上海交通大学：《供应链管理 Supply Chain Management》课程教学资料_Case Studies_SampleWork2013Fall_Case_Wal-Mart Changes Tactics（贺艺）

Supply Chain Management HeYi5100309186 Case:Wal-Mart Changes Tactics Class F1003017贺艺5100309186 1.Besides a need to expand,what other reasons would Wal-Mart have for opening stores globally? 1.Global market forces. Global market forces involve the pressures created by foreign competitors,as well as the opportunities created by foreign customers.A rival European chain,Carrefour SA,has already a strong presence in the South American market.Wal-Mart could lose the market totally if it did not respond quickly. Much of the demand growth available to companies is in foreign and emerging markets. Foreign operations would also help Wal-Mart identify potential new low-cost suppliers for domestic operations. 2.Various subcomponents and technologies are available in different regions and locations around the world,so Wal-Mart needs to have the ability to use the resources quickly and effectively. 3.Global cost force.Cheaper labor is sufficient justification for overseas manufacturing 2.Why would it be beneficial for Wal-Mart to have suppliers in different countries? Having many suppliers in different countries would enhance Wal-Mart's "everyday low pricing"formula by allowing it to hedge against cost increases due to economic and/or political conditions in a given country,and would avoid the risk of the changing in the exchange rate of the money.Besides,this can lower the transportation cost and the lead time,as well as cheap labor resources. 3.Why would Wal-Mart want strong centralized control of its stores? Strong centralized control is helpful for aligning local operations with the overall corporate objectives.Additionally,Wal-Mart's years of domestic expertise in retail operations,e.g.,distribution systems,can best be leveraged to improve distribution in South America if strong centralized control is implemented.On the other hand,it may be impossible to analyze customer preferences and understand cultural 1

Supply Chain Management He Yi 5100309186 1 Case: Wal-Mart Changes Tactics Class F1003017 贺艺 5100309186 1. Besides a need to expand, what other reasons would Wal-Mart have for opening stores globally? 1. Global market forces.  Global market forces involve the pressures created by foreign competitors, as well as the opportunities created by foreign customers. A rival European chain, Carrefour SA, has already a strong presence in the South American market. Wal-Mart could lose the market totally if it did not respond quickly.  Much of the demand growth available to companies is in foreign and emerging markets.  Foreign operations would also help Wal-Mart identify potential new low-cost suppliers for domestic operations. 2. Various subcomponents and technologies are available in different regions and locations around the world, so Wal-Mart needs to have the ability to use the resources quickly and effectively. 3. Global cost force. Cheaper labor is sufficient justification for overseas manufacturing 2. Why would it be beneficial for Wal-Mart to have suppliers in different countries? Having many suppliers in different countries would enhance Wal-Mart's "everyday low pricing" formula by allowing it to hedge against cost increases due to economic and/or political conditions in a given country, and would avoid the risk of the changing in the exchange rate of the money. Besides, this can lower the transportation cost and the lead time, as well as cheap labor resources. 3. Why would Wal-Mart want strong centralized control of its stores? Strong centralized control is helpful for aligning local operations with the overall corporate objectives. Additionally, Wal-Mart's years of domestic expertise in retail operations, e.g., distribution systems, can best be leveraged to improve distribution in South America if strong centralized control is implemented. On the other hand, it may be impossible to analyze customer preferences and understand cultural

Supply Chain Management HeYi5100309186 differences unless local managers control certain aspects of the business. 4.Why would Wal-Mart want strong local control of stores? Because it may not want to lose the domestic market,they have to compete with other companies around. Besides they may be concern about the political stability,for example in South America,they may suffer from the local policy. Also the exchange rate between different kinds of money is one of the reasons. For example,the rate between RMB and US dollar is always changing,a strong local control can make the business more stable. 2

Supply Chain Management He Yi 5100309186 2 differences unless local managers control certain aspects of the business. 4. Why would Wal-Mart want strong local control of stores? Because it may not want to lose the domestic market, they have to compete with other companies around. Besides they may be concern about the political stability, for example in South America, they may suffer from the local policy. Also the exchange rate between different kinds of money is one of the reasons. For example, the rate between RMB and US dollar is always changing, a strong local control can make the business more stable