Targeted Work Class - Research Paper Example

Wal-Mart is capable of achieving these objectives while still maintaining and improving profitability and market share. This work processes will be met by the linking of work groups and their processes in the internal customer and supply chains (Dreher & Dougherty, 2001). Once this is achieved, this linked functional work processes will become the major cross functional processes by which Wal-Mart’s externally focused business objectives will be met. This paper will examine the work processes and key employees of Wal-Mart stores.

It will further discuss the changes that Wal-Mart will make in line with the strategic challenges it might experience in the future. This will include the types of workforce needed, the knowledge, skills and appropriate abilities. The compensation and benefits of Wal-Mart Stores will also be given. It is worth noting that these key cross functional business processes will be highly dependent on the way in which the management at Wal-Mart will structure these processes. This can be done in two ways; through the delivery processes and the support processes.

Delivery processes, in this case, refers to the customer facing processes while the support processes are those that are required to sustain the delivery functions. The delivery processes, at Wal-Mart, will involve the product service development process, customer order process and product service maintenance process. The product service development process headed by the Products Development Manager will ensure the development of new product offerings from the concept, all the way through research, development, introduction and update, to the withdrawal from the market.

The customer order process headed by the Customer Care Manager will involve the requirements of customers for products or services from the moment the customer enquires all through the distribution and sale. The product service maintenance process headed by the Product Development Manager will be the provision of the after sale services and support (Dreher & Dougherty, 2001). One the other hand, the support processes will entail the human resource acquisition process and the business management process.

The human resource acquisition process will be headed by the Human Resource Manager whose job will be to provide and maintain Wal-Mart’s personnel from manpower, planning, skills profile, recruitment, induction, training to development. The HRM will also be in charge of succession plans, motivation, appraisals, disciplinary actions, termination, retirement and pension administration (Andersen & Narus, 1999). The business management process headed by the Business Manager will be in charge of the process of managing the business operations from defining the future vision and mission of Wal-Mart to developing long term business plans, defining the business objectives, annual opportunities and financial planning.

The Business Manager will also monitor performance and provide functional guidance and direction to business plans review and revision. Wal-Mart will have to change in order to meet its strategic challenges in the future by being attentive to the customers and the market. Through information generated during the strategic management work process, they will be able to gather customer requirements related to the strategic challenges they face (Dreher & Dougher