Running Head: Wal-Mart Analysis 1

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Wal-Mart Analysis

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Wal-Mart Analysis 2

Table of contents
Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 3

Industry ........................................................................................................................................... 3

Environment .................................................................................................................................... 4

Strategy ........................................................................................................................................... 4

Culture............................................................................................................................................. 5

Vertical structure ............................................................................................................................. 5

Departmentalization ........................................................................................................................ 6

Operations ....................................................................................................................................... 6

Centralization/decentralization ....................................................................................................... 7

Integration ....................................................................................................................................... 7

Formalization .................................................................................................................................. 8

Innovation ....................................................................................................................................... 8

Human resource .............................................................................................................................. 9

Performance management ............................................................................................................... 9

Empowerment ............................................................................................................................... 10

Politics........................................................................................................................................... 10

Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 10

References ..................................................................................................................................... 12
Wal-Mart Analysis 3

Wal-Mart Analysis

Introduction

In this report there is a detailed discussion on the different aspects of the Wal-Mart as it is

the biggest retail chain all around the globe. It is noticed that the strategy, culture, industry,

environment, human resource, performance management, departmentalization, structure,

integration, politics, empowerment, formalization and many other aspects are being discussed

here in the detail so that the overall clear picture could be noticed here. The critical analysis will

be shown in every single aspect and that would be the reason that the betterment in the Wal-Mart

could be done so that the overall profits could be achieved and the targets could be maintained as

well.

Industry

Wal-Mart is placed in the retail sector and it is said to be one of the biggest sectors in the

US. It has been noticed that many different companies have been registered and the competitive

world could be noticed as well. The industry is highly competitive and the main reason is that the

globalization and the impacts that are being insisted overall. Wal-Mart is said to be one of the

most important and biggest companies in the retail sector. It is noted that Wal-Mart is working

with more than 700 suppliers and distributors all over the globe and this is the reason they are

successful at this point. In this industry there are different national, international and global

companies that are competing with each other and that is the main reason that the scope has been

enlarged. It is suggested to the Wal-Mart that they need to expand their business in different
Wal-Mart Analysis 4

product lines so that the type of industry could be changed and competition could be reduced

(Acar & Zehir, 2010).

Environment

It could be examined that the environment that has been created for the Wal-Mart is not

by the organization. Discussing the Wal-Mart in the US the conditions are not up to the mark at

the current point as the competition is increasing and the political pressure has been seen in the

last couple of years as well. On the other hand the branches of the Wal-Mart in the Mexico and

the other countries are also not easy to start the operations as the cultural and the political

differences are there which is again the most of the rules and the process in the company. Hence

it is recommended that the deep study is needed for the Wal-Mart to start the business in any

country so that the overall better position be gained (Acaraya & Akturan, 2015).

Strategy

It is noticed that the Wal-Mart have the strategy that is different and difficult to maintain

as well. They are using the low-cost strategy and the vast product line is being shown up to the

customers so that the overall better position could be gained and the profits are increased as well.

I have worked in the Wal-Mart and I could see that the management is always looking to make

things cheap and they buy at the lowest possible rate so that the profits could be maximized.

Here the HR practices are also being practiced at the optimum level. The low wages are being

given as the new and inexperienced personals are being hired to save the cost at all levels

(Management Study Guide, 2016).

Wal-Mart Analysis 5

Culture

The overall culture of the Wal-Mart is one of the best that I have noticed up till now. The

best thing to consider is that the strategies, processes, values and the beliefs that exist in the Wal-

Mart are p to the mark. They are noteworthy and different as they respect their employee's at all

possible level, the insurance and the benefits that the Wal-Mart is providing are unbelievable as

well. Hence the high-performance culture could be noticed as the competition is there and the

high performer only retains with the company due to all these aspects of the business

(Managersdoor.com, 2013).

Vertical structure

Coming to the structure of the organization, it is mentioned that the overall structure of

the Wal-Mart is tall. It means that it is from top to bottom. Here the downward trend is not being

followed or it is not said to be the flat organization as well. Top management is the one who

decides most of the stuff and that is the reason the span of control is in the limited hands in the

Wal-Mart. It is recommended that the flat organization structure is needed to be there in the Wal-

Mart. The main reason is that the people in this global world are looking to engage and they want

respect and dignity as well and in that structure there is more comfort and the satisfaction could

be noticed in that as well (Uzima, 2010).

Wal-Mart Analysis 6

Departmentalization

Moving to the departments of the Wal-Mart it is noticed that here divisional structure

could be noticed. All over the management, production, and the different departments are there

and all of the management is related to that specific division only. It is noticed all over the globe

that most of the successful companies are using this structure as it is one of the most successful

structure as well. In the headquarters most important and the powerful department is said to be

the marketing department in the Wal-Mart as they are the one who is looking for the marketing,

and the placement of products and the expansion in different countries by looking at the

attractiveness of the markets (Sean Kilcarr, 2016).

Operations

It is often seen that most of the products are being made by the other companies and

some of them are by Wal-Mart. Here the mass production system and the bulk purchasing are

being done in the Wal-Mart. The production activities are aligned in a way that the better results

are being gained here as well. The main point for the consideration is that the most of the work in

the Wal-Mart does not require skilled labor and that is the reason they are hiring the training

officers on low wages. It is also seen that at some points the organization is being hurt due to that

and that is the reason it is recommended that the professionals are needed to be hired as well so

that the better processes could be taken into the consideration (Pomsmeetings.org, 2015).
Wal-Mart Analysis 7

Centralization/decentralization

In Wal-Mart it is noticed that centralization is there as the control is in the hands of upper

management in most of the cases. Moreover some of the process and the policy-making are

being given to the middle-level managers and that is also just due to the cultural differences and

the demographical position in the country. It could be noticed that the hiring process, the

import/export strategy, incentives and the basis of hiring are mostly done by the top level

management in the Wal-Mart and this is why the system is streamlined and the inline categories

are being made as well (Human resource management models, 2017).

Integration

Integration in the Wal-Mart is seen at the topmost level. All the departments are

interconnected and this is due to the supply chain management that is being considered at the

topmost level in the country. The best thing to notice is that the cross-functional relationships

and the helping nature of the management to one and the other is important and it is being done

as the powerful exertion be seen. Here the communication due to this is kept up to the mark. The

profitability is increased due to the formal and interlinked integration that is important for the

business and the success of the Wal-Mart based on this aspect as well (Acaraya & Akturan,

2015).
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Formalization

Most of the international and national level activities in the Wal-Mart are being

controlled by the upper management in the group. It does not matter where it is located; it is

based on the success of the person and the excellence they have. The intercommunication is

being done so that the better results could be achieved. Some of the old and the existing

processes are being used as the quality insurance and the span of control. However the casual

and the changes are being seen in the technology side as the globalization is taking place new

and informal ways are needed to be adopted by the organization as well for the better response at

all levels (Acar & Zehir, 2010).

Innovation

Wal-Mart is said to be one of the most innovative firms in the US as well. The main

reason is that they are spending 15% of the profits on the research and development and that is

the core reason they are copying up with the world. Here the technology changes and the upper-

class needs are being targeted as well. The display centers, the availability of the product, the

internal communication systems, inventory management systems and the customer review backs

are said to be most innovative for the Wal-Mart and the main reason is that they are internal and

the external processes are being kept up to the mark at all levels for the better results at all levels

(Acar & Zehir, 2010).

Wal-Mart Analysis 9

Human resource

Looking at the human resource management in the Wal-Mart it could be examined that

the overall different research techniques are being used to analyze the best possible personals for

the company on the managerial positions. Here strict rules and regulations are there which are

different and are needy for the management as well. The benefits and the incentives are up to the

mark for the newly appointed people in the group and it is further analyzed that I have personally

reviewed and been on the part of the compensation plan, they are dealing and giving different

benefits that are not easily seen in other retail companies in the country which makes them

unique in many different aspects (Uzima, 2010).

Performance management

The overall performance appraisals are being set in the company as the Wal-Mart is one

of the leading industry in the sector that is the reason 360 feedback system is being introduced as

the compensation and benefits analysis is good and due to that the performance marking is done

in the best possible manner as well. Hereafter every 3 months performance appraisal is being

distributed and the best thing is that they are using mix methods as the Wal-Mart is also keen in

using the MBO method in the system as well so that the theory and the practicality could be

integrated in the best possible format so that better results could be gained (Sean Kilcarr, 2016).
Wal-Mart Analysis 10

Empowerment

Empowerment is not seen in between the company and the employees in the Wal-Mart.

Here span of control is there and the centralization could be noticed as well. Formal rules and the

processes are being followed at all levels. That is the main reason overall same rules and policies

are seen all over the globe in different branches of Wal-Mart. The low performers and the high

performers are based on the same technique however the major difference that is being seen is

that the compensation and benefits are different which is essential at the end (Sean Kilcarr,

2016).

Politics

The political impact on the performance of the Wal-Mart is not seen to the great extent.

The main reason is that they are private and all over the globe different transactions are being

done which are legal in all aspects. However in some countries they are facing the political

issues but they are dealt with the extreme precision so that no issue rises in between. Hence the

strong control that exists in the company is being taken care and the best possibilities are being

seen in this case (FTMS, 2012).

Conclusion

It could be noticed that there are many different aspects that have been discussed in detail for the

Wal-Mart. Many different management related issues, their culture, structure, benefits. Political

analysis, environmental, processes and the departmentalization, formation and other issues have
Wal-Mart Analysis 11

been discussed. As per understandings best solutions are also being given o that the better results

could be gained by the business and the best results could be gained.
Wal-Mart Analysis 12

References

Acar, A. Z., & Zehir, C. (2010). THE HARMONIZED EFFECTS OF GENERIC STRATEGIES

AND BUSINESS CAPABILITIES ON BUSINESS PERFORMANCE. Journal of

Business Economics and Management , 11 (4), 689-711.

Acaraya, A., & Akturan, A. (2015). The Relationship between Organizational Citizenship

Behaviour . 11th International Strategic Management Conference 2015 , 472 – 482.

Corporate.unioncoop.ae. (2017). Management team. Retrieved Apr 04, 2018, from

http://corporate.unioncoop.ae/managementteam.aspx

Fkm.utm.my. (2012). Total Quality Management. Retrieved Apr 01, 2018, from

http://fkm.utm.my/~shari/download/qc02%20total%20quality%20management.pdf

FTMS. (2012). Introduction to Systems and Operations Management . Retrieved Apr 4, 2018,

from http://www.ftms.edu.my/images/Document/BB205010S%20-

%20System%20Operation%20Management/L_01_Introduction_to_Systems_and_Operat

ions_Management.pdf

Human resource management models. (2017). Retrieved from managementstudyhq:

http://www.managementstudyhq.com/hrm-models.html

Kvlgroup.com. (2016). Project Management/ Construction Management. Retrieved April 2,

2018, from
Wal-Mart Analysis 13

http://kvlgroup.com/fileadmin/user_upload/Downloads/KVL_ProjectManagement_Const

ructionManagement_EN.pdf

Management Study Guide. (2016). Process Design and Analysis. Retrieved from

http://www.managementstudyguide.com/process-design-and-analysis.htm:

Managersdoor.com. (2013). Top 5 – The Four V’s of Operations Management. Retrieved Apr 4,

2018, from http://www.managersdoor.com/topic/top-5-the-four-vs-of-operations-

management/

Pomsmeetings.org. (2015). Total Quality Management for Improving Services of Information

Technology Based Organizations: a case study. Retrieved Apr 05, 2018, from

https://www.pomsmeetings.org/confProceedings/025/FullPapers/FullPaper_files/025-

0162.pdf

Sean Kilcarr. (2016). Cargo theft now a tougher nut to crack. Retrieved Apr 05, 2018, from

http://fleetowner.com/fleet-management/cargo-theft-now-tougher-nut-crack

Uzima. (2010). Human Resource Management: A Biblical Perspective.

https://books.google.com.pk/books?id=nj_f7OhN0d8C&dq=human+resource+manageme

nt&source=gbs_navlinks_s: Uzima Publishing House.