Human Resource Strategies for Walmart - Case Study Example

Wal-Mart Stores, ranked 1st in America's largest corporation category (Fortune 500 2007) and 19th in most admired companies category (Top 20 Most Admired Companies 2007) is definitely one of the most successful companies that has been established. Based from its stellar achievements and as the current biggest retail chain in the world, Wal-Mart provides superb service to its investors. The company puts into practice Sam Walton's secret of successful retailing, "to give your customers what they want." (The Wal-Mart Story 2007) A trailblazer in the retail industry, Wal-Mart has branched out its operation from just an ordinary retail chain to different kinds of retail services. It has Discount Stores, Supercenters (for one-stop shopping), and Neighborhood Markets (convenience stores). It also operates Sam's Club, America's leading members-only warehouse club (Our Retail Divisions 2007). Being the leader not just in a particular industry but to the whole business world as a whole in terms of revenues is a result of effective policies, plans, and strategies against its competitors. In case of Wal-Mart, their competitive advantage lies on how well and effective they make their principles into reality. Wal-Mart considers its corporate culture as one of the keys for its outstanding success. Walton was able instill his inspiring and motivating beliefs and principles that is being abided and taken by heart by his employees then, until now. Wal-Mart has retained the culture based on tested principles for a successful business and life (The Wal-Mart Culture 2007). Wal-Mart's Corporate Culture Three Basic Beliefs The cornerstones by which Wal-Mart stands on are its Three Basic Beliefs. These three main thrust play an important role in decision making and other activities the company does. They are also the standards by which the accomplishments and performances of individual personnel or of the entire organization is measured. Respect the Individual - Wal-Mart believes that they are a group of dedicated, hardworking and ordinary individuals who are united "to make extraordinary things." Being an organization as such is no easy task. One of the essentials of making this happen goal happen is to treat each individual member within and outside the organization with respect and dignity. Service to our Customers - The retail giant knows that they are nothing without their customers. Because of this the company strives to ensure that each of the hard-earned dollar spent by their customers to their service is compensated accordingly by offering quality merchandise at the lowest price while providing outstanding service to them. Strive for Excellence - Wal-Mart's amazing success is a product of innovative and trailblazing ideas and goals that stretch their horizons further. For Walton, it is not enough that Wal-Mart offers low prices or high quality. He believed that striving for excellence by incorporating fresh and innovative ideas that will get them ahead of the pack. Accomplishing a feat is not enough. Complacency is never attained at Wal-Mart as the company takes each accomplishment as a stepping stone for another success. Sustainable improvement is what Walton wants for his organization (Three Basic Beliefs 2007). Sam's Rules for Building Businesses Perhaps still unsatisfied with the brevity of his three basic beliefs, Walton elaborated ten rules that would rev up his business steps higher. Together with the three basic beliefs, he had revealed much of his secrets before his death in April 1992. Commit to your business - The unwavering passion for making the business a phenomenal success is what Walton instilled in the minds and the hearts of his employees. For him the love for work and the desire to excel in it is needed in this fiercely competitive world. Share your profits with all your associates, and treat them as partners. - For Walton encouraging his associates to hold a stake in a company is important for them to accompany Wal-Mart in pursuing their dreams. By offering them discounted stocks and stocks upon their retirement, Wal-Mart increases the loyalty and commitment of their associates to them. Motivate your partners. - For Walton, business with partners does not end with money and ownership of the corporation. Another essential element for success is the motivation that Wal-Mart gives to their partners. New and unfamiliar ways to motivate their partners is regularly being done by Wal-Mart. Some ways to do this, according to Walton is to "set high goals, encourage competition, and then to keep score." Communicate everything you possibly can to your partners. - Walton emphasizes on the importance and power of communication in today's business frontier. Depriving associates and partners of this essential commodity is tantamount to not considering them as partners at all. "The more they know, the more they'll understand. The more they understand, the more they'll care. Once they care, there's no stopping them," said Walton. Appreciate everything your associates do for the business. - Paychecks and stock options would only buy one kind of loyalty. Acknowledgement and recognition of each associate's accomplishments also boost their morale and improve their loyalty. There is no alternative for a few yet well-chosen, well-delivered and well-timed sincere affirmations or words of praise to associates. Instead of being free, they are "worth a fortune." Celebrate your successes. - Loosening up by finding some humor in failures makes people around you loosen up too, quips Walton. Having fun and showing enthusiasm are keys to build up close and fruitful relationship. Lessening stress at the workplace and establishing a positive outlook in life. Playing and having fun even sends an impression to the competition that Wal-Mart does not take things seriously. Listen to everyone in your company. - Feedback from customers actually comes from the people who personally interact with them - the front-line associates. It is from them that valuable inputs for the improvement of the entire organization needs. Aside from them, anyone in the company, especially those in the managerial positions, should listen to the qualms or any other information that associates give. Walton even stressed that this activity is what total quality is all about. "To push responsibility down in the organization, and to force good ideasyou must listen to what your associates are trying to tell you," advised Walton. Knowing the value of listening, managers should also find ways to get associates talking. The next best idea or solution might come from them. The Saturday Morning Exceed your customers' expectations. - A little more of what customers want would make them return to a store again and again. Customer appreciation is very vital in retail business. Their expectations in a store should also be exceeded to thoroughly say the words etched on the first Wal-Mart sign, "Satisfaction Guaranteed." Control your expenses better than your competition. - Wal-Mart boasts of its ranked first in terms of ratio of expenses to sales for the past 25 years. Their spectacular efficiency in terms of operations has given them edge in competition. Walton believed that a company can make numerous and various mistakes and still recover if it is efficiently operated. He made it sure that Wal-Mart complies with this principle. Swim upstream. - Walton challenged his associates to go the other way by breaking conventional wisdom. "If everybody else is doing it one way, there's a good chance that you can find your niche by going in exactly the opposite direction." Creating a new niche by challenging the conventional and the usual was what Walton was able to do in his business. Creating niche markets that serves different needs of customers made Wal-Mart a powerhouse in retail industry. It is no wonder that the company is now the world's largest retailer (Sam's Rule for Building Business 2007). Sundown Rule With all the principles and practices that Sam Walton instilled in his associates at Wal-Mart, the question is when would an associate take the initiative in carrying them out. Walton again provided an answer. The Wal-Mart culture injects the value concerning how associates should value their time and, especially their customers' in the hearts of each member of Wal-Mart by its Sundown rule. A sense of urgency, a respect for others' time, and the desire to exceed our customers' expectations are what the Sundown rule is all about. Wal-Mart drives its associates to attend to the needs of its customers aptly and promptly without wasting their valuable time. This quick and prompt action coupled with the desire to serve customers beyond their expectations makes Wal-Mart associates proactive in handing out their services (Sundown Rule 2007). Action Learning in Wal-Mart Setting The author believes that Action Learning Theory in organizational management is being exemplified in Wal-Mart's setting. This theory is best expressed by the formula Krystyna Weinstein laid down: L = P+Q+A+R where L = learning, P = programmed knowledge, Q = questioning, A= action, and R= reflection. Thus based on this theory, an organization can learn and improve through the programmed knowledge (principles, theories, textbook materials); and then questioning of the status quo, finding out what went wrong in the former plan or method of action; and then planning and implementation of a new plan; and lastly reflection on the current action being implemented and how would it improve the performance of the organization in the future (Action Learning 2005). Based from Wal-Mart's principles, Walton is instilling a culture of excellence that goes beyond the expectations of the corporation's customers and partners. He developed a culture that fosters communication, listening, prompt action, sense of urgency and innovative thinking. These are vital values that are inculcated in the hearts and minds of his associates and partners. Learning through Listening Aside from this, Wal-Mart is intensifying its learning campaign to improve and enhance learning in the organization. Under the leadership of John DiBenetto, the present vice president, talent planning and development of Wal-Mart, the retail giant is planning to involve different prestigious universities, such as Cornell and Duke, in educating the managers for the company's overall development, aside from planning to establish a world-class corporate university, the Wal-Mart University. He is also opting for a learning strategy that will use current technologies such as handheld learning devices and podcasts in lecturing his students (Whitney 2006). A regular event, the Saturday Morning Meeting, provides an avenue for Wal-Mart associates to discuss what happened in the organization within a specific time period. This is also a venue to apply the principles that prompt the whole organization to question the current status of the company and what should be done to improve them. This is also where associates are acknowledged for their outstanding performance. On any given Saturday, Wal-Mart will also invite different personalities within and outside the company to provide his assessment and to give his professional and even personal inputs on what the organization should do in the future. Action based from the inputs and suggestions made by different associates and personalities are also planned in this meetings (Saturday Morning Meetings 2007). Putting Principles into Action After listening from the inputs from different sources, Wal-Mart now puts its principles, especially the Sundown rule, into effect. Wal-Mart's list of principles provides a benchmark used in measuring the effectiveness and the responsiveness of Wal-Mart's plans to prevent past, present and future problems from creating blemish in the organization. As an example of Wal-Mart's implementation of their Sundown rule, Wal-Mart is currently implementing its employment diversity program which aims to employ associates from different sexual, racial and cultural backgrounds. Recently Wal-Mart is the hot item with regards to failure of implementing gender and racial equality for its associates. Aware of these issues, Wal-Mart has opened up is doors for different nationalities. To show its seriousness in tackling the issue, it has appointed an executive, Chief Diversity Officer, which handles its diversity strategies. Heading the Diversity Relations Department, the Chief Diversity Officer oversees the implementation of fair and equal treatment to diverse sexual, cultural and racial differences. This also provides a venue to hear the complaints about inequality and discrimination within Wal-Mart (Office of Diversity 2007). Furthermore this is actually a result of the reflection done by Wal-Mart as a response to the discrimination issues. This exemplifies its principle of striving for excellence and providing excellent service to their customers. To salvage the reputation of the company, Wal-Mart quickly responds to the needs of the time and assessed what things are to be done in the future as evidenced in the establishment of Diversity Relations Department and, in the case of the retail giant's talent planning and development department, the acquisition of new technologies that would expedite and improve learning in Wal-Mart. References Clark, W. 2005 Action Learning, viewed 13 August 2007 CNNMoney 2007 Fortune 500 2007, viewed 13 August 2007 CNNMoney 2007 Top 20 Most Admired Companies, 2007, viewed 13 August 2007, Office of Diversity 2007, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc, viewed 13 August 2007 Our Retail Divisions 2007, Wal-Mart Stores Facts, viewed 13 August 2007 http://www.walmartfacts.com/articles/2502.aspx Sam's Rule for Building Business 2007, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc, viewed 13 August 2007, < http://walmartstores.com/GlobalWMStoresWeb/navigate.docatg=255> Saturday Morning Meetings, 2007, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc, viewed 13 August 2007, < http://walmartstores.com/GlobalWMStoresWeb/navigate.docatg=260> Sundown Rule, 2007, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc, viewed 13 August 2007, < http://walmartstores.com/GlobalWMStoresWeb/navigate.docatg=256> The Wal-Mart Culture 2007 Wal-Mart Stores, Inc, viewed 13 August 2007 The Wal-Mart Story. 2007 Wal-Mart Facts, viewed 13 August 2007 Three Basic Beliefs 2007, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc, viewed 13 August 2007, < http://walmartstores.com/GlobalWMStoresWeb/navigate.docatg=252> Whitney, K. 2006, Wal-Mart: Rebuilding Learning, One Box at a Time. Chief Learning Officer, Mediatec Publiching, Inc, viewed 13 August 2007, Read More