In China, Walmart is a leading retailer with over 400 stores in more than 180 cities across the country. The extensive network of outlets means that the management should come up with elaborate supply chain practices to ensure that customers can access goods when they want them in all locations. Additionally, Walmart China has partnered with over 7,000 local suppliers in the country. As such, the management needs a comprehensive supply chain framework to ensure that suppliers deliver goods in time and in the required volumes. Initially, Walmarts approach to supply chain management in China was designed to fail. For instance, the adopted product flow model meant that suppliers would transport goods directly to stores around the country, which was impractical for some products. Consequently, most outlets would remain without certain products for several days, and this aspect was inconveniencing for customers. Ultimately, in 2015, the management changed its approach and introduced dry distribution and perishable distribution systems in its supply chain management. This paper addresses the current transportation and warehousing strategies used by Walmart China to evaluate their effectiveness and constraints before recommending ways for improvement.

Modes of Transportation

Currently, Walmart China uses a large fleet of trucks to transport goods to different stores around the country. The company has two models of warehousing  cross-docking and staple stock flow. In cross docking, suppliers trucks unload goods at distribution centers (DCs) before they are immediately loaded into outbound trucks managed by the company. In the staple stock flow model, trucks are loaded with products stored at DCs for supply to outlets based on demand. These trucks have to travel long distances to deliver goods, which might be inconveniencing. For example, the newly established perishable DC in Dongguan serves over 128 stores in two provinces in the region within an average distance of 170 kilometers. The trucks supply all the outlets by transporting over 3500 stock keeping units (SKUs) per day. The current model of transportation has several constraints as discussed in the next section.

Transportation Constraints

The main transportation constraint for Walmart China is the need to maintain a large fleet of trucks at any given time. The cross-docking model supplies over 85 percent of goods needed in different stores. This aspect means that the company should have outbound trucks at all its DCs to be loaded with products that come from suppliers. This model presents a scheduling challenge because the pick path is too large and complex. For example, stores have to start and finish picking at the same time, which might be a problem. Moreover, this model is dependent on the reliability of suppliers to deliver goods at the right time and at the correct fill rate. Meeting these requirements is a challenge for most suppliers since the majority of them are still far from mature in planning and demand fulfillment, leading to unstable fill rates (Johnson, 2015, p. 6). Therefore, Walmart China faces challenges during festivals and seasonal changes, when sales periods are short.

Transportation Recommendations

In the short-term, Walmart China should focus on retaining reliable suppliers to deliver goods according to the set schedules. The company should also partner with different warehouses across the country to increase its DCs and reduce the distance that trucks have to travel to deliver goods to stores. More DCs would also increase the staple stock to at least 30 percent to avoid shortages. For example, having enough staple stock will ensure that outlets do not lack products because they can be supplied on demand within a short time. In the long-term, the company should focus on constructing own warehouses in strategic locations based on the number of stores to be served and their distances from the DCs.

Warehousing: Infrastructure

By 2015, the Walmart China operated 11 perishable DCs and 9 dry DCs. The dry DCs, which are commonly known as ambient DCs, handle dry grocery items and general merchandise products. Perishable DCs deal with products that require controlled temperature storage. Currently, Walmart China operates leased and own warehouses. In 2018, the company opened a new perishable DC in Dongguan with a capacity to support 128 stores in South China, specifically in Guangdong and Guangxi provinces. The average distance between this new DC and stores in the region is 170 kilometers. The DC operates throughout the week working in two shifts to ship 150,000 cases a day at an average value of 24.50 per case. In other locations, the company leases warehouses for its operations. The management has adopted two models of warehousing  staple stock flow and cross-dock flow, to meet the current storage needs. In the staple stock flow model, suppliers transport goods to the DCs where they are stored and supplied to different outlets on demand.

The ambient staple stock is kept at 15 percent, and thus it offers short-term storage of inventory. This model ensures that the company reacts quickly to unexpected increases in sales by facilitating the on-demand supply of goods to stores. Additionally, this model supports buying in large volumes and other opportunities such as storing seasonal items. In cross docking flow model, suppliers bring truckloads of goods, which are then loaded directly into outbound trucks for delivery in different stores. This model is beneficial because it requires a smaller building footprint and lower handling costs as compared to the staple stock flow model. Additionally, this model allows the company to handle an infinite number of SKUs. Therefore, these two models ensure that the organization meets its current storage needs. However, in the future, the organization will be required to construct more DCs and increase the staple stock flow capacity if it seeks to expand its network of stores. New outlets cannot be opened relying on the cross-docking flow model due to scheduling challenges.

Warehousing: Hazardous Materials

Walmart China strategy of handling hazardous materials is based on its environmental compliance program. For instance, the company has a compliance office led by Senior Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer. This office works with regional and international compliance managers to ensure that hazardous goods are handled with the appropriate care based on the stipulated protocols. In China, the company trains all its associates annually on compliance with the state rules concerning waste regulations. Products discarded at return centers are tracked and monitored to establish their disposition. When products become hazardous, they are identified and disposed of appropriately, and that information is made available to all associates. Every facility has a web-based data management system to identify, track, and report compliance to environmental managers.

The current product mix that would become hazardous in the stores includes deli, seafood, dairy, frozen meat, flowers, grocery, bakery, and tropical fruits (Johnson, 2015). Most of these products mainly undergo the staple stock flow model to ensure their quality when delivered to outlets through the pick to zero policy whereby goods are stored for one day before being forced out to different locations. Therefore, handling hazardous items impacts the companys warehousing negatively as it increases the need to have large building footprint to create space for staple stock flow.

Reference

Johnson, F. (2015). Walmart China  Supply Chain Transformation. London, ON: Ivey Publishing.

The main issues in the Wal-mart case include the corporate social responsibility that the firm has adopted. In addition, the effect of Wal-marts expansion on local merchants who cannot compete favorably with Wal-mart due to their pricing strategy is discussed. Wal-mart has been rejected in many countries because of the adverse effects on local businesses.

The problems brought about by Wal-mart include loss of jobs and closure of business. The strategies used by Wal-mart such as the adoption of the Wal-mart way is also discussed a major issue in this case.

Wal-mart is a multi-billion chain of stores and the employer of more than 2.1 million associates worldwide, serving customers at the rate of 200 million times per week. In addition, its 2009 fiscal year sales came to $401 billion. This of course comes with responsibilities to the community like corporate philanthropy and providing sustainable development programs.

Corporate social responsibility requires that as a company benefits in terms of profits, it should give back positively to the society that has enabled it to thrive. It requires that as a firm carries on its business operations, the ethical and legal components of the business be considered (Curt, 2009).

According to the four part corporate social responsibility model, the components of corporate social responsibility are economic, social, legal and philanthropic. Wal-mart has contributed economically to the community by supporting childrens hospitals, educational programs and charities. Legal responsibility refers to an organization operating according to the laws and regulations of the local, state and federal governments. Wal-mart has consistently operated within the boundaries of the law (Carroll, 1991).

Ethical responsibilities are mainly about fairness and justice and what consumers, shareholders, employees and the community see as passable (Carroll, 1991). Wal-mart has had many ethical issues especially because the company has caused the closure of many businesses. Although the company has caused many problems for local businesses, they are not responsible for the failure of those businesses.

Wal-mart seems to have capitalized on the economic and philanthropic sections of the model. Its environmental awareness campaign for instance was driven by the fact that environmental issues were increasingly becoming common in the United States. The idea was used to woo more customers to the company stores and increase profits.

Better still, wasnt Wal-mart preaching water and sipping wine? Being the environmental awareness campaign champions, the establishments had devastating impacts on the environment in terms of heavy traffic snarl ups and sprawl.

The organization has the responsibility of ensuring that the environment does not suffer due to their business operations. Therefore, Wal-Mart must come up with ways of eliminating the inconveniences faced by the public. For example, the traffic problem can be reduced if Wal-mart employs people to direct traffic. In addition, the firm can increase the size of the parking lot which is specifically used by the customers.

Wal-mart has no responsibility to the local merchants as far as their continuity is concerned. The main concern for the company is to reach the targeted profits and sales volumes. Wal-mart has a responsibility to customers who come to purchase products from their stores and therefore they ensure the customer gets value. The small merchants are competitors and the aim is winning the customer over competitors.

Because of its low-cost goods and services coupled with the numerous corporate social responsibility initiatives, the company has succeeded in forcing small scale businesses out of the market. It has managed to build a strong brand and culture that makes it stand out. Consumers in most target markets flock the Wal-mart stores, at the expense of small merchants.

The company has managed to convince consumers that they provide the best commodities at a relatively low cost. But the question is whether this is a healthy trend or that Wal-mart is simply a monopoly that drives out competition. One of the important aspects that one considers before setting up a business is analyzing competitors in terms of what they offer, how they offer them i.e. general market research and analysis.

But their approach has been different and unhealthy to some extent as their strategy is to enter, conquer, win and manipulate. Because of the massive power of their brand in any market they establish their businesses; they have succeeded in getting a very large market share. Although this could be a good move, there is nothing as healthy as competition in business. It is a very important because it ensures that customers get value and quality.

By Wal-mart literally killing small businesses in all areas of their establishment, it is destroying competition and monopolizing the industry. This is what has driven out small merchants, who cannot keep up with the competition. Although Wal-mart is not in the business of assisting its competitors, it can help local vital businesses survive by ensuring that they participate in fair competition. Unfair price wars should be stopped since this destroys the small merchants.

Wal-mart has its own unique way of doing business which the founder, Sam Wal-mart, labeled as Wal-mart ways and culture. This included aspects like exceeding customer expectations, helping people make a difference and the Ten-foot rule of always asking customers if they needed help. (Carroll, 2006).

He believed in stringent control of store operations, product quality and the monitoring of the companys expenditure. Since he wanted to do business differently, he motivated his employees through promotions and making them feel like they also owned shares in the company. Because of this, he was termed a motivational genius.

His secrets to success were in quality services, low prices, and allowing employees to own part of the business. Some label his ways as Total Quality Management (Curt, 2009). Allowing employees own part of the business enables them to invest more of their positive energy in to the business.

The result of this method of managing people is that it creates employees who are highly motivated. The commitment and job satisfaction of employees is enhanced and this shows in the way they treat customers. They are dedicated and willing to an extra mile to ensure that the company goals are met.

The employees are enthusiastic about the success of the company because they are highly motivated. Sam Walton was very successful in motivating his staff by the giving them autonomy and a stake in the firm. He developed a specific way of doing things and this is what put Wal-Mart at the head of the pack.

Even though he is no longer present to motivate the staff, the culture that the founder of the organization established will continue in future even as new employees join the firm. Managers will ensure that a consistent culture is maintained by using the same methods used by Walton to motivate employees (Carroll, 2006).

The buy America and Environmental awareness initiatives were very effective as corporate social responsibility. The buy America initiative was aimed at improving the state of the local businesses.

Wal-Mart started stocking their shelves with products that are made locally. The buy America program was a good move to promote locally manufactured goods in America and also enable local manufacturers stay in business.

The environmental awareness campaign was done so as to sensitize people concerning the preservation of the environment. However, as the buy America program took its roots and Wal-mart was satisfied that they had made their point to the public, they begun purchasing the products from China, abandoning their initial stand. (Curt, 2009).

So both the environmental awareness and the buy American programs were merely a publicity gimmick and far from genuine corporate social responsibility. This strategy cannot off-set the difficulties the local merchants have suffered because of Wal-mart.

As responsible corporate citizens and to avoid conflicts and resistance from communities they serve, Wal-Mart should be just and fair in their ways of operation to save small merchants. They should first of all carry out a feasibility study to understand the ways of life of community members in terms of culture, comparing prices and determining the level of competition (Carroll, 2006). Otherwise, killing other businesses in the market and imposing Wal-mart ways to every community might not work best.

They should ensure that their employees are fully compensated for in case of a closure of any of their stores, because the Wal-mart way allows employees to own some shares in the business. If for instance a store closes in a certain place, they should assure their loyal customers that they were committed to their welfare by not abandoning some of their initiated projects in the area. This will ensure that Wal-mart legacy lives on.

The opponents of Wal-mart were mainly interested in keeping Wal-mart out of the location so as to ensure their own continuity. They knew that if Wal-Mart was given a chance their businesses will close down. They wanted to maintain the status quo because these conditions are most favorable for local merchants and other competitors to succeed in business.

Engaging in the cause to keep Wal-Mart out is beneficial for the stakeholders as it will ensure that they continue in business. The individuals fighting the expansion of Wal-Mart are not fighting for an ideology but for their companies sake.

As the company looks into future expansion, several considerations should be laid down to reduce resistance and negativity from the markets they want to venture in. The company should consider all the four major components of the corporate social responsibility so that they do not reap at the expense of other businesses.

The company should strive not to disrupt the social order of the members of the society, but should balance between profitability and social responsibility. Resistance in German for instance was as a result of culture clash and Wal-marts non-conformity to rules governing businesses in the country. Therefore the best way to integrate is to conform to the culture so as to avoid censure (Carroll, 2006).

Reference List

Carroll, A. B. (2006). Business & Society: Ethics and Stakeholder Management Mason, Ohio: South-Western.

Carroll A. (1991). The Pyramid of Corporate Social Responsibility: Towards the Moral Management of Organizational stakeholders. Web.

Curt, H. (2004). The Wal-mart Way. Web.

At the given moment, Walmart is considered to be the worlds largest chain-store retailer. This company runs large warehouse and discount department stores. It sells a great variety of goods, such as grocery, furniture, apparel, toys, and video games, pharmacy etc (Walmart, 2010, unpaged). To a great extent, this variety has been one of the keys to their success. The mission, set by this corporation is to save people money to help them live better (Walmart, 2010, unpaged).

In turn, the vision of this company is to be the worlds leading retailer that serves customers throughout the world. The market strategies of Walmart are focused on price differentiation, at least this is how the company positions itself. On the whole, Walmart targets customers, who are quite sensitive about the goods of products (Barbard, 2007). Some of these people cannot afford to switch to a different supplier.

The information about the companys financial and organizational performance is available on the Internet. In particular, one should speak about annual financial reports. They indicate that the company has increased its operating income by 5.1 % in 2010 (Walmart, 2010b, p 18). However, one should take into consideration that their operating expenses which were related to restructuring of the US operations and higher health benefit costs (Walmart, 2010b, p 18).

Reference List

Barbard M. (2007). Its Not Only About Price at Wal-Mart. The New York Times. Web.

Walmart (2010). Corporate Website. Web.

Walmart (2010b). Walmart 2010. Financial Report. Web.

• Wal-Mart is constructed into three divisions: Wal-Mart Stores (US) and Sams Club (US) and Wal-Mart International.
• Wal-Mart is arranged into regions led by a Regional Vice President (RVP).
• Each region is made up of Districts run by a District Manager.
• Each District is made up of stores.
• Each Store is divided into two categories: Support and Managerial.
• The highest ranked manager is DM, SM, AM, management trainee, and Co-Manager.
• The top store position is Store Manager, called General Manager in Sams Clubs.
• The stores contain 40-50 different departments.

Sams Club is a chain of warehouse clubs which sell groceries and general merchandise, often in large quantities.

There are a total of 41 Wal-Mart regions, each with its own Regional Vice-President who works out of Bentonville.

Each region has approximately 11 districts and each district has around eight stores.

Each region, in turn, contains approximately eleven districts; each district contains approximately six to eight stores.

Each district is run by a District Manager.

At Sams Club, district managers are called Directors of Operations, but the job responsibilities are identical.

District Managers work in conjunction with Regional Personnel Managers (RPM) on personnel matters.

Managers:

The top manager is the Department Manager (DM) followed by Support Manager (SM), Assistant Manager (AM), management trainee, a four-to-five month program which prepares employees for positions as Assistant Managers, and finally Co-Manager, a position used only in larger stores.

Other hourly supervisor positions include Customer Service Manager (CSM), known as Check-Out Supervisor (COS) at Sams Club.

Each store has several Assistant Managers, varying with the size of the store.

Stores:

The top store position is Store Manager, called General Manager in Sams Clubs.

The stores contain 40-50 different departments.

Comparison with other Structures

• Starbucks operates under four U.S. divisions as compared to Wal-Marts two (in the US).
• Unilever operates in three divisional regions, two product segments, and five functional segments.

Starbucks operates under four U.S. divisions: Western/Pacific, Northwest/Mountain, Southeast/Plains and Northeast/Atlantic. This kind of organizational structure enables maximized communication channels.

Introduction

Today, in the 21^st century, companies are increasingly engaging in commercial activities across national boundaries as they seek for new markets for growth and competitiveness (Klohs, 2012).

While it is evident that international business expansion presents many opportunities for these companies, there are also a multiplicity of challenges and complexities related to doing international business (Gabriel, 2011). The present paper is an overview of the challenges and complexities that Wal-Mart will potentially face as it engages in global expansion.

Challenges & Complexities

Wal-Mart, the largest retail company in the world but with roots in the United States, has for some time now engaged in international expansion efforts into many countries of the world. The company has registered mixed fortunes as demonstrated by its huge success in countries such as China, Canada and Mexico (Mun & Yazdanifard, 2012), and difficulties in South Korea and Germany (Fox, 2011).

Perhaps surprisingly, the company plans to continue its expansionist strategies and enter into the hugely promising African market due to the growth of a large and aspiring African consumer market with increasing discretionary income, strong gross domestic product (GDP) growth and intra-regional trade agreements, developing infrastructure and growing participation by the labor force, as well as a significant rise in foreign direct investment (Accenture, 2009).

However, it must be prepared to face the following challenges.

The first challenge concerns the legal and regulatory atmosphere in some international markets. Some countries in Africa and Asia have refused to allow big retailers such as Wal-Mart to enter their markets, citing the justification that such an entry would adversely affect the thousands of small local retail stores which dominate the market and currently supply daily foodstuffs and other products to their local populations (Fox, 2011 p. 2).

In Zimbabwe, for example, large retail stores such as Wal-Mart are only allowed to partner with local entities in the wholesale industry rather than selling directly to customers, or to sell majority shares to locals for them to be allowed to operate (Experian Marketing Services, 2012). The company must therefore develop strategies aimed at understanding the legal and regulatory atmosphere in some of these international markets before making investment decisions.

The second challenge deals with the stiff competition that Wal-Mart is likely to face upon entry into international markets. The retail sector is highly competitive and Wal-Mart is likely to face stiff competition from other indigenous and foreign-based retailers.

The competition challenge is further compounded by the patronage issue, whereby local customers may prefer to shop at familiar and/or locally owned retail stores (Fox, 2011). In its market entry program, the company must hence undertake to develop ways and strategies that could be used to obtain a substantial market share in the foreign markets (Dewhurst et al., 2012).

The third challenge deals with building a local brand in the African countries that Wal-Mart intends to expand to. Available literature demonstrates that Wal-Mart is already a global brand (Mun & Yazdanifard, 2012), but this may not translate into performance and competitiveness in the hugely untapped African market as customers may not readily identify with the brand (Accenture, 2009).

Consequently, the company must fully appreciate the sustained investment required for brand building and management, and make huge investments while expanding globally to ensure that local shoppers readily identify with the Wal-Mart brand as is the case with other global companies such as Coca-Cola, Nike and Philips.

The fourth challenge concerns cultural differences that Wal-Mart may face in its global expansion endeavors. It should be recalled that cultural variations played a great role in Wal-Marts inability to succeed in German and South Korean markets.

While shoppers in Germany thought smiling and friendly sales clerks were flirtatious and unacceptable, the companys management failed to anticipate challenges with applying U.S. shopping standards to retail stores in South Korea, such as using store shelves that were too high for short South Korean female shoppers, and wrapping fish in clear cellophane, despite the custom in South Korea of always buying fresh fish, alive in fish tanks at retail (Fox, 2011 p. 1).

The patronage issue is also exacerbated by culture (Dewhurst et al., 2012); hence Wal-Marts management must come up with ways to ensure that cultural differences exhibiting during global expansion do not work to the disadvantage of the company.

Indeed, the management must effectively deal with various cultural issues in the countries the company intends to expand to not only to create demand for its products and services, but also to maximize flexibility and control with the view to meeting customer demands and expectations by operating seamlessly across geographic locations (Gabriel, 2011).

In Africa and some parts of Asia, finding the right talent may be a challenge for Wal-Mart largely due to lack of qualified human resources. Available literature demonstrates that while African countries have abundant labor, much of it is unskilled (Accenture, 2009 p. 4).

Of course there exist highly educated human resources in a number of African countries such as South Africa and Kenya; however, majority of these resources tend to lack practical management experience, and training them is often costly and time consuming for the company.

This is a challenge that Wal-Mart needs to deal with because importing expatriates to work in international markets not only slows the process of transferring skills to local talent, but also leads to underperformance as expatriates may be unable to put up with the harsh living conditions found in some global markets (Accenture, 2009; Ernst & Young, 2012). This particular challenge is further exacerbated by language barriers and cultural differences (Klohs, 2012).

The last challenge concerns efforts needed to understand local consumer patterns. Available literature demonstrates that companies must take the time to understand the values, needs, and behavior patterns of local consumers (Accenture, 2009 p. 4). Undoubtedly, therefore, Wal-Mart must assess and understand the values and buying habits of consumers in predominantly low-income markets of Africa.

An immediate complexity related to this challenge is that most African consumers have unreliable sources of income and unreliable cash flow, hence tend to purchase in small quantities while others like to buy in extra-large quantities when they have the cash at their disposal (Accenture, 2009). Such consumer patterns are likely to affect Wal-Marts operations and strategic direction as it expands globally.

Conclusion

Of course there are numerous other challenges that Wal-Mart will potentially face in its global expansion endeavors; however, this paper has outlined the most important challenges that may adversely affect the companys global expansionist strategy in the absence of adequate checks and balances.

Overall, it has been found that in its global expansion efforts, Wal-Mart is likely to face a number of challenges related to legal and regulatory frameworks, competition, building strong local brands, cultural differences, finding the right talent, and understanding local consumer patterns.

References

Accenture. (2009). Expansion into Africa: Challenges and success factors revealed. Web.

Dewhurst, M., Harris, J., Heywood, S., & Aquila, K. (2012). The global companys challenge. McKinsey Quarterly, 3(1), 76-80.

Ernst & Young. (2012). Growing pains: Companies in rapid-growth markets face talent challenges as they expand. Web.

Experian Marketing Services. (2012). Going global? The benefits and challenges of international location planning. Web.

Fox, K. A. (2011). Learn to expect the unexpected in global retail expansion. Graziodio Business Review, 14(4), 1-7.

Gabriel, S. J. (2011). Challenges of international business before SAARC nations: Some reflections. International Journal of Global Business, 4(2), 41-59.

Klohs, B. M. (2012). Going global. Economic Development Journal, 11(3), 27-34.

Mun, L. Y., & Yazdanifard, R. (2012). Wal-Mart success in Mexico, Canada and China: Global expansion, strategy, entry modes, threats and opportunities. Web.

Introduction

Walmart is multinational retailer organization that runs chains of storeroom in America, and most successful profitable business enterprise. Through the use of information technology, Walmart tracks its product growth and adjusts to a database to reflect the local demand of the products. Waltmart collectively uses information technology center for products in the stores and distribution center to manage stock level (Barrow-man, 2002).

How product design applied in decision-making of Wal-Mart?

The product design is the process of coming up with technique to advance on existing merchandises. It is an information intensive undertaking that has become progressively in today global competitive environment. Product design controls the characteristics and performance of the products consumers desires.

Product design aimed at improving actual value of the products and appears to customers affordable price. Walmart maintains inclusive contribution of all partners like suppliers to participate in product design, when outsourcing the production. The design interface of the products must be handled properly to minimize cost in product designs.

The design of a consumer product is not only the factory-made cost, but also the dominance of the quality and service delivered and how well they meet customer expectations. There is uncertainty in designing performance levels, what customer expect, and even in the final goals for the design (Barrow-man, 2002).

What is the Product Life Cycles in Wal-Mart?

The product life cycle is the period between the time products unveiled into the market until it withdraws from the market. Product development starts when a corporation develops a new product idea. During the introduction phase, a lot of money required for product upgrade and advertising. Product valuing is the crucial aspect during the development stage and product must become competitive, and the consumers automatically acquire the new product at a high price.

Growth phase provides product satisfaction. Wal-Mart shows the product it offers and differentiates them from the rival products, modifying the products and product protection done by Licenses and copyrights. This takes place when product improves its customer confident through product differentiation and product availability to the market, providing discount and product cost. During this product phase, product matures, and the company makes high sales and return.

Walmart has multi distribution channels which offer back distribution ways. During the decline phase, product maintenance cost of product is high than the initial profit gained. It is extremely difficult for a company to understand decline signal of the product and the life cycles of products at Walmart are varying from 3 months to 2 years. Walmart provides are fast-moving consumer goods, which are durables and groceries which have short ledge lives (Hong, 2000).

How different Issues for Product Development applied in the Wal-Mart?

There are several issues to be tackled during product development in Walmart. The change in demand of a product over a long time perhaps affects product life cycle. The issue of understanding the customer need and the economic changes may affect organization performance.

These issues arise not only from handling the wide variety of products point of view, but continually striving for error free product, and create high customer satisfaction. The market regulates to meet the ever changing and unpredictable consumer market. Market mix contemplation should be appropriate for the firm, so that product growth adjusts (Ulrich, 2001).

Conclusion

The product design considerably transforms the company perspective in respect to maintaining a competitive edge over its rival. Walmart has been able to sell products that sustain people and their environment through support of customers and communities around the world and product decisions are fast (Ulrich, 2001).

References

Barrowman, J. (2002). An Evaluation of Research on Integrated Product Development. Management Science 48(7): 938953.

Hong, S. (2000). Balancing Concurrent Engineering Environmental Factors for Improved Product Development Performance. International Journal of Production Research 38(8): 17791800.

Ulrich, K. T. (2001). Product Development Decisions: A Review of the Literature. Management Science 47(1): 121.

Introduction

At some point in the past, I used to work in Walmart, which is an international trade giant that prides itself on providing cheap products of acceptable quality to its customers. They were also always hiring, so getting a job there was easy. Working at a big trade company made me feel proud. However, as I soon discovered, Walmart achieved its goals through unethical means. According to the companys mission and vision statements, they are a customer-driven company, meaning that their purpose is to serve their customers. It is a noble and ethical goal that is shared by many servant-companies. In order to serve its customers better, Walmart does what it can to reduce its prices as much as it can. In order to remain profitable, however, the companys managers engage in clearly unethical behavior towards the suppliers, the competitors, the employees, and, sometimes, even the clients. The purpose of this paper is to explore Walmarts ethics and explain how they contribute to the companys successes and failures, both domestically and abroad.

Main body

The modern philosophy of ethical leadership traces back to the worlds of Emmanuel Kant. According to his works, citizens have a duty to treat their employees and customers with respect (Principles, n.d.). This statement lies on the basis of servant leadership theory (Farfan, 2017). According to Walmarts policies, principles, and rules, they are dedicated to servant leadership and ethical capitalism on all levels (Walmart, n.d.). These statements, however, differ from reality, as I have discovered during my time working there. The ideals of respect and fair treatment are sacrificed in the name of profit and industrial efficiency.

Walmart is famous for unethical business practices on all levels, starting from the ground floor and ending with its overall strategy at the highest levels. The company encourages eavesdropping and whistleblowing as means of advancing in ranks, which creates an atmosphere of distrust and separates the employees one from another, making it easier for the company to manipulate them (Is it ethical, n.d.). It causes damage to the communities it exists in by rooting out local vendors and producers by offering products in greater variety at lower prices. After effectively becoming a local monopolist, the company harasses local suppliers into reducing prices to the point they are hardly profitable (Foroohar, 2012). In its efforts to save money, Walmart even betrays its service to the customers, providing cheap products from questionable sources.

Conclusion

It is easy to see that the behaviors of Walmart leadership, even at a local store level, clearly differ from the stated values and philosophies of the organization. Observing the actions of my superiors taught me two things about ethics in a large business environment. The first thing is that while ethics are an important factor in an overall business strategy, they are not a necessary requirement. The existence of large multinational giants supporting unethical business practices, such as Walmart, proves this statement. At the same time, these practices are what prevent Walmart from effectively expanding to other markets. Europe, for example, is increasingly hostile to Walmarts attempts of seizing the local markets, as customers and local authorities are aware of the companys reputation. Walmart is forced to spend millions of dollars on ethical training, philanthropic pursuits, and charity in order to improve its reputation (Hermes, 2017). To summarize, ethical business conduct may not be as economically efficient in the short-term perspective, but it provides a solid foundation for customer retention and expansion into other regions. Customers value reputation almost as much as they value low prices and quality of goods.

References

Is it ethical to shop at Wal-Mart? (n.d.). 

Farfan, B. (2017). Overview of Walmarts history and mission statement. The Balance.

Foroohar, R. (2012,). Walmarts discounted ethics. Time. 

Hermes, J. (2017). Walmart spends $141m on ethics & compliance systems, positions for increased shareholder returns. Environmental Leader. Web.

Principles of ethical leadership. (n.d.). Web.

Walmart. (n.d.). Ethics and Integrity. Web.