Preview

Gm586 Unit 4

Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1359 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Gm586 Unit 4
Unit 4: Wal-Mart Innovation
Deena Rothwell
GM586: Transformational Leadership
September 27, 2011
Professor George Sparks

Wal-Mart began its climb to become the largest retail company in the world in 1940. Throughout the years Wal-Mart stores values and mission statement has remained the same, respect customers and peers, quality service to the customers, strive for excellence and build team players of its associates. Wal-Mart teams have common characteristics, they have technical expertise, good at problem solving and decision making and interpersonal skills. Wal-Mart leaders expect their associates to perform in a team spirit and unity. Wal-Marts CEO has a vision to build transformational leaders of all of its managers through
…show more content…
Wal-Mart management should encourage customers and associates to think outside the box about what will enhance the stores to provide quality products and customer support, provide satisfaction to the customers and empower associates to help the stores grow and meet goals and …show more content…
Idealized influence involves Wal-Mart management not only clearly articulating the company’s vision and mission to the store associates and customers but visibly through their day-to-day activies reflecting their commitment and belief in Wal-Mart leadership and its vision and mission. The managers can not say one thing to the customers and associates and then do or say something else that contradicts everything. It is no longer ‘do as I say, not as I do’, customers and associates are paying attention to management for guidance and anything that takes away from that can result in negative outcomes. Wal-Mart has three competencies that has helped to build it to become the retail giant it is: excellence in how it operates, customer satisfaction, and supplier product relations. Wal-Mart’s CEO understands to continue having a successful retail business it is important to “coordinate a complex information management and distribution network and to efficiently manage supplier relationships” (Bender, Howell, Lavin, and Torgerson, 2001, p.

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    Wal-Mart believes that managers should provide support to their senior leaders and help in the decision making process. This aspect has made a large impact on how to incorporate technology into the company. Secondly, Wal-Mart understands that by placing the right individual in the leadership role of their…

    • 1117 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Tong, C. H., & Lee, T.(2006). Exploring the cornerstones of Wal-Marts success and competitiveness. Competitiveness Review, 16(2143-149). ProQuest…

    • 1185 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    MGT4315 Team4 Case2

    • 3283 Words
    • 11 Pages

    The single greatest threat facing Walmart is that from competition among existing companies. The ongoing shift in consumer preference for online transactions presents Walmart with a very real, very substantial threat from companies like Amazon. Walmart continues to fight this by promoting the notion of “Ship to Store” which allows consumers to have a user experience similar to that of Amazon and letting the company take advantage of their supply chain investment to quickly and efficiently move products from supplier to consumer. A challenge with this is that…

    • 3283 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The strengths of Wal-Mart are many. First, it is its sales volume. 200 million people visit 10,800 stores weekly worldwide. Its business model of increasing sales by lowering prices works very well for them. Wal-Mart deals directly with producers from local farmers to major product manufactures. This strategy allows them to secure the lowest prices possible for their customers. Wal-Mart’s supply chain is second to none. They are constantly exploring more efficient ways to transport products to customers in order to lower prices. Wal-Mart defiantly has one of the worlds most advanced global supply networks. Variety is key to Wal-Mart. If there is profit in selling a product, Wal-Mart does it. With four hundred and sixty six billion in sales for 2012, Wal-Mart is the world’s leading retailer and generates a huge cash flow. This allows them to expand internationally as well as geographically. The grocery section has grown to account for 51% of sales. Wal-Mart is now the biggest grocer in the country. The pharmacy has grown as well. With four dollar prescriptions, they have changed the prescription drug industry. Wal-Mart is the largest private employer in the world with 2.2 million associates worldwide. Wal-Mart tends to promote from within. Not only does this strategy help retain knowledgeable associates and managers who know Wal-Mart from top to bottom. Even with such strong growth, Wal-Mart still delivers to stock holders. First quarter dividends for 2013 were one dollar and nine cents per share, returning more than 200 million dollars to shareholders. Wal-Mart is a key component in most mutual funds. Wal-Mart’s size allows it to buy in volumes that no one else can. In general, the higher the volume the lower the price per Unit. By sticking to Sam Walton’s original business model of lower prices to…

    • 746 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Wal-Mart stores, one of the most successful retailing chain in the world, has gain competitive advantage over its competitors. Thanks to his unique set of features, like its powerful IT system, its way of manage suppliers or its logistic system, Wal-Mart is able to responds quickly at demand changing, maintain low costs and satisfy its customers.…

    • 1007 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    For the final group project we chose to complete a management analysis on Wal-Mart. Covered in this paper are the issues of productivity, hiring practices, corporate social responsibility and culture, diversity and affirmative action, the use of information technology, leadership, teamwork, and managing ethics.…

    • 1596 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Wal-Mart is one of the leading multinational discount department retail stores. One key characteristics of Wal-Mart is the diversity. Sam Walton’s goal was to help people live better by saving money. Wal-Mart is by far one of the most successful companies worldwide. Wal-Mart is a leader in diversity, globalization, technology, innovation, and ethics. Ethics plays a big role in the success of the company. Thru the ethical code followed, Wal-Mart hires, retains and promotes the right people into the right leadership roles. The ability to adapt to internal and external factors also helps them stay ahead of the game. Wal-Mart is a widely admired worldwide leader in the retail industry and employer.…

    • 2056 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Wal-Mart Case Analysis

    • 956 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Wal-Mart needs to recognize and nurture their key core competency that stimulated their growth: carrying out customer needs with a wide range of products at discounted prices. This particular competency is the product of cumulative competencies across a single skill set. This skill set lies in Wal-Mart’s leadership in channel management, customer service, inventory control and distribution. This is the result of the companies’ ability to organize a complex information management and allocation…

    • 956 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Traveling back in time to 1962 in small town America, one would likely notice the absence of a now familiar sight. Today, people living in almost any town in America need not travel far to patronize one of today’s most popular discount retail establishments: Wal-Mart. Founded in 1962, Wal-Mart was the brainchild of Sam Walton, a charismatic retailing and merchandising leader. Under Sam’s leadership, Wal-Mart’s success grew rapidly, extending throughout America and into several international markets (Wal-Mart Retail Divisions, 2007). Achievement on such a colossal scale became possible through Sam’s vision, which he nurtured to realization using effective leadership and management practices. Wal-Mart’s ongoing commitment to valuing people throughout every facet of its leadership, management and culture has contributed to the achievement of Sam Walton’s vision, changing the landscape of discount retailing in America.…

    • 2337 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Wal-Mart is not only the largest retail company but it is the largest company in the world. It is bigger than Home Depot, Target, Costco, Kroger, Sears and Kmart combined. The only competitor that might be considered to be Wal-Mart biggest and closest rival is Target, but it is still small in comparison. Wal-Mart succeeded over their rivals due mainly to Walton’s focus on the ignored small-town market, an innovative distribution and inventory control system that allowed the company profitably to undersell rivals, and Walton’s ability to build a strong feeling of community among workers and customers (Vance and Scott, 1994).…

    • 2556 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    Roberts, Bryan R, and Natalie Berg. Walmart: Key Insights and Practical Lessons from the World 's Largest Retailer. London: Kogan Page, 2012. Print.…

    • 4521 Words
    • 19 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Successful corporations in today’s business world must be able to employ different levels of planning in order to achieve goals put in place by senior management. Wal-Mart has many different levels of management planning in place to follow through on its goals and objectives. There are many factors that influence Wal-Mart’s strategic, tactical, operational and contingency planning. Although Wal-Mart has been a very successful corporation throughout its existence, it has had to absorb the impact of legal issues, ethics, and corporate responsibility in its management planning.…

    • 801 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Wal-Mart has been one of the world most successful stories; the small store in Alaska has been extended to be the world largest retail organization. Behind this success; there have been certain organization behaviors that have shaped the Wal-Mart stores.…

    • 3043 Words
    • 13 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Founded in 1962, Wal-Mart has continued to uphold its mission statement of “Save Money. Live Better.” Wal-Mart shows commitment and appreciation to its customers by valuing them through everyday low prices. Customers can trust Wal-Mart because of their low price guarantee. Building a relationship with customers is an essential part of Wal-Mart’s mission because it allows them to meet their customers’ expectations and provide superior customer service. In return of the customer experience, all customers are encouraged to provide feedback to help improve elements Wal-Mart may lack, as well as provide positive feedback in regards to what they’re doing right. Wal-Mart stays true to its mission statement by continuously returning to the wisdom of their founder, Sam Walton: “If we work together, we’ll lower the cost of living for everyone…we’ll give the world an opportunity to see what it’s like to save and have a better life” (Farfan).…

    • 1217 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    school wark

    • 740 Words
    • 3 Pages

    1 – Being the pioneer and leader's EDLP (every day low price). It has been proven that low…

    • 740 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays