Walgreen as One of the Top Reputable Firms in the World: Strength and Weakness - Essay Example

Introduction Employees in the current generation are inun d with different types of business firms to work for.The discretion of working for a particular company at the expense of the other is often informed by many factors ranging from remuneration packages, welfare to job growth prospects. The aim of this paper is to provide an analytical assessment as to why Walgreen can be a better company to work for. Profile of Walgreens Company Walgreens Company is the leading drugs retailing company in the United States. Similarly the company is also touted as one of the fastest-growing drugs store. Walgreens was founded in 1901 and it has established its drug stores in forty seven states. In the Fortunes magazine Most Admired List (2015), Walgreens Company was ranked fifth in the food and drugstores category. The company was also ranked number three among food and drugstores in the Fortune magazine 500 largest U.S based companies (2015) (Fortune magazine). Consequently the magazine also ranked Walgreens number thirty seven overall in terms of revenue. In the fiscal year 2014, Walgreens recorded $ 72217 million in revenues, $ 2450 million in profits, $ 35481 million in total assets, $ 62739 million market value and $ 19454 million in total shareholder equity (Fortune magazine). Consequently, the percentage profit for the fiscal year was 3.4 percent on sales and 6.9 percent on assets. The main career opportunities available at Walgreens fall into five broad categories. The categories are pharmacy, health and wellness, in-store management, corporate and distribution. In terms of sales and profits, Walgreens continue t Purpose This report gives a deep insight of Walgreens Company and gives a better understanding of the company in relation to its operations, business practices, organizational strategies and growth prospects. Knowledge of Walgreens Company is vital in helping and guiding a prospective employee to make informed decision about whether to work for Walgreens or not. Strength The primary strength that is enabling Walgreens to stays afloat is the fact that it is the market leader. This is attributed to many factors such as increase sale of generic drugs and favorable demographics. Weakness One of the major weaknesses that hinder Walgreens from operating optimally in the existence of fierce competition in the drug store industry. Although Walgreens is the current market leader, existing and new drug companies are reducing its market share. Another major weakness is the reduction in foot traffic to Walgreens drug stores. Evaluation Criteria It is imperative for potential employees to carry out an assessment of the company they intend or aspire to work for so as to make informed and better decisions. The following are some of the considered factors: Cost-Cutting Program The compelling need for Walgreens to reorganize, reinvent and improve its business practices and operations has seen the firm employing various cost cutting strategies in the recent past. To achieve this strategy, Walgreens recently implemented a pay freeze for its senior executive members in the United States. The cost cutting program that is currently underway is estimated to save $ 1.5 billion (Koons, para.1). Similarly, as a way of reorganizing corporate operations, improving field operations and modernizing its technology, Walgreens is currently in the process of shutting 200 drugs stores in the United States (Koons,para.2). According, to the spokesperson of the company, the pay freeze is likely to affect other employees in lower ranks so as to further cut cost by reducing expenses. Expansion Prospects Whereas the company is in the process of shutting down some of its drug stores in the United States as cost-cutting initiative, Walgreens recently purchased Alliance Boots at a cost of $ 15.3 billion (Koons,para.5). This is a perfect indicator that Walgreens is keen in expanding its operations and market share. Benefit Packages Just like other companies, Walgreens is alive to the fact that failure to offer better packages to employees can result in poor attraction and retaining of employees. Walgreen has green commitment towards the welfare of its employees. Unlike other companies that offer meager wages and provide minimum benefit packages, Walgreens maximum possible benefits packages. The company has divided its benefits in three categories namely, health care, retirement and saving and work and life balance. Benefits under health care segment include comprehensive medical coverage, prescription coverage, wellness program, company paid life insurance, and voluntary life insurance. On the reverse side, the retirement and saving benefit plan include comprise of profit sharing and employee stock purchase program (Walgreens, para.3). Finally, the work and life benefit plan entails holidays, paid time off, employee discount, and sick time among other benefits. Diversity and Inclusion Walgreens has a reputation as one of the companies that has unwavering and strong commitment and support towards diversity and inclusion issues. Owing to various factors such as globalization and migration, the current global workforce is diverse. Global organizations are therefore required to development diversity and inclusion initiatives geared towards the accommodation of all employees, irrespective of their race, ethnicity, culture, gender, social class, religion age, and sexual orientation. To be sure, Walgreens believes and has commitment to workplace diversity, customer diversity and supplier diversity for the success of its business operations. To prove that Walgreens is committed to promote diversity and inclusion, the company has more than 251 000 diverse employees in its drug stores and serves more than 8 million diverse customers (Walgreens,pg.2). Furthermore, Walgreens has also developed diversity and inclusion initiatives targeting disable employees. To sum it up, the company has been outstanding in issues pertaining to diversity and inclusion and this has seen the firm bagging key awards such as diversity leader award and top multicultural business opportunities organization in America. Employment Awards Walgreens has received several awards in relation to its hiring and work environment. Among the recent honors and awards Walgreens has received in the recent past include Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles (2013), Top Employers for African Americans, Best Place to work for LGBT Equality, Top 50 Employers Readers Choice and Top 50 Employers of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) talent (Walgreens,para.8). The above awards and honors indicate that Walgreens is one of the preferred employment destinations in America. Employee- Centric Corporate Culture Apart from having the reputation for diversity and inclusion, Walgreen boats of a corporate and organizational culture that is employee centered. At Walgreens, employees are respected and their views, ideas and concerns are valued and taken into consideration. It is evident that leaders Walgreen leaders treat employees as partners who play integral role promoting sustainable, fair and ethical business practices (Choi and Gray,pg.54). Walgreen invest heavily in their workforce. As highlighted in the preceding sections, Walgreen invest in their employees as a core strategy of ensuring long term and sustainable business. Ethical and Socially Responsible Firm / Environmental Sustainability Employees, consumers, suppliers and communities are increasingly becoming ethically and environmentally conscious. They are willing to be associated with ethically and socially firms. In particular, consumers tend to purchase products that are environmentally friends and from business firms with little ecological footprint. Walgreens is aware of this trend and in turn, the company has developed a comprehensive plans and strategies aimed at achieving environmental sustainability and social responsibility. Walgreens relies on sophisticated technologies and innovation to advance its sustainability goals. On the same note, the company has established several green projects, recycling initiatives, ecologically friendly strategies and energy saving options in its quests to be an ethically and socially responsible firm (Walgreens,para.3). Prospects for Employee Growth, Career Advancement and Job Security At Walgreen there is opportunity for career advancement and growth. An employee can move up the ranks of Walgreen Company through promotions. However, the movement of an employee up the ranks is merited and is based on several factors such as level of experience working with the company, performance of an employee, mastered knowledge, skills and expertise and teamwork among other factors. In particular, an employee is only allowed to apply for another new position only if or she has taken not less than six months in his or her current position (Walgreens,para.5). Walgreens also has established an internal career connection centre or job opportunity board that gives opportunity for employees to apply for various jobs in the corporate sector. As mentioned in the previous sections, Walgreens offer better and elaborate benefit packages while at the same time investing heavily on its employees. This plan can encourage employees to work for the company for an extended period, thereby leading to enhanced job security. Conclusion It is evident from the analysis that Walgreen is one of the top reputable firms in the world. Although Walgreens is currently undertaking particular cost-cutting initiatives aimed at reducing expenses and reinventing the organization, it is and will remain to be a better organization to work for. Walgreens has significant advantages as a dream employer destination due to several reasons such as employee-centric organizational culture, environmental sustainability, diversity and inclusion strategies, better employee benefits and prospects for career advancement and growth. For a career in store management, Walgreens seems to be a perfect company to work since it has several stores distributed across the country. Works Cited Choi, David Y and Edmund Gray. Values-Centered Entrepreneurs and Their Companies. London: Routledge, 2010. Fortune magazine. Fortune magazine 500 Largest U.S.-Based Companies. 2015. 16 April 2015 . Koons, Cynthia. Walgreens Freezes Pay for U.S. Executives. 2015. 17 April 2015 . Walgreens. 2014 Diversity & Inclusion Report. 2014. 16 April 2015 . Walgreens. Benefits at Walgreens. 16 April 2015 . Walgreens. Walgreens at the Corner and Happy. 2015. 16 April 2015 . Read More