Designing Strategies And Tactics For Sustainability Development In Walmart, An Essay.

Understanding the Value Networks of Sustainability

The following report is a proposal for designing strategies and tactics for sustainability development in Walmart. Since the government policies regarding the corporate sectors and businesses aim at mandating social responsibilities of the business organisations, the companies are found to put a step ahead in that particular aspects. Most of the businesses are looking after the fortification of their strategies that are related to the their corporate social responsibilities. CSR of an organisation ensures how the company practices and maintains sustainability and other social responsibilities that are beyond the concept of making profit (cdc.gov 2017).  

The word sustainability conceives different meanings. It is associated with environmental benefits like conservation of ecosystem and contribution to better environment communities.  Hence, it is the obligation for every profit making or non-profit organisation to ensure sustainability under CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) policies (Cinelli, Coles and Kirwan 2014.).

The following report is going to deploy the strategic ideas pertaining to the practice of sustainability of Walmart. First, the report will study how the policies of sustainability are structured by the company. it will further look into the compatibility of those policies. The report moves on to analyse whether the policies can be improved to certain level. After analysing the existing strategies initiated by Walmart in term of sustainability, the report will recommend tactics beneficial for the company’s growth and will also establish whether both the strategic plans will remain a synergy to inside the organisation (Brockhaus et al. 2017).

In the 21^st Century, the value networks of sustainability have completely different components than it had in early 90s. The twenty first century value networks for sustainability are the GHG (Green House Gas), sustainable building, alternative fuels, waste, global logistics, packaging, textiles, electronics, agro-aquatic food, chemicals and so on. a company is expected to value the previously mentioned networks so that they can properly utilise them in order to perform better business.  However, Walmart has rightly found its way while making proper use of the aforesaid value networks. Recent reports state that Walmart has reached to the apex in terms of ethical sustainability progress (Dauvergne 2016).

  In this modern era, environmental sustainability has become very crucial for every leading organization. Being a reputed brand, they want to make profit but they want to save the earth for future generations as well (Tsai and Liao 2016). These initiatives have helped the organization to gain some reputation in the society. These strategies often work as CSR policies of the organization and help the organization to promote a transparent image of the organization among the internal and external stakeholders (Engert and Baumgartner 2016). Walmart is one of the most renowned and desirable brand in the world. Being a responsible organization, Walmart  always take some noble initiatives to save the surroundings. Walmart is famous for their It always plays a significant role to save the environment.  European government has taken some notable initiative to reduce the green house gas from the environment. It has set three goals, such as- discharge the 20% green house gas, supply 20% energy to the environment by recycling and another one is to enhance the energy level by 20% (Keskitalo et al. 2016). Walmart is following European government’s footsteps to save the nature from meeting any awful consequences. Walmart has adopted many EU strategies to help the environment. Walmart has started its journey ten years ago to become the pioneer in sustainability. It has paved the path of global sustainability for other organizations. The three basic objectives of Walmart are i) to be supplied 100% renewable energy ii) to create zero waste iii) to sell products that sustain resource and environment. The organization has been motivated by these objectives to make the world a better place to live. According to the report, Walmart has successfully eliminated 20 million metric ton greenhouse gas from its supply chain in 2010. Walmart has implemented new tractor and techniques to support the environment. Walmart has put a significant impact in making healthy eating easier. Healthy and essential food products have been supplied by Walmart in an affordable price. Their main objective is to make the food products accessible. Walmart has captured 155 OF CO2 in last few words. Walmart management is trying to stop the increment of CO2 level from the environment that is very much harmful for human being. It had undertaken different approaches in its retail business and supply chain. In the early years of sustainability program, the company started focusing on the proper use of the renewable energies outside and within the company.  The sustainability program of the company began with community building and promoting the recycling of wastes and making proper use of the renewable energies.  Community building was one of the strongest interventions taken by the company in ensuring sustainability.  It strengthened its community among different stakeholders so that the aim of the program could be promoted throughout the world.  In order to strengthen the initiatives, the company is reportedly making strong use of the relationships between customers and the suppliers.

Sustainability Report of Walmart

The company has been taking several initiatives in ensuring the sustainability. Followings are the major efforts endeavoured by Walmart;

According to some recent report, 26% of the total electricity is provided by renewable energy.  It has inspired other brands as well. Google has stated that they are consuming 36% of the renewable energy. Walmart has decided to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions in coming years.  Walmart has installed solar system to encourage the use of renewable energy. It has adopted various modern and innovative technologies for the betterment of environment.

 Walmart is inspired by 3 “R’S” sustainability theory- reduce, reuse and recycle (Andrews 2016). In operations, the company also ensures the elimination of waste during the operations. Proper packaging and product designing comes under the strategy of Walmart.  In order to fulfil the objective, the company also aims at the maintenance of suitable and eco-friendly infrastructure.  Since the process of sustainability needs adequate investment of the capital and labour, provision of such invigilated by the Walmart management body. The management body of the Walmart moves to concretise the purpose of attaining Zero-Waste-Future, through educating the internal and external stakeholders (employees, suppliers and the customers). The objective of Walmart is to decrease the use of plastic bags and other products that are biodegradable and harmful for the atmosphere. Walmart has achieved significant progress in zero waste policy. It has concentrated in recycling the waste. Walmart is associated with the leading organization to recycle the garbage by using electronics.  2.5.Deforestation:

Walmart does not encourage or involves deforestation in its food chain business.  According to the GRR report, the company has got into zero net deforestation in the FY 2015-16.  It has undertaken several initiatives to reduce the margin of deforestation. (cdn.corporate.walmart.com  2017).

The existing goal for the company in terms of sustainability is to make hundred percent use of the renewable energy. It has been studied that twenty six percent of the total electricity of the company is globally supplied from renewable energy. The company has set an objective of purchasing 7 billion kilowatt of renewable energy by the year 2020.  This is going to be six hundred percent increase than what was in 2010. In association with solar energy industries, Walmart has developed a relation of solar  energy supply thus building a strong plinth of sustainability. There is no other US company  that has reportedly utilised solar and other renewable energies during their business operations (Gibson, Hassan and Tansey 2013).

1. i) The company’s sustainability goal is no doubt a justified one; and it is actually implementing the goal through the supply of electricity that is produced by the renewable energy. However, it has been found that most of the electricity distribution is performed in the countries like US and Canada.  The retail company does to seem to be practicing such in the other countries as 60 percent of the total distributed electricity goes to Canada (Pagell and Wu 2017).
2. ii) Though Walmart has been building contracts with the solar energy suppliers, it has not effectively distributed the energy resources to the different branches.  Only the head franchises are enjoying electricity produced by solar energy (Elder and Dauvergne 2015).

Followings are the proposals for introducing and maintaining sustainability strategy:

1. i) Walmart can employ sustainability managers who can take care of the entire project goal aimed by the company.
2. ii) The retail assistants of the company Kohli’s, IKEA, Target and Staples and others have to ensure the supply of adequate workforce and environmentalists, who can distribute external pressure of the work.  

iii)  According to the vice President of Walmart, Mark Vanderhelm, the mode of strategies created in order to maintain sustainability and utilise renewable energy to the fullest is quite complex. However, a strategic chalk-out can help the entire process become simple and easeful. In this case, the work distribution to different employees regarding the achievement of target can help ease the entire procedure.

1. iv) It is often found that the profit making organisations are not interested enough in employing adequate workers while ensuring sustainability in supply chain and operations because it does not bring profit to them. However, proper use of the renewable energies and managing wastes in supply chain can lower down the cost of production.

  Making solid strategies is not the ultimate way to improvement of the existing process. The developed strategies need to be communicated to the entire working group who look after different applicable aspects of it in operations and supply chain.  In case of supply chain management the company has to ensure that all its suppliers bound or influenced to adhere to the policies developed by Walmart. Thus, the company can build a strong chain that brings in the entire stakeholder to support sustainable development.

Recent Efforts of Sustainability

  The discussed proposals need to be collaborated in a firm manner. Proper collaboration of the proposals will work as a benefactor the company.  Two of the main proposals are going to work as synergies of systematic corporate operations. Strengthening the brother organisations and employment of adequate workers will save more time of the head franchises from taking care of the individual outlet. It will further allow the head franchises to concentrate into the sustainability of core branches (Huchzermeier 2014).

A comprehensive project plan has to be developed in order to systematise the strategies.  While constructing the new policies the company needs to develop a project and it has to validate the same.

In order to initiate strategies for operations and supply chain sustainability, Walmart is expected to use collect proper data so that the company can perform the task in an empirical manner. Collection of proper data will help the company realise where it is actually standing. Hence, no illegitimate data collection is going to be encouraged in any circumstance.

Conclusion

 Sustainability is a process that is performed in an organisation (profit making or non-profit) in order to follow the social responsibility guideline of the government. However, the organisations are not always able to follow all the provided guidelines. The report was an analysis and proposal for the sustainability strategies of Walmart. the strategies are set in order to build a solid communication between the authority and the employees as well as the suppliers so that those can be properly circulated in different outlets around the world.

Reference

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