WAL-MART ORGANIZATION - Essay Example

? WAL-MART ORGANIZATION Right from a single discount store started in the North of Arkansas, Wal-Mart organization has now grown to command great influence in the retail industry where it operates numerous clubs, stores and associates all over the globe. According to the CEO, the main reason that would be pointed towards the great success that the organization has had in the very competitive industry is observance of high levels of integrity and ethics, which are critical to the success of any business. The organization acknowledges continual pursuit of excellence, individual respect for all as well as high regard to customers. Just as in the case to all businesses, both the internal as well as external environments comprehensively define walmart. A business internal environment explains the forces that influence the performance of the business with origin from the internal structures such as leadership, the employees, physical attributes such as machinery as well as the policy frameworks upheld. The external environment on the other hand describes the influence of other factor to which the organization has no power over. For instance, the government policy will influence the external, environment of any organization and the organization would have no influence at all towards the policies as framed by the government. This paper therefore focuses on analyzing comprehensively the internal as well as external business environment and their influence towards the performance of Wal-Mart as a global retail business (Bedford et al, 2007; Walmart 2008). Discussion The Wal-Mart Corporation has gained a great reputation concerning success in business management and growth to command an outstanding influence in the retail market across the globe. In particular, the retail business has grown since inception to dominate the retail market all over the world with relatively low prices of commodities than other players in the industry (Wal-mart stores, Inc., 2003). It has a mission of saving money for people in order to have better lives and this has been the guiding force towards the success realized by the organization. The CEO, Duke says that the organization is properly positioned to survive the hard economic turmoil’s in the current day economy as well as to command influence in future performances in the changing world. Nevertheless, history has a different story in the waves the organization has had to face on the way to today’s position as a global player. The organization internal environment business model is based on value proposition, which rides of offering everyday low price. Distribution efforts in the organization are effectively planned to have the organization have direct contact with customers through media adverts as well as through such cheap means as internet. The organization has also effective customer relations through self-service as well as automated services for efficiency and effectiveness. It highly esteems basic resources spanning from the physical ones including logistics and physical stores, human resources as well as the organizational culture. The organization acknowledges the role of the forces of internal as well as external business environments in shaping the success of the business. Despite the internal organizational structure, the organization holds own employees with esteem as critical part of the internal environment of the organization. Competition as an external factor has continuously influenced the operations of the organization with special attention being taken for the sake of monitoring and keeping pace with competitive developments in the industry (Davis, 2007). Among other notable strengths of Wal-Mart organization are growth and high returns through customer satisfaction, creating profits as well as enhancing value for shareholders. The capacity of the organization to expand continuously into new markets and opening new stores, integrating new online channels as well as upholding great success in innovation and branding are among other strategic features that uphold Wal-Mart’s competitive position among other similar businesses in the industry (Li, 2011). It enjoys the cost leadership status in the industry and thus low prices form the main competitive advantage of the organization as compared to the competitors. The success of the organization’s business model has led to other competitors adopting similar or like models in order to keep relevant in the competition as posed by the organization. However, it is worth noting that the sustainability of Wal-Mart organization into the business in the changing world is only dependent on its ability to adapt to the industry dynamics. The organization’s best practices as identified are such as low cost strategies and adoption of IT in business management and decision-making processes for effectiveness and efficiency. The adoption of technology in business operations within Wal-Mart outlets saves on time and improves on quality of services as well as products in offer. RFID (radio frequency identification) is such an example to technological adoption, which is seen within Wal-Mart retail outlets. Besides, the organization has high regard to employees and this is confirmed through development of competitive employee policies, which are adaptive to the changing environment. It also has commendable management and organizational styles through which internal and external environmental factors interact for effectiveness to be realized. In addition, the organization celebrates great strides in development of supplier relations as well as social responsibility and sustainability, which enhances the global competitiveness of the organization at the global perspective. The identification of best practices as core to management of any business confirms the best performance in value chain. The organization has over years enjoyed improved performance through the strength of best practices. Business organizations have been often seen to adopt various mechanisms to improve on value chain. Among best practices acknowledged and which the organization is identified with are the pricing mechanisms. Low pricing structures are adopted in order to grab significant market segments and thus enhance on competitive edges enjoyed in the industry. Such has been identified to be among the best practices adopted by Wal-Mart organization as regards its value chain (“Marketing, Strategy, and Competitive Analysis,” nd). However, recent surveys into the organization reveal that the organization has continuously faced economic uncertainty, which describes increased competition pressures currently faced by the organization (Rose, 2009). This becomes the basis on which the organization has been criticized on inability to realize the main mission that guided the organization, which is offering best value for customer’s money with high quality products. Best practices have therefore been identified as being the solution to such shortcomings as the organization faces currently. The great vision and dedication of the top management of the Wal-Mart organization ever since its establishment has been acknowledged to play a critical role in the success of the organization. Leadership has been seen to play a great role in the performance of the organization despite the competition pressures that have been pointed out to form the basis of derailing the organization from realizing the guiding mission. This would form my basis of recommendation to the management of the organization. Competition has become quite dynamic in almost all aspects of business dealings and no one business or industry is immune to the challenge. In this understanding, adoption of rather dynamic management practices is inevitable for an organization to keep pace with the global trends. Adoption of centralized inventory system through which management of the various chain stores of the organization is inevitable in order to have the organization realizes the strategic objectives and goals. I propose to the owner of Wal-Mart to uphold high levels of innovation and creativity in management practices in order to cut on the rising costs and command a competitive niche through continuously offering lower prices. This is because other competitors in the industry would rise in competition through exploiting these competitive niches while the Wal-Mart organization does not. Evaluation and analysis forms the most effective tools to keep an organization on check. Moreover, best practices in management are adopting to the evolutionary pressures that face the business world through improved management practices. References Bedford M. et al, 2007. Wal-Mart: Strategic management. Retrieved from: Davis N. D., (2007). Corporate Reputation Management, the Wal-Mart Way: Exploring Effective Strategies in the Global Market Place. Retrieved from: Li Y., (2011). Walmart Business Model Study. International journal of advanced economics and business management, 1(2), 093 - 097 “Marketing, Strategy, and Competitive Analysis,” (nd). TLFeBOOK. Retrieved from: Rose P., (2009). Wal-Mart Not Liable for Claims of Labor Law Violations Brought by Employees of Foreign Suppliers. International HR best practices newsletter. Retrieved from: Walmart, (2008). Statement of Ethics. Retrieved from: Wal-mart stores, inc., (2003). Wal-mart stores, inc. Annual report on form 10-k For the fiscal year ended January 31, 2013. United States Securities and exchange commission. Retrieved from: http://people.stern.nyu.edu/adamodar/pdfiles/cfovhds/webcasts/ROIC/walmart10K.pdf Read More