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1. Company Profile Wal-Mart Stores Inc., branded as Wal-Mart is an American multinational retail corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. Wal-Mart was founded by Sam Walton in 1962 in Rogers Arkansas. "If we work together," he said, "we'll lower the cost of living for everyone...we'll give the world an opportunity to see what it's like to save and have a better life."

The company is the worlds second largest public corporation, according to the Fortune Global 500 list in 2013, the biggest private employer in the world with over two million employees, and is the largest retailer in the world. Wal-Mart remains a family-owned business, as the company is controlled by the Walton family, who own over 50 percent of Wal-Mart. It is also one of the worlds most valuable companies. Wal-Mart helps people around the world save money and live better anytime and anywhere in retail stores, online and through their mobile devices. Each week, more than 245 million customers and members visit 11,000 stores under 69 banners in 27 countries and e-commerce websites in 10 countries. With fiscal year 2013 sales of approximately $466 billion, Wal-Mart employs 2.2 million associates worldwide.

Vision Statement

Saving people money to help them live better.

Mission Statement

Offers the best quality merchandise at the lowest prices in all their stores, from school supplies, to household items and top quality groceries.

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2. History 1960 : Retail Revolution

Sam Waltons Strategy was built on an unshakable foundation. The Lowest Prices Anytime, Anywhere

1962 : On July 2, 1962, Sam Walton opened the first Wal-Mart store in Rogers, Arkansas.

1967 : The Walton family owned 24 stores, ringing up $12.7 million in sales.

1970 : Wal-Mart became a publicly traded company. The first stock was

sold at $16.50 per share.

1972 : Wal-Mart was listed in the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange).With 51 stores, Wal-Mart recorded sales of $78 million.

1983 : The first Sams Club opened in Midwest City, Okla. Wal-Mart

replaced cash registers with computerized point-of-sale systems, enabling fast and accurate checkout.

1987 : The company installed the largest private satellite communication

system in the U.S, linking the companys operations through voice, data and video communication.

1990 : By 1990, Wal-Mart was the nations number-one retailer. As the

Wal-Mart Supercenter redefined convenience and one-stop shopping, Every Day Low Prices went international.

1991 : Wal-Mart became an international company when Sam's Club near Mexico City was opened.

1997 : The company celebrated its first $100 billion sales year.

2000 : H. Lee Scott, Jr. succeeded David Glass as CEO.

Walmart.com was founded, allowing U.S. customers to shop online.

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Wal-Mart employed more than 1.1 million associates in 3,989 stores and clubs worldwide.

2009 : Mike Duke became CEO. Wal-Mart entered Chile with the

acquisition of a majority stake in D&S S.A. For the first time, Wal-Mart exceeded $400 billion in annual sales.

2014 : Doug McMillon succeeded Mike Duke as CEO

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3. Success Factors of Wal-Mart

3.1. Cost Management

Since cost is the most important tool that drives business to success, the strategy for managing cost is important for business to succeed especially for giant retailer like Wal-Mart. Since the retailers already have to compete for lowering the prices the business performance highly depends on its cost reduction methods. Wal-Mart always emphasized the need to reduce its purchasing costs and offer the best price to its customers.

3.1.1. Supply Chain Management: Supply Chain Management is moving the right items to the right customer at the right time by the most efficient means. According to analysts, Wal-Mart was able to achieve a leadership status in the retail industry because of its efficient supply chain management practices. As Wal-Mart used sophisticated barcode technology and hand-held computer systems, managing the goods became easier and more economical. Almost all product data can be tracked to and from the manufacturer, warehouse and the store shelf.

3.1.2. Operation and Distribution: Wal-Mart has its fast and responsive transportation system. The distribution centers were serviced by more than 3500 company owned trucks. These trucks ship goods from the distribution centers to the stores within two days and replenish the store shelves twice a week. Wal-Mart opens the stores outside of large cities and within 200 miles of existing stores. By bunching stores together in small areas, distribution costs are below average. Wal-Mart also made use of a logistics technique known as cross-docking. In this system, the finished goods were directly picked up from the manufacturing plant of a supplier, sorted out and then directly supplied to the customers. The system reduced the handling and storage of finished goods, virtually eliminating the role of the distribution centers and stores.

3.1.3. Bargain Power: Wal-Mart buys its products at rock-bottom prices, exchanges high purchase volumes for low cost while passing the savings onto its customers. The bargaining power of suppliers is weak. Many suppliers even give in to Wal-Marts pressure because they depend on the discount retailer for the majority of their sales. For most producers,

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Wal-Mart is their largest account. Obviously, they would do what Wal-Mart wanted them to do if they hoped to maintain their sales.

3.1.4. Technology Investment: Technology investment is also a great approach that Wal-Mart used to minimize cost. According to Wal-Marts history, the first technology investment was for computer system which was Sams idea. The computers capabilities have great effect on business management such as provide on-time information for all levels of managers. With technology, the company had fasten the data processing time, improved customer services, reduced cost for gathering data from all divisions. Wal-Mart also set up its own satellite communication system in 1983 to create just-in-time ordering with many of its key suppliers. Essentially, what this means is that when the stock of certain products hit a reordering point, an automated response is sent out instantaneously via satellite to the supplier of that product, purchasing more units, automatically shipping the units to its stores, and paying for the new units electronically all in the blink of an eye. This form of payment and restocking vastly decreases the amount of time it would normally take, thus saving time and money. Wal-Mart has recently used the RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology that allows the company to greatly improve its inventory information. Items could be easily located in the store, and restocking would become more efficient and timely. Eventually, the strong scanning capabilities of RFID technology is used at checkout lines, allowing customers to simply push their cart through the line and receive a receipt as they leave the store.

3.2. Growth Management

Strategy for business expansion is one of the most important strategies for driving Wal-Mart to be the biggest company in the world. Since 1962, Wal-Mart has geographically expanded in North America, Europe, and Asia. With positive vision of Sam Walton how the business can grow, Wal-Mart had dramatically expanded from a single store to thousands of store, clubs, and supercenters around the world. From the managerial standpoint, these plans can succeed based on two basic components which are location and acquisition.

3.2.1. Location: The best location for each store vary by geography and involve with many outsource factors such as distant and cost. One characteristic of

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a best location for Wal-Mart store is positioning close to the distribution center. By choosing the nearest location to the distribution center will reduce the shipping time and gas expense for the truck. Moreover, the best location also must be around the community not in a rural area. By placing the store around town will be convenience for customers to shop by saving their time of driving.

3.2.2. Acquisition: Acquisition is a term referred to company that will corporate with Wal-Mart in order to serve people. In order to corporate with Wal-Mart, a good acquisition must built-in by quality people with experience and high commitment especially they must get along with Wal-Mart culture. One of the great benefits of operating with a well-known acquisition is that company will gain returns on the investment in a shorter period. Because the acquisitions are already well-known in the regional, by only apply Wal-Marts operational model to those stores and operate the stores by almost the same people, at the same place, and with the same merchandise, those stores will increase its sales and eventually businesses will rise to the top rank. For example, Woolco is the number four discounter in Canada. After three years of joining operation with Wal-Mart, now it has doubled the sales and become the number one retailer in Canada.

3.3. People Management The strategy for managing people is one of the important strategies that lead Wal-Mart to be the biggest company in the world with the highest amount of employee.

3.3.1. Motivation: Wal-Mart takes all of its effort to make employees feel like they are part of the company because they are sources of new idea for Wal-Mart to develop. One of the facts proved about this motivation is the used of term association instead of employee because it make them feel more engagement with the company. In the Wal-Mart market, each of associates put on staff card without name, even CEO also put on the same staff card which shows some characters -- Our People Makes Difference. It can create a family-oriented business instead of boss-oriented one. Beside the way of treating people, Wal-Mart also offers competitive pay and benefits, including health care plans, education assistance, retirement plans, and training and development opportunities.

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We offer eligible hourly store associates quarterly cash bonus opportunities, a health care plan that starts at $17 per pay period, a 401k plan with a company match, a 10% discount on merchandise, and, most of all, a chance to move up through the ranks.

3.3.2. Internal Promotion: Another basic activity beside motivation employees is internal promotion that brings Wal-Mart to succeed in managing its human resource. Because Wal-Mart aimed at peoples involvement for all levels of association, it had developed many learning program to prepare them to be a leader. For example Larry English who started at one of Wal-Mart stores in Harrison as a stock boy, then became an assistant manager at Wal-Mart #1 in Rogers, Arkansas. In 1970, he had become a manager in Newport, Arkansas. After financial management training, Larry became a field manager operating many stores.

3.3.3. External Recruitment: From Wal-Marts history, company had hired many small business owners when it first started. Those business owners were very important to the company because they possessed the entrepreneurial characteristics such as penny saving and risky. Moreover, Wal-Mart also hires external people who have experience in business management or expertise in a specific division to back up the business.

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4. Conclusion

By implementing the above strategies successfully, Wal-Mart has become biggest retailer in the US and to the biggest company in the world from a single store. The cost management strategies of Wal-Mart aided in the reduction of company cost allowing it to provide the customers with products at lower price. Moreover, the growth management strategy had dragged Wal-Mart into the right direction of expansion and development. Lastly, human resource strategies are utilized in the Wal-Mart successfully, and it achieved to increase productivity and working efficiency and create a great workplace environment which full of self-improvement, competition, and respects. It also provides an opportunity for people to build-up experience from the low-rank position to the high-rank position. Therefore, strong management in these three strategies had transformed Wal-Mart into the biggest company in the world with the highest number of employees worldwide and able to achieve the vision Saving people money to help them live better.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Websites:

1. Company Profile

2. History

3. Cost Management

4. Technology

5. Technology

6. People

7. Motivation