Question 1
1.a
It is clear that Wal-Mart views the current business environment as challenging. However, this has not prevented the organization from growing at a rate higher than the industry average. This is a great place for one to go and do his or her shopping for different kinds of goods in a short time. Items in the store are well organized. The prices of goods are low compared to the prices of other different places (Wal-Mart 1). One may save a lot of money while shopping at Wal-Mart compared to shopping at other places. On the other hand, Wal-Mart is normally crowded with busy shoppers. The organization has significant influence on the business circles across the globe (www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/teach/walmart).
1.b
Wal-Mart has a great relationship with multiple Chinese organizations especially in the manufacturing of consumer goods. It is clear multiple aspects are outsourced to these organizations. Outsourcing is an act of a company having a contract with another company, which will be supposed to provide some services. There are multiple advantages of outsourcing which mainly revolve around cost reduction. The reduction in the production cost implies that the organization will have a competitive advantage in the market place in regard to pricing. In many cases, outsourcing has financial advantages. Some of the outsourced jobs may include call center services, payroll and e-mail services. The contracted company must me specializing in the activity contracted to them. A company may contract several other companies at the same period, but these companies have different roles to play in the contracting company. Therefore, contracting is an easy way to diversify different activities within a company at relatively cheaper prices. It is pertinent to note that outsourcing saves the company a lot of money. The companies that outsource their services provide this service at a lower cost than the cost the company could have incurred if it had not outsourced. This is because such companies have less overhead expenses as well as minimal benefits to provide to workers.
Outsourcing is advantageous to a company since it may allow the management team of the company to focus on issues that are of great importance and leave other issues assigned to different companies. Therefore, outsourcing is an advantage to companies since they save a lot of money and get other benefits. Moreover, outsourcing has a number of disadvantages. One of the major drawbacks is that a company may not be able to have direct communication to its clients. This may lead to a company creating relationships that are not strong enough with their clients (Caysey 3). Many times, such cases lead to dissatisfaction of one of the parties or both of them, either the client or the company itself. The company may also be unable to control some of its activities. For instance, it may have delays in supplies or implementation of project. This may affect the company negatively. Therefore, outsourcing may have some negative impact on a company.
Question 2
2.a
It is pertinent to note that the key principle of Wal-Mart is providing the best products, value as well as pricing to their customers. This is instrumental in enhancing the satisfaction levels and developing a competitive advantage. Wal-Mart seeks to make its customers satisfied. Most of the customers who go to do their shopping there tend to save a lot of money. They purchase their good at a relatively low price compared to what they would have purchased at in other premises outside Wal-Mart. This lives the customer satisfied and the objective of Wal-Mart met. The major principle of Wal-Mart being customer satisfaction makes it have a lot of sale in a given period of time due to its relatively low prices (www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/teach/walmart).
2. b
The key activities that have made the organization competitive include integration of information systems and aggressive marketing. Moreover, the aspect of bulk buying results of a shift of bargaining power from the manufacturers to the company. The wholesale businesses have made the company benefit the most, according to the film. The whole sell departments register a lot of profits. This is because most of the wholesalers in different regions prefer purchasing their goods from the company because the prices are relatively cheaper. Therefore, the company benefits most from these sections.
Question 3
3. a
The model that applies to Wal-Mart is the stakeholder model. In this model, the sellers always seek to satisfy their stakeholders. This model applies to Wal-Mart since it normally seeks to satisfy its stakeholders, who are its customers. Therefore, it operates in order for is customers to fell satisfied (Fishman, 2006).
3.b
Question 4
4.a
In the United States, Wal-Mart has a total of 4,118 units. It has five hundred and thirty discount stores, three thousand two hundred and twenty eight supercenters, three hundred and thirty two supermarkets and twenty eight formats. Wal-Mart also owns the Sam’s clubs with a total of six hundred and twenty two units. On the other hand, Wal-Mart is an international business. It owns a total of six thousand two hundred and sixty five units in the entire world (Fishman, 2006).
4. b
In the fiscal year that ended on 31 January 2012, Wal-Mart had a net income of 15.4 billion dollars. It also had 422-billon dollars revenue and a margin of 24.7 per cent in gross profit (Fishman, 2006). Wal-Mart internal operations account for twenty six per cent of the entire sales. According to Forbes Global list of 2000, Wal-Mart was rated as the eighteenth largest public corporation. Hence, the company has been registering profits from its operations.
4. c
Wal-Mart has grown in the past three year. Its revenue is increasing at an increasing rate. The latest revenue when compared to the current revenue registers lower revenue. The current revenue is much more compared to that of the last three years. The segment bringing in more income is the international market (Caysey 1). This is because the market is growing and more people are buying things from the company’s branches (http://www.walmart.com).
4. d
The company has future plans of rowing further. It is seeking to improve its market in Africa. More branches will be opened in some of the African nations. Hence, it is focused on in penning more branches that will satisfy the African market (Lichtenstein, 2006).
5. a
The latest news about Wal-Mart is the bribery scandal that happened in Mexico. The bribery was revealed in the media in the third quarter of 2012. The company is alleged to have paid bribes in order for them to be granted permission of opening new stores. These bribes may have added up to twenty four million dollars.
5. b
Wal-Mart management has not admitted the allegations and multiple sources from within have indicated there is a possibility of occurrence of the event. The company has had different reactions of the issue. It has not agreed to have done that. Though it has had different reactions from people, the management team had not totally agreed to the allegations. Shareholders want the director involved in the scandal to be fired. The company has not yet released a report about the scandal and its actions on the people involved (http://www.walmart.com).
Work cited
Caysey, Welton. Walmart’s latest Employee-Relations Debate Speaks to the Need for Proactive Communication Policies. PRnews for Smart Communitors. (2013). Print.
Lichtenstein, Nelson. Wal-mart: The Face of Twenty-First-Century Capitalism. New York: New Press, 2006. Print.
Recipient. "Walmart.com: Save money. Live better.." Walmart.com: Save money. Live better.. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2013. <http://www.walmart.com/>.
"Teachers Guide - Is Wal-Mart Good For America? | Teacher Center | FRONTLINE | PBS." PBS: Public Broadcasting Service. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2013. <http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/teach/walmart/>.
"Walmart’s Latest Employee-Relations Debacle Speaks to the Need for Proactive Communications PoliciesPR News." PR News - PR, Public Relations, Media Relations, Communications, Marketing, PR Jobs and PR Industry Events and NewsPR News | For Smart Communicators. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2013. <http://www.prnewsonline.com/water-cooler/2013/07/12/walmarts-latest-employee-relations-debacle-speaks-to-the-need-for-proactive-communications-policies/>.
