Video : Walmart

1. What strength of WalMart can make the company so strong globally? What can prevent Walmart (weakness) in getting a strong global position?

Basically, WalMart’s low-cost strategy makes the company earn the global reputation. The fact that WalMart is the huge company followed by IBM, HP, DELL and Microsoft, it has potential to expand its market world-widely as a multinational company. Its convenience also attracts customers to WalMart since it is more efficient than any other retailer in the world. Also, the company has a core competence involving its use of information technology to support its international logistics system. For example, it can see how individual products are performing country-wide, store-by-store at a glance. IT also supports Wal-Mart's efficient procurement. Lastly, a focused strategy is in place for human resource management and development. People are key to Wal-Mart's business and it invests time and money in training people, and retaining a developing them.
However, it threats the other smaller retailers so people get the negative idea of the company. Based on the fact that WalMart had failure to expand its market in South Korea and Germany, the markets abroad are more competitive and demanding than the company had actually expected. WalMart failed to localize in the foreign countries and did not tailored its stores and offerings to suit the needs of local people. Also, there are local barriers to enter the foreign market like in India, where only single brand is accepted but brand that sells a variety of other brands are not. Therefore, the company is global, but has has a presence in relatively few countries Worldwide.

2. How would you describe Walmart’s relationship with its suppliers? Since the price is the key for WalMart, most of WalMart’s suppliers are from China where employment standards are severely low.
Many American businesses suffers under the weight of Wal-Mart’s pressure. There is