Business strategy refers to an outline of decisions and actions that a firm plans to achieve its business objectives. In the process, a company clearly defines what has to be done and who is responsible for doing the specific action. Any company needs to consider setting a business strategy that helps different departments form collaborative efforts in supporting the foals of the firm. This paper explores the business strategy of Walmart company which is based in the US but with different chains globally.
Walmart’s business strategy mainly focuses on being competitive in regards to assortment, making unique access to the products, price segmentation, and delivery of satisfactory services to the customers. The strategy has enabled Walmart to be recognized in the world with one-stop shopping and everyday low cost (EDLC) for the range of products offered (Pratap, 2017). Business strategy is important for any company to thrive in the market because it gives the framework for serving customers and developing products in a current manner according to market trends. Walmart managed to reach a revenue of $514.4 billion by the end of 2019 (Pratap, 2017). For instance, Walmart’s business strategy has ensured the company gets a competitive advantage over other retail industry key players such as Amazon. There is an increase in sales because the strategy wins many customers hence benefiting the firm in terms of return on revenue.
Competitive priority refers to the dimension that a company’s production line must own to support the market demands in which the firm intends to compete. The four competitive priorities as discussed in the text include cost, time, quality, and flexibility. Costs must be low in terms of operations while satisfying the clients (Jindal et al., 2021). For the aspect of time, delivery of products should be speedy and punctual. Flexibility means there can be customization by low volume with a wide variety of assortments to be included in the business portfolio. Walmart is using cost flexibility competitive priority because the firm has a range of assortments such as grocery, meat, wellness, and entertainment equipment (Ward, 2020). This aspect has led to Walmart being a multinational chain that offers a variety of items under one store.
In business, productivity means the proportion between the yield volume and the volume of inputs. For instance, capital productivity shows the ratio of goods or services to actual capital. The other one is material productivity which shows the proportion of goods or services to natural resources (Jindal et al., 2021). Additionally, there is labor productivity that measures the transformation of the workforce to deliver services or develop products. Walmart practices capital productivity by checking revenue per sales unit and the stockout rate. The productivity practice is related to Walmart’s business strategy because it enables the finance department to know the rate at which their goods are being bought and hence know where to improve to beat rival firms.
In business, technology may be of various types such as networking, software, and inventory control system. Networking technology involves the linking of computers that enable employees to share data and information. Software technology focuses on providing services such as the financial spreadsheet system used in accounting (Ward, 2020). Inventory control system technology applies modern applications in computers to track stock for a given business entity. Walmart is using software technology in its Walmart Mobile Applications that are used to order products online, and the items are delivered by self-driven cars to the required destination. A business strategy involves unique measures that a company does to have a better competitive advantage. Walmart has specialized in fair customer services and lower prices that are meant to increase its market share. The company has applied technology such as mobile applications that buyers may order items. Therefore, Walmart’s business strategy has enabled the company to have more revenue and get a fair reputation in the retail industry.
References
Jindal, R., Gauri, D., Li, W., & Ma, Y. (2021). An omnichannel battle between Amazon and Walmart: Is the focus on delivery the best strategy. Journal of Business Research, 122(4), 270-280. Web.
Pratap, A. (2017). Walmart’s business strategy: A case study of cost leadership and technological innovation notesmatic. Web.
Ward, T. (2020). Walmart teams up with a cruise to pilot all-electric self-driving delivery powered by 100% renewable energy. Web.