INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RESOURES

International Human Resources

International Human Resources

Introduction

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. is a U.S. multinational company specializing in retail, founded by Sam Walton and now headed by his eldest son, S. Robson Walton. Walmart is now attacking the market Asia. Wal-Mart also operates several international markets, but these are the United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, Mexico, Brazil and China. The company sells a number of retail goods and services at low prices. This product range includes both national and private-brand manufacturers (Michael Bergdahl, 2006, pp. 66).

Global Strategy

Wal-Mart adopts different strategies in order to differentiate the company from the closest competitors. The main competitive strategy of Wal-Mart is to make its dominance in every sector where it operates its business. It determines its success and dominance over competitors by measuring the sales. The strategies that Wal-Mart adopts in order to gain the competitive advantage are to sell its goods at low prices, make expansion in the business and outsell its competitors. In order to make it different from its competitors Wal-Mart adopts the strategy to open new stores and increasing the size of its existing stores.

Strategic Choices

Wal-Mart is a competitive organization and probably the global leader in retail industry. This is the result of its effective use of its strengths to deal with threats, weaknesses, ability to avail opportunities. Wal-Mart creates significant advantages through its systems which manage its warehouses and stores. Initially, Wal-Mart chose locations without direct competitions from large chains (rural areas). In addition, Wal-Mart created a culture of supporting values, skills, technologies, supplier-customer relationship, HR and approaches to motivation that could not be easily copied by other firms.

Wal-Mart also faces responsibility to take initiatives which are favorable to the environment. There is an increased emphasis on green practices due to which, Wal-Mart needs to take initiatives to deal with the changing environment.

Wal-Mart Strategy

Wal-Mart always strives to “provide quality products at an everyday low price and with extended customer service”. In order to achieve this, they have adopted a series of strategies which range from loyalty programs for customers to e-tailing. Some of the major strategies include building divisions, which include: smaller stores built in small communities with a population of less than 5000 people; this strategy allows Wal-Mart to give special attention to customers in smaller markets in rural America. Another division is the Sam's Club which is basically a membership only cash and carry operations, in which only wholesale operations are carried out. Customers have to pay a membership fee to be a part of the club in which they get to buy goods in bulk. Supercenters are another division in Wal-Mart whereby groceries, are combined with general merchandise “giving customers a one-stop shopping experience” this “one-stop” convenience has appealed to a large number of customers thereby making the supercenters to become one of the most important retail concepts on the landscape. The International division has basically allowed the company to maintain a strategic competitive focus on global positioning.

Another Strategy adopted by the company is ...