WALMART- PART II.A (The Essay)

I've come to realize that mother Earth is not getting any better. I've come to realize that companies should not be only focusing with profits but also thinking of things that they can do to save the ailing world, a world that cries for help and that begs for consideration. Through the help of my teammates and without their knowings, we've chosen two companies that care or started to care for the environment: Walmart and Duke Energy.

Be shocked but don't be cynical. Walmart is going green for good. Like people, companies change for the better and Walmart is starting to do that. The goals seem to be far-fetched and idealistic but nevertheless, these are the kind of goals that the world's biggest retailer wants to achieve. One question remains: How do Walmart's goals relate to its operational, managerial and strategic activities? I believe that the following are the answers:

Operational Activities and Walmart's Goals- Walmart is attached to almost anything from electronics to school supplies. Its goals are related to its operational activities in that this company's operations or the arrays of goods and services it provides directly tie back to its goals. For example, Walmart is known for transporting goods by land using trucks, which are a part of its current goals. Walmart provides a variety of natural products, which are obtained from the environment, which is the primary focus of the current goals.

Managerial Activities and Walmart's Goals- Though many people are unaware or simply do not care, Walmart has been investing approximately $500 million annually in technologies and innovation to fulfill its store goals. Walmart has also indicated that it is adoptiong a stting and construction policy in the next 12 months that addresses environment, social and historical considerations. In my opinion, these are two of the many decisions that reflect managerial activities of Walmart, decisions that play a vital role in achieving its goals.

Strategic Activities and Walmart's Goals- Walmart's goal is related to its strategic activities in a way that Walmart is taking strides or actions that are environmentally sound and safe. Walmart indicated that it has been looking at innovative ways to reduce greenhouse effects gas emission and it is taking responsibility for its actions (e.g. if its trucks are inefficient from a fuel standpoint, it'll pay for that at the diesel pump). These are the kinds of strategic activities that, I believe, will not only positively affect the way the corporate world views Walmart but will also help it to achieve its internal goals.

Walmart is worth more than $228 billion based on market capitalization and to effectively support all the aforementioned activities means that the kind of information technology that needs to be instituted are the very large and special systems. This allows each department to have its own system in placed (e.g. accounting department will utilize accounting information and operations department will utilize operational decision support system). This will allow departments to fully and effectively utilize systems that are exclusive for them. In then end, the performance of the departments will likely increase with the help of the information technology and in turn, will effectively and efficiently support the activities of the company.

Some information were obtained from http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/05/its_getting_har.php