Business ethics report assignmentcase 3 walmart manages ethics and compliance challenges

BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC KINH TẾ QUỐC DÂN BUSINESS ETHICS REPORT ASSIGNMENT CASE 3: WALMART MANAGES ETHICS AND COMPLIANCE CHALLENGES STUDENT NAME STUDENT ID CLASS : TRAN VU PHUONG THAO : 11215484 : 63B INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS TEACHER MANAGEMENT : NGUYEN BICH NGOC HA NOI: 11 – 2022 I I TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS .1 II INTRODUCTION .2 III THE GROWTH OF WALMART Complaint from competitive stakeholders 2 Supplier Stakeholders with Walmart 3 Ethical Issues regarding to employee stakeholders Ethical Leadership Issues 5 Problems with Environmental Stakeholders .5 Bribery Scandal of Walmart .6 Safety Issues IV THE WAY WALMART RESPOND TO STAKEHOLDER CONCERNS .7 Response to the scandals Sustainability Leadership V THE WAY WALMART DO TO IMPROVE ITS ETHICS AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY Walmart in this day and age 10 Walmart in the future 11 VI ANSWERING THE QUESTIONS 11 Do you think Walmart is doing enough to become more sustainable? 11 What are the ethical issues Walmart has faced? .12 How is Walmart attempting to answer concerns regarding misconduct? 14 VII CONCLUSION 15 VIII REFERENCES .16 II INTRODUCTION In this day and age, business ethics issue courts the publicity, the scandals about deception and fraud in business frequently generates a great deal of heated debate Therefore, the demand for business to integrate ethics and responsibility into all business decisions has become one of the most significant priorities in the twenty1 This is a preview Do you want full access? 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Log in first century Ethical decisions are a part of everyday life for individuals who work in organizations, and making them carefully is as important to business success as mastering other decision aspects It is important to learn how to make decisions in the internal environment of an organization to achieve goals and career advancement Besides, ethical behavior requires understanding and identifying issues, areas of risk, and approaches to making choices in an organizational environment One of the most impressive illustrations about how businesses face the challenge of ethics scandals and subsequently making choices to increase its competitive advantage as well as repair its reputation, is Walmart Stores, Inc The ethical issue Walmart experienced include accusations of discrimination, feminists, leadership misconduct, bribery, safety, etc Obviously, the evaluation thing is how Walmart deals with these concerns, then endeavors in sustainability and social responsibility to revitalize their image III THE GROWTH OF WALMART Walmart Stores, Inc., an icon of American business, began in 1962, when Sam Waltion, a founder of Walmart, opened the first Walmart Discount Store in Rogers, Arkansas Over the next 40 years, Walmart grew from a small-town business to multinational corporation with more than 80 facilities in 27 countries and now serves more than 200 million customers weekly Complaint from competitive stakeholders It can not be denied that Walmart has saved consumers millions of dollars by providing low-cost products However, with low prices items, Walmart is often accused of being responsible for the downward on wages and benefits in towns where those located in Furthermore, it is difficult for other retailers to compete with Walmart, some of those have filed lawsuits against Walmart, asserting that they use unacceptable prices with the aim of putting competing companies out of business To be more specific, there are some studies which illustrate that overall payroll wages, including Walmart wages, are by percent after Walmart enters a new market Thus, several citizens have refused to allow Walmart to take up residence in their areas With regard to the government, their actions may be quite questionable They passed a law that would have a detrimental impact on Walmart and other big-box retailers by setting a higher minimum wage per hour for big stores Therefore, some critics claimed that Walmart and other huge retailers are being unfairly targeted by the government Supplier Stakeholders with Walmart Walmart achieves its “everyday low prices” by streamlining the company, especially for the ability to handle, move and track merchandise Since 2009, Walmart has worked with The Sustainability Consortium to develop a new measurement and reporting system known as the Sustainability Index, with the aim of using this system to increase the sustainability of its products and create a more efficient supply chain Moreover, the power and the influence of Walmart enable many companies to depend on it for much of their business, indeed, the benefits from being a Walmart supplier can not be underestimated, the suppliers will become more streamlined and efficient for Walmart, they help other customers as well Various companies claim that supplying Walmart has been the best thing for their business However, in 2012, CEO Mike Duke maintained goals to increase the sustainability of the company’s supply chain, thus, some critics believe that the pressures to achieve those goals will shift more of a cost burden on to suppliers Furthermore, many suppliers have been forced to move production from the US to less expensive locations in Asia, resulting in negatively affecting the suppliers Ethical Issues regarding to employee stakeholders Although Walmart is one of the largest retail businesses all over the world, it still has been criticized about the way Walmart treats its employees for low wages and benefits Walmart had several accusations of failing to provide health insurance for over 60 percent of its employees In order to deal with these issues after the deluge of bad press, in 2006, Walmart raised pay tied to performance in most of its stores Walmart also improved its health benefits package, resulting in saving employees an estimated $25 million Therefore, Walmart pointed out quickly that the company offers health care benefits competitive in the retail industry However, a new Walmart policy eliminated healthcare coverage for new hires working less than 30 hours a week Thus, some analysts maintained that Walmart intended to shift the burden of healthcare coverage on to the federal government due to the new healthcare law Although Walmart is not alone in this practice, as such a large business, Walmart’s actions had a significant effect on the economy Besides, there was another criticism against Walmart which was Walmart decreased its workforce at the same time increasing its retail stores Fewer employees it is harder to provide quality customer service, thus, Walmart placed the lowest among discount stores as well as department stores on customer satisfaction Nevertheless, Walmart responded to this problem by maintaining that some customers dissatisfied did not reflect all the shopping experience of customers as a whole With regard to unions, Walmart claimed that they are not against unions in general, but it sees no need for those to come between workers and managers However, Walmart always seems to fight against them, its associates have voted against unions in the past Many see the company as aggressively working to prevent unionization in its stores Nonetheless, Walmart’s stance against unions has not always held up in foreign countries In China, in order to grow, Walmart needs to accept a union In 2004, The Chinese Labor Federation pushed Walmart to allow the formation of unions Therefore, although Walmart accepted this, the critics claimed that Walmart made it difficult for workers to join a union Walmart also stated it would not renew the contracts of unionized workers Clearly, the pressure mounted significantly, as a result, later 2006, Walmart still had to sign a memorandum with ACFTU allowing unions in stores Besides the accusations of low employee benefits and a strong stance against unions, Walmart also has more detrimental scandals In December 2005, Walmart had to pay $172 million to more than 100,000 California employees in a class-action lawsuit due to invariably refusing meal breaks, rest breaks and also deliberately altered time cards to prevent overtime In 2008, the compensatory money for such lawsuits was up to $640 million Furthermore, Walmart has been accused of discrimination by employees as well Less than 10 percent of store management is women although the number of women employees account for more than ⅔ of all Walmart staff In 2001, an internal study showed the company paid female store This is a preview Do you want full access? 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Log in managers less than males in the same positions Obviously, Walmart received sexdiscrimination lawsuits which was granted by a federal judge in San Francisco in 2004 In 2010, dissatisfied employees at Walmart started the Organization United Respect Walmart, or OUR Walmart OUR Walmart receives much of its funding from several other organizations According to them, there were 5000 members who desired to change working conditions at Walmart Their grievances against Walmart include raising the number of hours needed for part-time workers, and using its workscheduling systems to decrease hours for employees so they will not qualify for benefits OUR Walmart protests and picketing at Walmart stores for months While the protests did occur, not as many Walmart employees participated as anticipated As a result, Walmart filed a lawsuit against individuals who protested around its stores for illegal trespassing and disrupting customers Ethical Leadership Issues In March 2005, board vice chair Thomas Coughlin was forced to resign because he stole as much as $500,000 from Walmart in the form of fake expenses, bogus reimbursements and the unauthorized use of gift cards, although at one time, he was the second highest-ranking Walmart executive and a candidate for CEO After that, more and more crimes of Coughlin were revealed, he was sentenced for 27 months of home confinement, $440,000 in fines and 1,500 hours of community service After CEO Lee Scott became CEO, the confidence in Walmart’s leadership rose significantly However, it waned once more aftẻ a bribery scandal was discovered in Mexico It drew a great deal of disappointment and lack of confidence in the leadership for not preventing the store from getting involved in misconduct With the aim of reassuring investors, it is essential for Walmart’s leadership to demonstrate a renewed commitment toward ensuring the company adheres to ethics and compliance standards Problems with Environmental Stakeholders In 2005, Walmart received a grand jury subpoena from the U.S Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles, California, seeking documents and information relating to the company’s receipt, transportation, handling, identification, recycling, treatment, storage and disposal of certain merchandise constituting hazardous waste materials Walmart also admits that it failed to train its employees adequately on how to properly dispose of these materials However, the biggest environmental concern associated with Walmart is urban sprawl The number of acres of city green space devoured by Walmart construction is really alarming Besides, there are various abandoned stores, deserted when the company outgrows locations In places like New York City, where space is a significant issue, it is really a challenge for Walmart to locate As a result, Walmart began testing smaller stores, and it's already showing promise However, not all big cities are ready to embrace Walmart In order to break into urban areas, the company needs to work on changing how Walmart is perceived among these stakeholders Bribery Scandal of Walmart In recent years, the biggest scandal which leads to a serious downward in Walmart's reputation is the revelation of an alleged large scale bribery ring among its Mexican arm, Walmex It has been claimed that Walmex executives paid millions in bribes in order to obtain licensing and zoning permits for store locations From this bribery scandal, there are major considerations: top executives at Walmart appeared to turn a blind eye to the bribery, and bribery among Walmart stores in foreign countries may be more widespread than originally thought In 2005, Walmart sent investigators to Mexico City, where they discovered over $24 million in bribes had been paid to public officials to get necessary building permits Subsequently, top executives at Walmart including CEO Lee Scott, were reluctant to report the bribery although they knew it would be a serious blow to the firm’s reputation Besides, due to the success in Mexico, revealing bribery could have serious detrimental repercussions in this profitable area of growth It is believed that former CEO and current CEO may have had knowledge of the bribery although there is no exact evidence In the case that they helped cover it up, Walmart can face millions in fines and its executives could lose their jobs or face prison time Furthermore, Walmart expanded its bribery probe to China, India and Brazil Such allegations not only have serious consequences for Walmart, but also for other foreign retailers in the country In other words, this situation demonstrates the fact that the misconduct of one or two companies is able to impact entire businesses or industries As a result, Walmart announced it would tie some executive compensation to compliance efforts Safety Issues After a Bangladeshi factory fire killed 112 workers, Walmart Many were outraged that Walmart did not a better job to ensure the safety of the factory workers Critics have also accused Walmart of advocating against equipping factories with better fire protection due to the costs involved Moreover, workers in the US of Walmart have complained about harsh working conditions and violations of labor laws As a result after many challenges, Walmart exerts the right to terminate relationships with suppliers immediately after discovering a violation Equally important, Walmart also requires all suppliers to have an independent agency assess the electrical and building safety conditions of their factories The same monitoring system is applied to US suppliers as well in order to address domestic complaints Yet these measures have failed to appease some critics, who believed that Walmart can not truly be held accountable until the results of its factory audits are made public The controversy of worker safety in Bangladesh intensified after a factory collapsed and killed 1,127 workers While European retailers, worker safety groups and labor unions agreed to a year legally binding pact that would improve worker safety in Bangladesh, Walmart refused to sign the pact They devised their own safety plan for its Bangladesh factories Its plan includes hiring an independent auditor to inspect those factories, publishing the audit results of more than 250 factories that have been revoked, and developing an independent call center for workers to report unsafe factory conditions IV THE WAY WALMART RESPOND TO STAKEHOLDER CONCERNS Response to the scandals After suffering significantly from these recent scandals, between 2011 and 2012, consumer interest, customer loyalty and other significant aspects to a brand’s This is a preview Do you want full access? 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Log in value diminished 50 percent In response to the allegations of bribery, Walmart replaced the general counsel in Mexico and is conducting an investigation into the allegations Moreover, Walmart is re-evaluating its global compliance program with assistance from auditing firm KPMG LLP and law firm Greenberg Traurig LLP In May of 2012, Mike Duke emphasized integrity in operations and employees behavior at all levels He also assured employees and other stakeholders that the company is cooperating with the U S Department of Justice in order to get to the bottom of the bribery allegations As a form of damage control, Walmart released an advertising campaign to frame as an “American success story”, then developed a multi million advertising campaign called “The Real Walmart'', featuring customers, truck drivers, and employees sharing their happy experiences with the company It remains to be seen whether Walmart’s advertising efforts and its renewed commitment to corporate responsibility will prove successful toward improving its brand image Sustainability Leadership Walmart’s sustainability goals are entirely renewable energy supply, create no waste, and sell products that sustain people and the environment In order to achieve these goals, Walmart with influential people in supplier companies, government, NGOs, and academia, created Sustainable Value Networks (SVN) serving to integrate and evaluate efforts in renewable energy and practices By 2012, they completed 26 fuel cell installations in the US, providing 65 million kilowatt hours of annual electricity, and are testing micro-wind and solar water heating projects in numerous locations As a result, these contracts to finance utility-scale projects of Walmart in renewable sources were offered at lower costs not only to Walmart but also to other clients of these providers By financing its own renewable energy projects, including more than 180 projects with micro-wind installations in parking lots and biodiesel generator sets, 22 percent of Walmart’s electricity demand is provided Through wind power and wind energy, 350 stores in Mexico have reduced emissions by 137,000 tons annually, 14 stores in Northern Ireland are powered Therefore, Walmart projects became the second largest onsite green generator and purchaser of green power in the US, and the third largest purchaser in the Fortune 500 With the aim of reducing energy consumption, Walmart facilities conserve energy in different ways, first, reducing the demand for electricity during peak hours, second, controlling the heating and cooling of U.S Walmart stores Besides, by reducing fossil fuel and selling more green products, Walmart is able to ship more products while traveling fewer miles, resulting in a reduction of carbon emissions of 41,000 tons Walmart also started to sell more products which are made from sustainable or recycled materials and has taken efforts to reduce packaging Otherwise, this business invested in medium and smaller-sized farms, especially in emerging economies In order to measure the sustainability of its products and suppliers, Walmart has launched its Sustainability Index with parts First, surveyed suppliers about their companies’ sustainability to create a more transparent supply chain in terms of it Second, formed a corporation of universities, suppliers, NGOs, government officials, and retailers to create a database on product life cycles, subsequently understanding more about the sustainability of their products Third, send this information to consumers to help them make informed decisions In line with their zero waste goals, Walmart Mexico had significant success in converting used cooking oil into biodiesel, soap and supplements for cattle feed, and composting large amounts of organic waste Walmart’s recycling efforts helped the firm reduce its global plastic bag waste by 35 percent since 2007 Due to all of Walmart’s success in enhancing the environment, Walmart has achieved some accomplishment in this area because of its dedication to its goals and the strength of its partnerships V THE WAY WALMART DO TO IMPROVE ITS ETHICS AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY In order to improve Walmart’s ethical reputation along with its reputation for sustainability and corporate governance, in 2004, Walmart established its Global Ethics Office and published a revised Global Statement of Ethics The aim of GEO is to spread an ethical corporate culture and provide guidance on ethical decision making An ethics helpline is an anonymous and confidential way for associates to contact the company regarding ethical issues In a period of several months, Walmart maintained that they interviewed 1,000 market personnel in various countries, dedicated a lot of money to new processes and procedures, developed ethical training sessions for more than 19,000 associates Walmart also contributed to disaster management projects, economic empowerment for women and supplier development The company donated a lot in aid for the victims of Hurricane Sandy, allocated $2 million in grants for whose homes are damaged and so on Besides, Walmart raised numerous opportunities for women by teaching various of them valuable skills with the aim of helping them escape poverty Moreover, the Supplier Development Program, created by Walmart, works with over 100 suppliers every year to improve the productivity in their factories and working conditions For instance, the alarming issue of obesity in America would be better by Walmart’s health initiative They would lower the prices of its fruits and vegetables, decrease the amounts of fats, sugars and salts in the foods it sells By putting the obesity epidemic above its weight, the world's largest retailer might be able to create an important change in the habit of eating healthier Walmart in this day and age After the financial recession of 2008-2009, while various firms suffered, Walmart was still the preferred shopping location of many clients and remained prosperous However, recently, Walmart has begun to decline This business admitted the reasons behind was Walmart desire to court higher-income customers, subsequently they changed Sam Walton’s original vision of everyday low prices It was difficult to achieve much success with discount shoppers to make them buy organic food and trendy clothes Walmart also experienced the renovation which cut some products such as fishing tackle, from its stores Unfortunately, these actions reduced the number of Walmart’s original customers The major mistake of Walmart was trying to be everything Because of these failures, Walmart was returning to Sam Walton’s original vision and maintaining its “everyday low prices” Walmart 10 This is a preview Do you want full access? 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Log in executives always try to make sure their company offers the lowest prices However, despite these domestic problems, the revenue of Walmart is still on the rise based on international stores Walmart is known for its ability to adapt quickly to different environments, therefore this strategy gives Walmart many chances to adapt to other social, cultural, economic, etc from many countries Nevertheless, Walmart still experienced some troubles and had to close its stores due to failing to interest the local population from several countries Admittedly, the more Walmart wants to expand internationally, the more this firm has to consider what concessions it is necessary in order to enter certain markets Obviously, it can not be denied that Walmart achieved numerous successes Though the company will find it challenged in their way, its international markets remain to offer a hugely potential to grow Walmart in the future In response to criticism and strengthening their consumer’s support , the company has continued to improve their relationships with stakeholders and made efforts to prove it is an ethically responsible company Through numerous efforts such as decreasing its waste and carbon emissions, these goals extend to all aspects of its operations, including suppliers Individuals have to acknowledge how strong Walmart’s desire to become a trustful sustainable business Besides, an ethics and compliance program of Walmart has been considered unnecessary, nevertheless, it can not be denied that a strong monitoring system and a commitment from top management to enforce the company’s ethical policies showed deserved results after all Bribery among Walmart stores in foreign countries and employee dissatisfaction has decreased Walmart’s reputation In order to address those problems, Walmart is working to boost internal control mechanisms and supplier auditing In conclusion, definitely all individuals, including critics and supporters of Walmart, are waiting to see the future of Walmart, wondering if it is possible for Walmart to be the largest retailer which is also still dedicated to social responsibility 11 VI ANSWERING THE QUESTIONS Do you think Walmart is doing enough to become more sustainable? To be honest, it is really difficult to say whether Walmart is doing enough to become more sustainable or not However, there is no denying that the effort of Walmart to achieve their ambitious goals is extremely admirable 100% renewable energy, zero waste and a more sustainable supply chain for people and the planet, this commitment of Walmart brought one of the greatest blows to the individuals all over the world It is not exaggerated that it is impossible to achieve those goals no matter how long, however, we all have to change our mind if we realize the future which Walmart is trying to create by various ways Since 2017, more than 4,500 of Walmart’s suppliers have reported more than 574 million metric tons of reduced or avoided emissions By 2012, Walmart had 115 onsite rooftop solar installations in different countries, providing 71 million annual kilowatt hours of electricity They also completed 26 fuel cell installations in the US, providing over 65 million kilowatt hours of annual electricity and are testing micro-wind and solar water heating projects in numerous destinations Not only the relationships with influential people in supplier companies, governments, NGOs and academia with the aim of serving to integrate and evaluate efforts in renewable energy, Walmart also has financed its own renewable energy projects Clearly, these projects have impressive results, which is more than 180 projects including micro-wind installations in parking lots and biodiesel generator sets Nearly 350 Mexico stores have reduced emissions by 137,000 tons annually through wind power, and the 14 stores in Northern Ireland are powered by wind energy It is reasonable to The Environmental Protection Agency’s Green Power Partnership Program ranks Walmart as the second largest purchaser of green power among its U S retail competitors In line with their zero waste goals, Walmart Mexico has been successful in converting 1,2 million pounds of used cooking oil into biodiesel, soap and supplements for the cattle feed as well as composting over 1,900 metric tons of organic waste Since 2016, the Walmart Foundation has invested over $45 million in grants promoting responsible recruitment of workers and fair and responsible labor practices in global supply chains Since 2017, the Walmart Foundation has provided grants which are expected to reach more than 730,000 12 smallholder farmers in India, Mexico and Central America, 44% of whom are women These grants of more than $67 million are helping provide market access and build resilience In 2021, 58% of Walmart’s global private brand packaging was recyclable, reusable or industrially compostable based on supplier reports In conclusion, from my own perspective, Walmart is doing the right thing to become a more sustainable company, and if they can achieve all of their goals in the future, it is extremely enough in order to be an impressive sustainable business What are the ethical issues Walmart has faced? The first one is employee benefits It has been roundly criticized for low wages and benefits in Walmart although this firm is the largest retail employer in the world Walmart has been accused of failing to provide health insurance for more than 60 percent of its employees Besides, another criticism against Walmart is that it decreased its workforce at the same time it expanded In the United States, Walmart declined its workforce by 1,4 percent while increasing its retail stores by 13 percent, resulting in employee dissatisfaction With regard to Walmart’s stance on unions, although worker’s benefits could improve if workers become unionized, Walmart seems to fight against them Unions have been discouraged since Walmart’s foundation Sam Walton believed they were a divisive force and might render the company uncompetitive In 2006, Walmart initially reacted to Walmart union at a store in China by stating it would not renew the contracts of unionized workers The third ethical issue Walmart has faced is the workplace conditions In December 2005, Walmart was ordered to pay $172 million to more than 100,000 California employees in a class-action lawsuit claiming that Walmart routinely denied meal breaks, rest breaks Besides, Walmart managers deliberately altered time cards to prevent overtime In 2008 Walmart had to pay up to $640 million to settle sixty-three such lawsuits Furthermore, Walmart has also been accused of discrimination by employees Although women account for more than two-thirds of all Walmart employees, they make up less than 10 percent of store management In 2001, an internal study showed 13 This is a preview Do you want full access? 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Log in the company paid female store managers less than males in the same positions There are many lawsuits claimed that Walmart discriminated against them in regard to promotions, pay, training, and job assignments Another ethical issue of Walmart involved in the leadership In March 2005, broad vice chair Thomas Coughlin was forced to resign because he stole as much as $500,000 form Walmart in the form of bogus expenses, reimbursement and the unauthorized use of gift cards Like many large corporations, Walmart has been targeted as a violator of safe environmental practices In 2005, Walmart received a grand jury subpoena from the U.S Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles, California, seeking documents and information relating to the company’s receipt, transportation, handling, identification, recycling, treatment, storage and disposal of certain merchandise constituting hazardous waste materials However, the greatest environmental concern associated with Walmart has been urban sprawl The construction of a Walmart can stress a city’s infrastructure of roads, parking and traffic flow There have been concerns about the number of acres of city green space devoured by Walmart construction The biggest blow of ethical issues that Walmart faced, which had a serious negative impact to Walmart’s reputation in recent years, is the discovery of an alleged large scale bribery ring among its Mexican arm, Walmex It has been claimed that Walmex executives paid millions in bribes in order to obtain licensing and zoning permits for store locations The Mexican approval process for zoning licenses often takes longer than in the United States, therefore, paying bribes to speed up the process is advantageous for Walmart but places competing retailers who not offer bribes at a disadvantage Last but not least, safety issues in Walmart related to the events in which a Bangladeshi factory fire killed 112 workers Critics have accused Walmart of advocating against equipping factories with better fire protection due to the cost involved Besides, workers at warehouses in the United States doing business with Walmart have complained about harsh working conditions and violations of labor laws 14 How is Walmart attempting to answer concerns regarding misconduct? In response to the allegations of bribery, Walmart replaced the general counsel in Mexico and is conducting an investigation into the allegations In addition, CEO Mike Duke assured the public that the company is re-evaluating its global compliance program with assistance from auditing firm KPMG LLP and law firm Greenberg Traurig LLP Walmart also is working to improve its ethical reputation for sustainability and corporate governance In 2004, Walmart formed its Global Ethics Office and released a revised Global Statement of Ethics The intent of the Global Ethics Office is to spread an ethical corporate culture among its global stakeholders Walmart claims that in a period of several months the firm interviewed 1,000 market personnel in various countries, dedicated $35 million to new processes and procedures, and developed ethical training sessions for more than 19,000 associates Moreover, Walmart has also contributed significantly to disaster management projects, economic empowerment for women, and supplier development In terms of increasing opportunities for women, Walmart made a commitment in partnering with 150 factories and 60,000 women to teach women valuable skills to help them escape poverty Additionally, Walmart created the Supplier Development Program, a partnership that works with 100 suppliers annually with the intent to improve their factories’ productivity and working conditions The company has also embarked on a health initiative to address the growing problem of obesity in America In this case, the world’s largest retailer might be able to create significant change toward healthier eating habits Regarding problems with the environment, Walmart’s sustainability goals are entirely renewable energy supply, create no waste, and sell products that sustain people and the environment In order to achieve these goals, Walmart with influential people in supplier companies, government, NGOs, and academia, created Sustainable Value Networks (SVN) serving to integrate and evaluate efforts in renewable energy and practices 15 VII CONCLUSION Walmart’s success story is unparalleled among retailer businesses The company started off from a small-town business and now become one of the largest retailer firms in the world Although Walmart has received plenty of criticism regarding its treatment of employees, suppliers, and economic impacts on communities, Walmart still saves families hundreds of dollars a year, helping people save money and live better Otherwise, when they faced a challenge of engaged in misconduct, from voiced of feminists, activists, and labor union leaders, Walmart did not give up its reputation This business has attempted to turn over with emphasis on diversity, charitable giving, support for nutrition, and sustainability, all of which have contributed to a revitalized image for Walmart The growth of Walmart, the Walmart’s various relationships with stakeholders, the ethical issues Walmart have to face, the way Walmart deals with all concerns, all of it create one of the greatest admirable companies ever In order to increase its competitive advantage and repair its reputation, Walmart’s efforts in all aspects are unbelievable, its endeavor in sustainability and social responsibility can not be denied From my own perspective, Walmart deserved what it owns, and it is reasonable for Walmart to be the 24th most admired company in the world as Fortune ranked VIII REFERENCES O.C Ferrell, John Fraedrich and Linda Ferrell (2013), Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making & Cases, tenth edition Miguel Bustillo, Miguel, “Walmart Merchandise Goes Back to Basics”, The Wall Street Journal, April 11, 2011, B3 Stephanie Clifford, “More Dissent Is Expected Over a Wal-mart Scandal”, The New York Times, June 6, 2013 Timothy W Martin, “Beyond the Big Box: Wal-Mart Thinks Smaller”, The Wall Street Journal, April 23, 2012 16 This is a preview Do you want full access? Go Premium and unlock all 18 pages Access to all documents Get Unlimited Downloads Improve your grades Upload Share your documents to unlock Free Trial Get 30 days of free Premium Already Premium? Log in James Bandler, “Former No at Wal-Mart Set to Plead Guilty”, The Wall Street Journal, January 7, 2006, A1 17