Comprehensive Analysis of Walmart's Business Strategy and Management

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This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Walmart's business strategy, focusing on its strategic framework, competitive advantages, and operational objectives. It examines Walmart's adoption of a cost leadership strategy, its use of generic and grand strategies, and the application of the SMART tool in achieving its goals. The report details Walmart's short-term and long-term strategies, including its focus on providing low prices, expanding its market reach, and leveraging technology to enhance customer experiences. The analysis covers Walmart's multidivisional structure, its approach to supply chain management, and its efforts to differentiate itself from competitors through unique offerings and customer service. The report also discusses Walmart's objectives related to financial performance, e-commerce expansion, and customer engagement, providing a thorough overview of the company's strategic management practices and their impact on its success in the retail industry.
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RUNNING HEAD: STRATEGY MANAGEMENT 0
Strategy Management
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STRATEGY MANAGEMENT 1
Table of Contents
Introduction...................................................................................................................2
Strategically Framework...............................................................................................2
Objectives..................................................................................................................3
Generic Strategies.....................................................................................................4
Grand Strategies.......................................................................................................4
SMART Tool..............................................................................................................4
Conclusions..................................................................................................................5
Bibliography..................................................................................................................6
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STRATEGY MANAGEMENT 2
Introduction
Walmart is an American multinational retail corporation which is operating its
worldwide chain of hypermarkets and grocery stores in Arkansas and Bentonville. In
1945, the famous businessman J.C Penney as an employee brought a small branch
of Ben Franklin stores from named brothers as Butler. Their main primary focus is on
achieving the main target of the customer and assists in selling their products at
lower prices to achieve a higher volume of sales at lowest profit margins, and this is
the best technique they have used in their growth strategy in the overall
organizations (Walmart , 2019).
Walmart is the biggest organizations by income in the US as per the Fortune
Global 500 list in 2017 and these results in real private employers across the whole
globe with its 2.3 representatives. The organization was established in 1962 by Sam
Walton and in recent years it develops their stores globally in 28 nations which are
working under 59 district names. The main secret of gaining the interest of the
customers is to think and make the product with the perception of the customers and
play as best retailers in the hearts of the employees and consumers (Walmart, 2019)
Walmart business strategy is to provide their products at the best prices on an
everyday basis and it is the main philosophy of the company. Walmart pursues cost
leadership strategy of the business that enables the economies of scale in deriving
the company in extent significantly. The business is successful because they provide
good quality of merchandise to their customers, lowest possible prices,
knowledgeable services, convenient hours and pleasant shopping experiences
(Walton, 2019).
Walmart opened Supermercado de Walmart exclusive locations to the
appealing communities to Hispanic communities in the United States. Walmart is a
multidivisional structure of form and operates its business in a cooperative form.
Walmart owns its operating activities in many divisional channels as Sam Club,
Walmart.com and Walmart U.S, International. It is a publically traded company and
controlled by the Walton family (Kumari & Tewari, 2018).
Strategically Framework
Walmart uses a systematic tool in its business strategies and adapts
competitive advantages in experiencing great success. There are various short term
strategies that are adopted by Walmart organizations to reach the goals and targets
of long term strategically frameworks. Short term strategies are the framework to
achieve common strategies which are adopted by Walmart for growing in their long
term strategically frameworks for longer period of time. Some of them are followed
(Walmart , 2019).
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STRATEGY MANAGEMENT 3
The short term strategies of Walmart are to winning from stores that offer
relevancy and convenient facilities to customers. There should be an
investment in our people to live and consume better quality of products.
The short term strategies compile with deepening digital relationships with all
its customers for a longer period of time by continual improvements of apps
and experiences. There should be the adoption of integrated digital platforms
to enhance the major experiences of stores.
The third short term strategies start with adding critical capabilities to the next
generation of supply chains and provide new talent to styles of working. There
is a use of upgraded technology with the perception of competitors in the
surrounding environments (Walmart, 2019).
The Walmart business strategy revolves around being providing a cost leadership
strategy that influences the pattern in providing its unique products so customers can
buy and pay at its best prices to the company. The focus strategy has divisional
sections that operate its cost focus strategy in targeting a particular segment by
dominating and modifying all its products with the needs of the consumers. There
are various long term strategies which are being adopted by Walmart organization in
operating its effective plans and implementations of these strategies from time to
time (Dudovskiy, 2016).
Cost Leadership - Walmart is using its supply chain management and efficiency of
operating there lower cost strategies in huge cost saving approaches. This derived
with bulk purchasing or stock holding for less than 48 hours etc. The general savings
provide lower prices for customers and funds generation of growth with ease and
assistance to a better life (Goodspeed, 2017).
Differentiation – Walmart enjoys and created distinctive offerings in many
dimensions by offerings goods and many services to its customers that create
unique products by adding more value to it, range of products with innovative
designs, customer satisfaction, and integration of various innovative ideas into its
product development. There is the use of organic and fresh use of offerings to
people with no chemicals used in their products that make it different from its other
competitors.
Focus Strategy – This complies with a particular geographical location or the
segment of the market to provide and final edge with its strategies from its
competitors. Walmart offers a seamless experience of shopping where customers
can scan items and pay using smartphones. There is more convenient for customers
as focus strategy was in small locations in a radius of a few miles which competitors
cannot have thought over it (Walmart, 2019).
Objectives
Walmart uses its capability to manage the business to meet the financial
objectives as reaching our commitments, promotion of economic opportunities and
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STRATEGY MANAGEMENT 4
increasing investments in e-commerce with customer initiatives programs. They are
more in prioritizing strong bonds with the most productive growth opportunities that
accelerate e-commerce expansion of new stores. The use of generic and grand
strategies is the basic concepts that we have adapted in reaching to our customers
(Corporate Walmart, 2019).
Generic Strategies
A generic strategy is a combination that requires being the lowest cost
producer in its competitive environments. Walmart uses generic strategies and that
complies with cost leadership that states the business to be at good at curtailing
costs to its customers. Michael Porter model defines the cost leadership strategy that
has the main focus on achieving lower costs for their products. The company focus
is on providing the best services that its competitors with fair prices of its goods. This
results in its economies of scale and built strong relationships with all its vendors
from where they buy in bulk quantity. Long term relationship is the best strategies
they maintain with their suppliers and this is mutually beneficial for both the parties
(Brennan & Lundsten, 2019)
Grand Strategies
Walmart uses expansion, stability and retrenchment strategy for its customers
and formulates their own strategies to set in corporate markets. The intensive growth
strategy of Walmart is Market Penetration that focuses on entails selling more goods
and services to the current market scenario of the Walmart Company. There is
development in offering company existing goods in new stores and the development
of markets can be achieved by this. The related strategically objective is to continue
to establish its stores in the development of the markets.
Walmart uses a product development strategy in its internal surrounding
environment that has minimal investment in development to a product. The intensive
growth strategy also provides diversification to the entire products where industries
and markets are not operating. A strategic framework is to search and acquire
companies that can be integrated into Walmart existing operations with its e-
commerce websites (Tanwar, 2013).
SMART Tool
The smart tool is being developed and attributed by Peter Drucker in the
subject of management by objectives. Walmart uses Smart tool in achieving various
targets and goals in an effective manner as discussed below. Walmart uses a
specific technique in providing simple, sensible and significant products with best
and innovative prices in the surrounding environments. Walmart measures its goals
by acquiring skills to become different in marketing concepts that determine
motivating and meaningful concepts.
Achievable of targets is the basic structure they follow in reaching to various
targets of the customers in agreed and attainable manner. Walmart uses relevancy,
realistic, resource-based goals that are developed in the form of providing assistance
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STRATEGY MANAGEMENT 5
to all its customers. The time-bound activities are generally formed and achieving
those with cost benefitted the sensitivity of time, time-based structures are being
formed for smooth operations in the whole environments.
Conclusions
Strategic management is an adaptive and continuous process that pervades
an organization to look beyond all it strategically frameworks. The report tells about
the strategies which are used by Walmart in optimizing effectiveness in the overall
strategic framework of the company. The different types of strategies which are used
by the company in operating its customers and how it is differentiated from others
are being discussed thoroughly. The objectives of the company should be to
maintain its short term goals and reach them for long term success and growth. The
use of SMART tool is being developed by Walmart in obtaining its potential with the
efficiency and effectiveness of the whole organization for achieving success.
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STRATEGY MANAGEMENT 6
Bibliography
Brennan, D.P. & Lundsten, L.L., 2019. An Assessment of Wal-Mart's Global
Expansion Strategy in the Light of its Domestic Strategy. [Online] Available at:
An Assessment of Wal-Mart's Global Expansion Strategy in the Light of its
Domestic Strategy [Accessed 12 July 2019].
Corporate Walmart, 2019. Walmart US. [Online] Available at:
https://corporate.walmart.com/our-story/our-business [Accessed 11 July
2019].
Dudovskiy, J., 2016. Walmart Business Strategy and Competitive Advantage.
[Online] Available at: https://research-methodology.net/walmart-business-
strategy/ [Accessed 11 July 2019].
Goodspeed, H., 2017. Walmart's Strategic Management Process. [Online] Available
at: https://prezi.com/bum4_qk64bvu/walmarts-strategic-management-process/
[Accessed 11 July 2019].
Kumari, E. & Tewari, D.V., 2018. Strategic Management Of Walmart. [Online]
Available at: http://www.aensiweb.net/AENSIWEB/rjss/rjss/2018/January/32-
36(6).pdf [Accessed 11 July 2019].
Tanwar, R., 2013. Porter’s Generic Competitive Strategies. [Online] Available at:
http://iosrjournals.org/iosr-jbm/papers/Vol15-issue1/B01511117.pdf [Accessed
12 July 2019].
-TATJÉ, E.G., -MASANELL1, R.C. & -SOLÍS, H.B., 2019. Quantifying Walmart’s
Sources of Advantage. [Online] Available at:
https://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/handle/1/13135315/brea-solis
%2Ccasadesus-masanell%2Cgrifell-tatje_business-model-eval_SEJ-12-0963-
R3.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y [Accessed 11 July 2019].
Walmart , 2019. About Us. [Online] Available at: https://corporate.walmart.com/our-
story [Accessed 11 July 2019].
Walmart , 2019. Three-Year Growth Plan. [Online] Available at:
https://corporate.walmart.com/article/three-year-growth-plan-infographic
[Accessed 11 July 2019].
Walmart, 2019. Our History. [Online] Available at: https://corporate.walmart.com/our-
story/our-history [Accessed 11 July 2019].
Walmart, 2019. Strategy. [Online] Available at:
https://corporate.walmart.com/article/three-year-growth-plan-infographic
[Accessed 11 July 2019].
Walmart, 2019. Walmart Services. [Online] Available at:
https://www.walmart.com/cp/services/6163033 [Accessed 12 July 2019].
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Walton, S., 2019. Our History. [Online] Available at:
https://corporate.walmart.com/our-story/our-history [Accessed 11 July 2019].
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