Restructuring of Walmart: Managing Labor Costs

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Question 1
To manage labor costs and retain talent, Walmart undertook a major restructuring. The goal was to reduce the midlevel managers within stores and boost compensations for such roles. Through the restructuring program, workers were expected to apply for better pay opportunities that required managing teams. The current managers within the stores were also expected to apply for these novel roles. The workers would be assigned responsibilities as business leads, academy trainers, and team leads through these new roles. Walmart aims to push decisions down and ensure the customer experience is optimized, and compete effectively in the market (Nassauer, 2019).
The restructuring would increase wages by ensuring that team leads are paid higher wages while optimizing other areas, such as delivery and pickup. Overall, the wage cost will reduce because fewer employees will operate within the stores while optimizing external workers to meet the customers' demands. On the other hand, the quality of customer service will be enhanced because the decision will be made faster through the team leads and business leads. With increased wages, employee retention will be higher because qualified workers will be devoted more to the organization (Nassauer, 2019).
The potential downside is that the proposed structure can fail, affecting customer service. In order to mitigate the risk of failure, there is a need to undertake comprehensive training and motivate the workers to ensure that there is recognition for better performance. The aim of reducing labor costs can produce other business risks that can harm the organization's operations (Nassauer, 2019).
Question 2
Organizational culture is an important factor in ensuring strong businesses endure. When the company culture is good, the brand experience is also optimized. Notably, culture is what informs the organization's vision and mission. One of the best components of Raleigh and Rosse's organizational culture is its focus on customers. This is an important aspect that guarantees competitive advantage and ensures consistency in market growth. Raleigh and Rosse's culture also includes having high working ethics and experienced sales representatives, who are important in tackling issues related to customer experiences (Simons & Mahoney, 2011). There is a shared belief that accountability is key to the organization.
The company has focused on recruiting ambitious college graduates with strong work ethics. This critical aspect guaranteed positive outcomes by training the associates in pro-customer values. With these norms, it was easier to maintain the policy of promoting from within, which was essential in motivating the sales associates through advancement to higher levels (Simons & Mahoney, 2011). Another aspect of the culture is having proper compensation and rewards for associates, which is vital in increasing sales. The culture also embraces technology as a resource to enhance operational efficienc...