...Is Wal-Mart an ethical marketer? why or why not? I do think Wal-Mart is ethical marketer because they care about consumers needs and provide them better life by selling products at low prices compared to the competitors just as their slogan mentions "Always low prices". They have build trust with the specific demographic groups and have helped them better their lives. Although some of their practices such as low wages, higher costs to the suppliers etc come acrosss as unethical, I don't think they have done anything unethical. Based on the article, Wal-Mart has marketed their suppliers products very well where both of the parties have fair market share. Ofcourse, they do have a huge purchasing power but they don't seem to cheat their suppliers. Who are Wal-Mart Customers? Low income to middle income people who make $40,000 - $70,000 a year are the main customers for Wal-Mart. The demographics may include African-Americans, empty-nesters, Hispanics, suburbanites and rural residents. How do they communicate with them? Wal-Mart communicates to the customers mostly through direct marketing such as monthly circular and through TV advertising. Wal-Mart's advertising focus is always about everyday low pricing which has build certain trust with the customers. The title of the article contrasts low prices with high costs. What does this mean? Wal-Mart's low prices to the consumers means high costs to the suppliers and other small businesses who are forced to send jobs...
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...Karen Olsson’s Up Against Wal-Mart: Advocacy for the People Karen Olsson the author of an essay called Up Against Wal-Mart where Olsson posits the employees of Wal-Mart are quite literally “up against Wal-Mart”. Olsson goes on further to provide authoritative evidence to Wal-Mart's questionable practices in regards to the treatment of its employees. More specifically Olsson goes on to point out the success that Wal-Mart has achieved; the questionable practices involved in preventing employees from unionizing; and lastly the quality of life of the underpaid and overworked employees of Wal-Mart. According to Olsson Wal-Mart’s growth from a single retail store in 1962 to 3,372 stores as of 2006; is owed to the visionary and founder of Wal-Mart, Sam Walton (608,611.) To better understand the mentality of Wal-Mart in its current state of questionable staffing and pay you first have to understand how this company originated. As Olsson explains it Walton who constantly looked for ways to maximize profit and minimize expenses based his business on a fairly simple yet successful business model. That model being one in which high sales volume at lower prices generates greater profit margins. Walton’s frugality extended beyond just the selling of goods and making profit. He looked for ways to keep overhead down, payroll down, and even the personal indulgences a CEO of company might typically have. Olsson paints this very image of Walton: “The company grew, in no small part, by . . ....
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...Is Wal-Mart an evil empire? Wal-Mart is the largest retailer in the world, the biggest private-sector employer in North America, and one of the most dominant and influential corporations in the America. It has become one of America's most successful retail chains by offering everyday goods at low prices for working families, and despite all of its financial successes, the company can’t open a store without enduring -- and overcoming -- a flood of protest groups. These groups might defend the environment or local store owners, or they might defend the store’s future employees, since Wal-Mart’s reputation for unfair labor practices involves sexual discrimination, denying unionization and offering wages so terrible that some employees have to rely on social services to get by. Although Wal-Mart portrays an image of servitude and charity to the community, this multi-million corporation is responsible for inhumane, unjust and shameful practices in the United States and abroad, and whether people Love it or hate it, Wal-Mart is, in many places and for many people, inescapable. Much like work and taxes and eventual death. There is no question that Wal-Mart's relentless drive to squeeze out costs has benefited consumers, but Some experts contend Wal-Mart's "everyday low prices" are causing a clash between the interests of Americans as workers and the desires of Americans as consumers. "If people were only consumers, buying things at lower prices would be just good...
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...Wal-Mart customers have been complaining about its evil business practices for years. They say never trust a smiley face. Wal-Mart list of offense against humanity is a long list and where to start is a tough question to answer. Wal-Mart has a policy of discrimination but has been accused of discrimination against women, people with disabilities and minorities. Wal-Mart has been the subject of the largest class action lawsuit in US history. There were 1.6 million women employees suing Wal-Mart for gender discrimination. Women comprises that 92% of Wal-Mart cashiers while 14% of store managers. In the past on average women that were paid hourly were paid $1,100 less than men at Wal-Mart and $14,500 less than management employees. In recent years Wal-Mart agreed to pay $6.8 million to settle13 lawsuits in 11 states. The lawsuit that was filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission was allegedly for discrimination against people with disabilities. When did not stop with mistreating its employees with discrimination. In an interview with Fox news, Lee Scott which was Wal-Mart’s CEO said, “The truth is our wages are really competitive and they are good”. It was not bad enough that Wal-Mart treats its employees is not the worst of its misdeeds. Wal-Mart has a very long history of environmental violations. Back in 2004 Wal-Mart agreed to pay Connecticut $1.5 million in penalties for storm water violation. The Clean Water Act violation was paid $400,000 by Wal-Mart to settle...
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... For many years, Wal-Mart has climbed the business ladder to become the largest retailer in the world. Wal-Mart has been unstoppable and undoubtedly unbeatable in its pricing when compared to its competitors. Many mom and pop stores have fallen victims having to close up their doors when a new Wal-Mart has opened in their neighborhood. With such high volume of sales, and an ever demanding stockholders standard of high dividend payouts year after year, Wal-Mart unfortunately went through many years where it put dollars ahead of its corporate responsibilities. Numerous organizations were created to keep a watch on Wal-Mart’s practices with its employees, and just as importantly, with the products it sells to unsuspecting customers. Wal-MartWatch (n.d.) stated “Wal-Mart is famous for its low prices….making customers forget about everything except low prices. The reality is much harsher than the company’s marketing would have consumers believe: these low prices often come at a deadly cost” (p. 1). Wal-Mart continues to be a target and placed under a microscope to ensure its ethical behavior improves along with the merchandise it provides. The Evil Empire Since its founding, Wal-Mart has made great efforts to establish itself as a reputable company in the United States and around the world. Customers have flocked to the giant retailer in hopes of finding a bargain they may not otherwise find at a local store in town. According to Wal-Mart (2005), “Last year, more...
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...company has different governance factors and code of conduct that they adopt. For instance Google’s Code of Conduct is “Don’t be evil”. This is adopted in all the levels of the organisation. This conduct makes them achieve high standards, which helps them hire great people, who build great product, which attract users. This process as a whole makes the stakeholders feel comfortable and secure. The following is the list of Google’s Code of Conduct 1. Serve our users 2. Respect each other 3. Avoid conflicts of interest 4. Preserve confidentiality 5. Protect Google’s Assets 6. Ensure financial integrity and responsibility 7. Obey the law Companies today are constantly innovating ways to remain in touch with their shareholders and investors. There are specific sections on websites which focus specifically on investor relations where they highlight their code of ethics and companies vision. Financial reports are updated constantly and the news that would be of any help or concern to the investors is all available on these online portals. RSS feeds and podcasts are the new modes through which investors could be informed about the companies standings intuitively. Features such as “Dividend Direct Deposit” by Wal-Mart credits the dividends earned directly to the account holders saving account. (Wal-Mart) Wal-Mart stores rated 11th as the...
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...John Edwards ENGL 1013 Composition 1 4/28/2012 Argumentative Synthesis “Up Against Wal-Mart” “Progressive Wal-Mart. Really.” Profiting an average of 1.8 million every hour, managing 2.2 million employees in over 11,000 stores in 27 countries, according to Fortune Global 500 list in 2014; Wal-Mart is the worlds largest company by revenue. Author Karren Olsson, “Up Against Wal-Mart”, hearsays for Wal-Mart employees and their supposedly unfair treatment. This opinion of Olssons is quite convincing; especially considering the borderline argument that Wal-Mart should become a union workforce due to their off the clock, low paid, overwhelming workloads. Sebastian Mallaby, author of “Progressive Wal-Mart. Really.” and columnist for the Washing Post, finds views such as Olssons comically dysfunctional. Mallaby’s brief article overrides these skeptical cruel theories towards Wal-Mart by explaining globalization. Wal-Mart’s globalizing economic decisions for the underprivileged leads Sam Walton’s idea wanting to not only build America but moreover, build the world. Confident in Wal-Mart being a cruel company, Olsson provides multiple miserable quotes from employees. For instance, introducing her essay is the portrayal of Jennifer McLaughlin, one that “wears wide-leg jeans and spiky plastic chokers, dyes her hair dark red, and works at Wal-Mart”(606). McLaughlin’s day-to-day demands from managers may be to “hop on a mechanical lift to retrieve something from a high shelf, catch...
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...merchant like Wal-Mart acting ethically and good for America? Or has this monopoly game gone on too unethically long? Wal-Mart has a broad span of likes and dislikes from America, but after given the facts I can bet most would agree that Wal-Mart is bad for America. There are numerous ethical problems with Wal-Mart as well as numerous things that just don’t seem right with the company. Wal-Mart is nationally known for having awful wages for their employees. I believe this is unethical simply for the fact that what Wal-Mart pays their normal employees is not enough to support one self and not enough to live. The money a Wal-Mart employee makes in one year is a couple thousand dollars below the poverty line. There for making the statement that if you work at Wal-Mart you will be broke and poor and won’t be able to support another person, let alone a whole family. Another problem with Wal-Mart is the working conditions. Employees at Wal-Mart have been forced to work off the clock, have been locked in the building during night shifts, have had their overtime pay not paid in full, have had random wage decreases. Wal-Mart is also known for discriminating against females during the hiring process. Wal-Mart also has been documented for making employees miss their break/meal periods, as well as the overlooking off illegals being hired and forced to work for cheaper pay and longer hours. This is just a short list of a lot of unethical decisions by Wal-Mart. If a Wal-Mart were to move...
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...Management Rachael Crimes Grantham University This essay is a discussion of ethics, ethical responsibility, along with stakeholders and their impact on decision making within an organization. The essay explains the importance of ethical responsibility. There are detailed examples of ethical and unethical behavior within an organization. The essay is a compilation of works by several authors. The explanation of the authors’ belief of ethical behavior was studied to complete this essay. Ethical responsibility is important in the business world. Businesses have a responsibility of being honest with employees so they can make informed decisions about career choices; a responsibility to respect customers, and a responsibility to invest in the community that the business depends upon. The biggest organizations can be destroyed; whether by a company or by one person within a company (Sims, 2003). According to Sims common ethical problems include accounting practices that hide fraud and theft from employees as well as investors. These types of violations will lead to criminal charges, loss of consumer confidence, and employee respect. In order to maintain an ethically responsible company, clear moral standards must be set from the onset of the company (Sims, 2003). The company should create and enforce a code of conduct that ensures that customers are treated fairly by employees. Sims explained that to avoid even the appearance of unethical behavior the organization should...
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...WAL-MART’S PROBLEMS IN Wal-Mart’s Problems in International Market Patiporn Kitlertphiroj University College of University of Denver Abstract Wal-Mart, the biggest retailer in the world, is spreading its power throughout the world, starting with nine countries in Asia, Europe and South America. The expansion has planed for more in the near future. With its attempt to penetrate hypermarket culture in every country which it enters, many severe problems are come into play. Acquisitions and joint venture with local businesses became a problem in nationalism country. Thus, strict governments’ rules and regulations blocked business operations. Misreading competitors and late in entry destroyed location opportunities the same as harmed relationship with local suppliers. Inadaptable to local culture become a big problem in global business. Moreover, low wages, unions and sex discrimination brought Wal-Mart to be an evil in employees’ perspective. Literature Review Wal-Mart is the largest Discount Store in the United States. Its magnitude is not only recognized domestically but also expanded to International Market. The company believes that one day this one will replace the United States position when the trend down (Molin, 2004). With this goal Wal-mart is encouraged to expanding stores into nine countries around the world and more in its plans (About Wal-Mart, 2001). Being number one in the United States does not always guarantee for being number one...
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...Walmart's Mid-Life Crisis James T. Sennet BUS351 May 19, 2013 Kelli Price Abstract This is an article that focuses on retailer Wal-Mart and the problems they are facing regarding their public image in the United States. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. would like you to know that it is not evil. It doesn't squeeze suppliers within an inch of their lives, and it does not pay employees starvation wages. It was only four years ago that a survey conducted by Cone Inc./Roper found Wal-Mart to be Americans' top choice for "good corporate citizen." But that was before the U.S. government began to probe whether its contractors knowingly hired illegal immigrants to clean stores. Earlier this month, researchers at the University of California at Berkeley released a study pointing out that because Wal-Mart's 44,000 workers in California must rely on public assistance programs, the company's business practices end up costing taxpayers US $86 million a year. (Maich, 2004) Walmart's Mid-Life Crisis Key Issues Insufficient Employee Wages * A study conducted by researchers at the University of California at Berkley concluded that 44,000 Walmart employees in California relied on public assistance. According to the study, this costed Californian taxpayers $86 million a year. This data was also the foundation of a lawsuit against Walmart in 2001. Discrimination * A noticeable lack of diversity in the corporation’s management ranks implied women and minorities were not afforded the same opportunities...
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...The following is a classic story, often used by socialists to highlight the “evils of a capitalist society” – the small town grocer gets mercilessly taken out by the new Wal-Mart in town. The small town grocer may have an established customer base and friendly relations with the community, but it simply can’t match the low prices offered by Wal-Mart. Being a large national company, Wal-Mart has the sprawling global resources and is willing to sacrifice margins to take out local competitors. In the end, customer loyalty means nothing and the grocer goes bankrupt, decades of hard work decimated overnight. This is a well-known anecdote referring to the impact of globalization on small businesses. Once you start up a new business, you plunge into an ocean populated by a few smaller fish, which compete with you for food, and lots of bigger ones, eager to eat you alive. The big fish in the sea tend to be well-connected, multinational beasts taking full advantage of the perks of globalization – such as outsourcing, uneven exchange rates, and low-margin high-volume sales models – making them nearly impossible to compete against. What are the impacts of globalization on the small business owner, and how can you defend yourself from the blows that will inevitably come your way? Globalized Brands In “The Communist Manifesto”, Karl Marx famously warned that small local businesses will inevitably be wiped out by large multinational companies in a form of imperialist capitalism. According...
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...Fully answer the 3 questions below Information Technology: Stopping the Sprawl at HP When Randy Mott joined Wal-Mart fresh out of college in 1978, its in-house tech staff had only 30 members and company founder Sam Walton had not yet become a believer in the power of computing to revolutionize retailing. But Mott and his cohorts developed a network of computerized distribution centers that made it simple to open and run new stores with cookie-cutter efficiency. Then in the early 1990s, Mott, by this time chief information officer, persuaded higherups to invest in a so-called data warehouse. That let the company collect and sift customer data to analyze buying trends as no company ever had -- right down to which flavor of Pop-Tarts sells best at a given store. "Information technology wasn't Mr. Sam's favorite topic. He viewed it as a necessary evil," recalls fellow Wal-Mart Stores Inc. alumnus Charlie McMurtry, who has worked with Mott for years. "But later, Randy got [Walton's] ultimate compliment. He said, 'Man, you'd make a great store manager."' By the time Mott took his latest job last summer, as CIO of Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) he had become a rock star of sorts among the corporate techie set -- an executive who not only understood technology and how it could be used to improve a business but how to deliver those benefits. Besides his 22-year stint at Wal-Mart, Mott helped Dell Inc. (DELL ) hone its already huge IT advantage. By melding nearly 100 separate systems into...
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...Part I Intra- and Extra Organizational Ethical Issues In prior to clarify the relationship between intra- and extra-organizational intangibles in individual cases, how these intangibles within business organizations could interact with those organizations’ various external constituents or stakeholders should be stressed in the very beginning. As the cornerstone of the corporate strategy, risk management plays a crucial role in promoting business ethics and social responsibility. Since any failure to appear in business integrity could result in a ruin of reputation, both of employers and employees should commit themselves to maximize returns to their shareholders. Therefore, how to evaluate and control the risk within corporations has become the center of business development. Strengthening customer loyalty and investors’ confidence could differentiate companies from their competitors mainly by improving intra-organizational ethics. On the contrary, ignoring business ethics from the companies could encourage their major competitors to use that against them, thus resulting in an enormous loss of share in the market. In addition, taking the initiative in business ethics could allow corporations to avoid interruption of taxation and regulation. Conversely, the dishonest business acting is possible to force the company into litigation or penalization by the law agencies of local governments. However, merely concentrating on the intra-organizational ethics could underestimate the...
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...Introduction: The biggest challenge for management in the 21st century is not a financial issue or technology that is the issue of human resources development; in that, the important is focus on solving the problem as lack of teamwork, lack collaboration between functional units, working environment undemocratic, lack the stability and consistency in activities of enterprises. To clarify and resolve these challenges, managers need to have an understanding the concept of "Employee relations". In essence, Employee relations is the relationship between people and people within the organization, it is dominated by the fundamental values of the organization and directly impact the performance, quality and innovation capabilities of business, results affect the competitiveness of enterprises. (Sloane & Witney, 2010) According to Bratton (2007), Employee Relations is concerned with preventing and resolving problems involving individuals who arise out of or affect work situations. The employee relations directly related to the work environment, fairness; it is based on communication with the superior and more important as the policy which directly affects the rights and obligations of employees (Bratton & Gold, 2007). A good employee relations is a result of a variety of tactics and strategies of management, it is done to improve communication, increase contact to minimize errors and to promote state in the work of staff (Bateman and Snell, 2011). According to Rhoades et...
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