Running head: Walmart 1

Wal-Mart

Veronica Lopez

South Texas College

Wal-Mart 2

Wal-Mart

Being an employee at a big corporation such as Walmart has changed my perspective on

different issues. Working at Walmart made me grow up since it gave me responsibilities of my

own at a young age. From handling big amounts of money to dealing with rude customers. It was

a challenge to grow up and make rational decisions that my boss would make. Another pro of

working with Walmart is getting to practice Spanish more. Being bilingual is a plus when living

in the United States. Since our population is very diverse. When they first brought the franchise

over to our small town of Hidalgo, Texas. Everyone got excited since we usually must drive

from fifteen to twenty minutes to our closest grocery store and depending on traffic. Having a

grocery store to us has saved us money since we don’t have to drive far and almost everything

that we might need is down the street.

Getting hired as an employee while the store was still in process of being finished was a

challenge. The franchise already had its program decisions. It was a couple of days of training in

the computer watching videos and answering questions about the videos. After online training,

getting trained at another store about how to work the register and what to do on certain

scenarios. Being a new employee working at the register was hectic at the beginning however,

having an idea of what was to be done or what steps were needed to follow helped at the

beginning to calm down the nerves. But of course, nothing is better than having a hands-on

learning. Since sometimes employees will show other employee’s tricks of how to get the job

done at a shorter time.

Managing at a well-known company having an operational plan would be ideal. It

would have a specific team that takes care of everyone’s schedule and making sure that all

employees are following procedures and policies. Most of all it needs to let the team know to
Wal-Mart 3

supervise all employees since the manager cannot watch everyone at the same time. Making sure

the team follows all policies is protecting everyone’s job. At the end of the day the manager

needs to protect their job and their employee’s since sometimes that is the only income coming

into a household. Having a specific team to take care of those issues will benefit the company in

the long run. First, it will protect the company from employee lawsuits by making sure

employees follow policies and proper procedures. Employees need to also give a fair number of

hours but also work on students’ schedules since someone will be attending school or have

another job. This team will also make sure people do not go overtime unless necessary. People

will suggest it will be waste of money. However, believing in the project is an investment since

we will be better organized as an organization. Be better prepared of any situation.

Change is constant in an organization. Failure to change is often what breaks a company.

In “Principles of Management” from Lumen Learning “Changing an organization is often

essential for a company to retain competitive. Failure to change may influence the ability of a

company to survive” (Lumen Learning, n.d.). However only because change should be

implemented does not mean all change is good. Change should be done when necessary or when

managers know that their current practice or process is not working. Change should be done

because it will be a cheaper process since it might end up hurting the company in the long run.

For example, on Sunday’s afternoon is when Walmart get crazy packed with customers. There

should be more employees working registers on Sundays since people want to get the groceries

for the week and go home and be with their family. Another issue is that some cashiers are to

slow when ringing up items which is what creates long lines. We should implement a system that

will speed up cashiers a little more. There are those type of customers that if cashiers are slow or

not many registers are open, they will leave their stuff in the front and walk out the store. They
Wal-Mart 4

hate the feeling of waiting on a long line when they still must go home and finish their errands.

Time is precious they cannot be waiting in line for large amounts of time.

As far as the business keeps growing, the manager should intend to do a few changes of

their own as they are a well-known franchise. Walmart is known for keeping customers happy by

keeping the prices very accessible to anyone. Walmart is also a supermarket with a one stop

shop. Anything you might need to buy should be found in the store. As the general manager

people should prefer my store over other stores. Growing up my mom would drive twenty

minutes to another Walmart because she said employees were nicer and cleaner. I want people to

think that about my Walmart. I want for my employees to welcome customers with a smile.

Employees should have an autonomy. When employees’ welcome customers and if

customers leave a compliment about a specific employee, they will be entered in a raffle that will

be monthly. The raffles can be worth up to one hundred dollars. However, the raffles will be

different monthly. And at the end of year there should be a grand raffle were all the names will

be entered. The yearly raffle will be a weekend getaway.

Another option is social media. Create a page on all platforms and let people know what

the specials are for the week. According to Statistica, “the number of worldwide users on social

media is projected to hit a whopping 3.02 billion active users per month by 2021. That is one-

third of the world’s entire population!” (Tariq, 2019) I have noticed that when business promote

or let customers know about the deals. It will encourage for customers to go to the store and

sometimes even make bigger purchases. It is more likely a customer will stop by because they

saw a promotion and usually will pick up other stuff along the way. Another reason is people

will come from other towns on even countries just to purchase certain items on sale.
Wal-Mart 5

Figure 1.2 The Progress in Sales from three years 2016-2019

This information was gathered from three years span of collecting data from different departments

Sales 2016 -2019

200000
150000
100000
50000
0
Cosmetics Groceries Clothes Toys Electronics

2016 2017 2018 2019

Figure 1.2

Figure 2.1 Cosmetic Sales from three years span 2016-2019

This information solemnly focuses on cosmetic sales since it is the department with the highest sales
in the store. The information gathered is from a three-year spam 2016-2019

Cosmetic Sales 2016- 2019

200000

150000

100000

50000

0
2016 2017 2018 2019

Cosmetics

Figure 2.1

As a general manager they need to learn that people will always talk about their decision

made. Having to learn to not let anything get to them. learning to always trust myself and always
Wal-Mart 6

make the decision that will have the best outcome. Also learning that not every decision will

succeed but must make the best out of every mistake and just keep learning and not make the

mistake twice.

Another thing that has to be learned is that as a general manager have the last word on

any decision. However, as a leader they should always have their team feel included and always

ask for their input on the decision. It is also good to sometimes listen other people thoughts

before any decision. They might see something that had not been thought about. In an online

article “By keeping the lines of communication open, these leaders can ensure that group

members feel able to make contributions and receive recognition for their achievements”

(Cherry, 2019) Managers want them to be creative and think outside the box. The team to feel as

passionate as they are. To want them to better themselves and be happy. If the team is happy the

customers will be happy. If the mangers want the store to succeed a rule of thumb to follow is,

they can make employees succeed. Employees need to understand the importance of taking care

of the customers and meeting all the goals that the manager set them up to. Any input should

always be considered they have to make this company succeed especially ours. I want my

location to be the way I remember being when growing up. When my mom would drive extra

because she preferred a certain store because of the employees. When everyone around her was

nice and she always felt welcomed.

Wal-Mart 7

References

Cherry, K. (2019, April 4). verywellmind. Retrieved from 10 ways to become a better leader :

https://www.verywellmind.com/ways-to-become-a-better-leader-2795324

Lumen Learning. (n.d.). Principles of Mangement. Retrieved from

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/principlesmanagement/chapter/7-4-organizational-change/

Tariq, A. (2019, April 24). 5 Smart Ways to Use Social Media to Grow Your Business in 2019. Retrieved

from Entrepreneur: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/330538