Title of Assignment: international business & strategy,

A Case Study on Wal-Mart Company

Name: Basheer Mohamad Hassan Alkhatib

Student Number:@00406850

Institution’s Name: Robert Kennedy College, Salford University

Lecturer’s Name: Dr. Alistair Benson

Date: 24th/ August/2014

 Executive summary

Wal-Mart Company operates under four corporate strategies in the change

management; dominating the retail markets expansion in the USA and the global markets,

creating the best brands and branching up new-retail sectors. The strategies by the Wal-Mart

public affairs strategy need to function so that they can identify and implement change

management. This has enabled the company to get into other sectors within the international

businesses.

The public affairs of the company in the international business strategy have been

found to work well in connection with the corporate strategy. This has worked best due the

strategies that address on negative feeling that some people have towards the company that it

encroaches so many retail sectors in the economy (KETELHÖHN 1993). The addressing of

these concerns has enabled the Wal-Mart Company thrives in the international business

making it enjoy continued success in the global market and its name recognized in the

international market.

Introduction

The international business strategy is described as all the plans that guide all the

commercial transactions happening between businesses across the world. Most of the

organizations at one point of their supply chain management deal with an international

partner which becomes very important to their success (KETELHÖHN 1993). The paper will

focus on the change management identification and implementation, the potential issues and

pitfalls and the strategic leadership of Wal-Mart Company.

 The organizational change management identification and implementation of

the Wal-Mart Company

Change management identification and implementation in Wal-Mart Company

entails the activities that are related to ensuring that the company can adopt the new

technology and the new customer service systems. The effective use of the change

management has been one of the core factors of the strategies to transform the company in its

processes, technology and the employees that has enhanced its performance and ensuring

continuous improvement in the changing business environment. The company’s change

management that is comprehensive and well-structured has been critical to the success of its

projects and therefore leading to important changes.

Potential issues in change management of the Wal-Mart Company

Change management has been one of the problems that face the Company due to the

disagreements on the factors that influences the initiatives for transformations. In this regard,

it is observed that the managers in the Wal-Mart Company look on the initiatives on the

different perspective based on their personal experience and also focusing on the different

factors of success. The experts in the company too usually give their perspectives to the

change initiative. All these ideas have had great to offer to the company, but in the cases

where they are taken together in tackling the priorities of the company the skills and the

resources are affected. To accompany change, the company executives have found it

necessary to use different approaches in different areas within the company (ELLIS &

WILLIAMS 1995).

The change management in the Wal-Mart Company has been focusing on the soft

issues like the leadership, the culture of the company and the motivation. These elements

have been significant in the company’s success but when it comes to managing them, it
appears insufficient in the implementation of the change management since the soft factors

do not affect the results of the change programs directly.

The company has had an issue on worrying about time in the implementation of the

change programs. In this regard, they tend to assume that those initiatives that take the long

time are likely to fall. This has resulted to the closure of their opportunities, forgetting their

objectives, loss of enthusiasm and consequently the company has accumulated so many

problems.

Theoretical constructs in the change management

The Wal-Mart company change management identification and implementation can

be based on various theoretical constructs. The theories include

The change valence theory

This theory is drawn on the company motivation in which the commitment to change

depends on the change valence. According to the theory, it can be seen that the more the

company will value the change management; it is likely to implement the change. Change

valence brings more theoretical coherence and the drivers of change management (LENZ &

ENGLEDOW 1986).

The theory of the change efficacy

This theory is drawn on the social cognitive theory, whereby it is proposed that

change efficacy largely depends on the members of the company. In the formulation of the

change management the Wal-Mart Company members have shared, assimilated and also

integrated the information on change implementation and resources to implement the change

management. The company has also considered some situational factors like time in the

implementation of the change management and also whether the internal environment of the

company supports the change.

 Potential pitfalls and solutions in change management

The big size of the Wal-Mart company has attracted some major problems in its

operations despite its popularity. Some of the problems faced by the company include;

Discrimination in the workplace

Many women who work in the Wal-Mart Company have raised a claim over

discrimination in the areas of promotion. In their complaint, they state that promotions are

given to male staff members, and they are denied such opportunities

High cost of implementing changes in the company and also the potential misuse of the data

by the consumer.

High cost is associated with the time that is needed to implement the required change,

greater changes require more time for the company to implement. To solve the problem, Wal-

Mart company has enacted the policies in which the implementation costs will be shared with

the suppliers of the company and also provide some financial incentives to the suppliers who

can increase the company efficiency (EARLEY & SINGH 2000). A good example is seen in

the cases where the company leases the systems of the computers to its suppliers and finally

offer some discounts to the suppliers that increase their efficiencies in their processes.

In addressing the potential problem of the misuse of the consumers’ data, the

Company and its suppliers have ensured the strict adherence of the ethical policies and the

guidelines that have been set. The policies guide them on the gathering of the data, data

storage and also in the use of the data that is personally identifiable. Sometimes it becomes

tempting to share some data with a third party in return of payment but this does not show the

best way and strategies in attaining the confidence of the consumer and also their consent in

the process(EARLEY & SINGH 2000).

 Key strategic issues about change management and strategic leadership in Wal-

Mart Company

Wal-Mart Company is holding the record of being among the best-performing

companies in the world. Despite this, the company has not fully implemented its strategic

plan in change management and leadership fully especially when it comes to the public

relations. This has led to the bad impression of the company to their retail who view them as

bully and tyrant. There are some major strategic issues in the change management and

leadership that the company needs to adopt, the strategic issues include;

Adoption of friendly corporate attitude

This has been observed in the company in their attempt of displaying a cheery attitude

towards the public, but in the real sense, the Wal-Mart Company is very aggressive, in this

regard getting into understanding to the labor that is well-organized is needed. The company

leadership and management have the mandate of easing the company way to the global

market rather than barging in and end up purchasing other companies. The use of the above

strategy will enable the company becomes popular in the whole world and the largest retail

with popular stores (SODERQUIST 2005).

The corporate strategy of Wal-Mart

The Company has remained aggressive in its change management and its strategic

leadership. However, the company has gone out of its way and appears to be ruthless making

the public to have a bad perception that the company is there to destroy the community. The

company is working on this issue to shut down the perception of the public and therefore

providing jobs to the local people in the community. The company has also stopped

circumventing the laws when constructing new facilities. And this strategy has demonstrated

how the company can be a good neighbor to the community around (SODERQUIST 2005).

. Wal-Mart Company has also introduced a strategy of charity work to the public. The
company in the change management sends their managers to and the executives to the local

people and gives their time in good and meaningful way. Such donations are strategy to

expand their present pace which would eventually raise their profits immensely.

Wal-Mart Company has also initiated the strategy of anti-unionization and therefore

allowing the employees to have their unions. Just like any other organization, Wal-Mart

company is driven by profit and therefore encouraging the trend so that their profitability

may increase.

Finally, the company has initiated a strategy in the change management in which they

utilize their political capital fully so as to expand overseas. In this regard, the leaders have

bent their beliefs and therefore took into consideration the reaction of the local community.

The strategy has begun through dealing with the Japanese retailers. This strategy requires that

the Wal-Mart Company learn more on different cultures in the countries that they operate

(Canadian Business, 1996).

Change and leadership activities in Wal-Mart Company

Wal-Mart Company has made an outline of the leadership and the changes in the

global retail operations. The changes have been driven by the corporate employees all over

the world and who have higher expectations on the company leadership and change

management. The expectations of the company are to change the global environment that

they operate in so that their company can evolve rapidly.

The company’s efforts have reflected some major successes and the challenges which have

made it more popular and mainstreaming the movement towards the sustainability.

The sustainability in the leadership challenge of the Wal-Mart company

The experiences of the company have depicted the fact that sustainability is a core

factor to the leadership of the organization. Leadership challenges of the company have

greatly been associated with sustainability in the regard of the first- and last miles in the
journey of sustainability. The first mile of the sustainability constitutes of the technological

change in the company. This happens when the company’s demand is low, and this enables

the sustainability culture in the company and after the company made some small changes in

the technological innovations. The leadership challenge in the last mile in the Wal-Mart

Company sustainability involves getting to reach outside of the company to influence the

customers, competitors and the suppliers’ sustainability. In response to the above leadership

challenges, Wal-Mart Company has initiated strategies and tactics with the aim of fostering

the company commitment to sustainability in leading the global world (Canadian Business,

1996).

Creating sustainable change and leadership within the company

The change and leadership of the company usually start within. The key elements to

leadership include the setting and communication of the company’s goals, understanding how

the goals will be achieved and engaging all the levels of leadership in change management in

solving the company’s problem and implementation. It can be noted from the company that

there is no stakeholder, nor any resource can achieve the set goals without the efforts of

sustainability which enables them to be interdependent (Canadian Business, 1996).

`Wal-Mart began the change in leadership initiatives in the same manner that the

leaders looked on the business comprehensively and set their targets. The company calls this

‘sustainability 360’ which contains the following; eliminations of resource wastage,

empowerment by the renewable energy and selling the products that are sustainable. It is also

crucial to note that the above goals by the Wal-Mart company are inspired based on the social

and ethical issues of the company and more so tied directly to the bottom line of the

company.
 Conclusion

These practices have shown that leadership in the change management need to

articulate the means by which change will fit the company’s mission and vision and also

indicate how these efforts can fit the company’s duties. When the goals of change

management and leadership are conceived at the top management they will cascade down

and become more contagious and the employees will change their perception and thinking. In

this regard for a deep commitment to changes in the company, it is very important that the

leadership in the top level management support and also participate otherwise the employees

may become hesitant to the change (LASZLO 2008).

It is clearly seen that the journey towards change and leadership in the Wal-Mart

company is not short. As the company diversifies one of the key efforts to change is ensuring

that message will be instilled to the culture of the company such that the company employees

became more committed and dedicated to being active in participating in the change efforts.

It is also important to achieve essential change and leadership so as to achieve bold

sustainability in the goals of the company and also in engaging the important people who are

outside the company.

Recommendations

There have been some obstacles to change in the Wal-Mart company which is its

business model. This model usually imposes severe limitations to the price increase in the

company products due to the fear that its market will be taken away by the competitors. In

this regard, Wal-Mart Company should, therefore, generate the return on equity which is

comparable to satisfy the Wall Street and other investors. The growth in the company’s profit

comes from the expansion of its activities in the global world and also through procuring the

goods and the services at least prices and therefore using hazardous conditions of work in

trying to contribute to the profits. Wal-Mart (LASZLO 2008).

 The most-effective way to bring change in the company is by the pressure that the

consumers put on the retailers so as to ensure that the goods that they produce are safe to

consume and that the wages are fair. Additionally, it is recommended that the company’s

leaders in the change management should have a good size in the equity interest of the

company with a supply chain that is significant in the operations. The shareholders in the

company have also been recommended to exert pressure on the company so as to ensure they

abide by their code of conduct and build the good reputation and also sustainable growth.
 References

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Mart stumbles into a cultural chasm" January, 1996 V.69: 23,24.

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ELLIS, J., & WILLIAMS, D. (1995). International business strategy. London

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LENZ, R. T., & ENGLEDOW, J. L. (1986). Environmental analysis: The applicability

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EARLEY, P. C., & SINGH, H. (2000). Innovations in international and cross-

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