Introduction
Employee satisfaction, retention and productivity can be assessed quantitatively by the use of a Growth Metric which is used in the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) framework. Such a metric targets the learning and growth perspective of BSC that is and remains “the foundation for all strategy” (Chen & Miles, 2000, p. 93). This essay shall seek to reveal Wall-mart stores Inc.’s mission and strategy with regard to its learning and growth perspective and identify measures and objectives that are relevant in this regard.
Learning and Growth Objectives
As in the case of Wall-mart stores Inc, with it’s over 4 150 retail outlets globally, one of its core objectives in regard to learning and growth, in line with its vision to be a world-wide corporation offering the best services and products for their customers at the least cost with the most worth for their money, is to focus on the intense global competition which requires that the organization continually improves its capabilities for delivering value to customers and shareholders.
There are three cardinal sources from which an organization’s Learning and Growth emanates and these are: people who core the manipulation, systems in place and organizational procedures. As noted in module 1, there are usually observably big gaps between the capacities of people already in existence in the company, the systems, and also standard procedures as regards the requirements for achieving authentic breakthrough performance are revealed by the scorecards. There is a need for businesses to heavily invest in stronger human resource initiatives, revamped Information Technology approaches and well outlines organizational routines and procedures in order to close this gap (Chen & Miles, 2000, p. 32).
Again, knowledge is a constantly growing perishable commodity and therefore it will most definitely become centre-stage in deciding the main core competencies that Wall-mart stores Inc. should invest in for its future expansion and development (Cushing, Clark, Carter & Kennedy, 2005). It requires that the organization identifies its strategic direction for the future and builds rapport with its diverse employee audience to maintain and increase retention while encouraging growth of its ventures in the already established markets.
As illustrated above, the three objectives are related to the mission whose aim is geared towards improving the quality of products through advanced technology and use of manufacturing industries with the intention of maintaining appropriate customer service. This can be clearly seen since maintaining and developing the know-how directly contributes to the quality of the products offered since the company can aptly keep up with the emerging trends. Furthermore, a long term infrastructure will ensure that its manufacturing industries through the advanced technology, will maintain the appropriate customer service.
Measures, targets and actions
For an organization to succeed, it is vital that a collection of measures be put in place, in line with its objectives, to ensure sustainability and continuity. To maintain the required know how, re-skilling their current staff and training new employees has been one of the measures taken to arrive at the appropriate competence strategy. This strategy is the one that specifies the areas where the company can invest in so as to have a well developed individual competence as well as those that it will create from collaboration with like-minded external parties.
In addition to ensuring their staff is in line with the current trends, Wall-mart stores Inc have ensured that they have enhanced their information technology and systems to allow for an infrastructure that is long-lasting and sustainable for its competency base. This can only be done by investing and budgeting for up to date improved and more efficient systems.
Conclusion
Unlike in the case of Wall-mart stores Inc, there are those companies that ignore learning and growth measures in preference to financial and operational measures in their strategic approach. This is inappropriate and injurious to any business especially in the corporate world since consistent failure to enhance systems, employee, and organizational capabilities more often than not usually has consequences that show up even in short-term basis as well as long-term analysis (Cushing, Clark, Carter & Kennedy, 2005).
In order to eschew this myopic perception, it is imperative that there be a concerted effort for every organization to ensure that there is a planned implementation and operation for its Learning and Growth initiatives. This is important since it will ensure that there is a balanced diversity scorecard that derives the full benefits of a full, appropriate scorecard system (Finch, 2006).
The Objectives that are outlined in the Learning and Growth Perspective are good grounds of providing a general direction of the necessary infrastructure that is used to ensure that all the core objectives in the other three perspectives are adequately met to satisfaction. For instance, if Wall-mart Inc. aims at increasing the number of distribution channels to solve the problem which results from congestion in the operational stores, with regard to the Customer Service Perspective, an appropriate infrastructure has first to be put in place to handle the increased customer base.
References
Chen, D., & Miles, C. (2004). Working with Families: A Collaborative Approach. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.
Cushing, L.S., Clark, N.M., Carter, E.W., & Kennedy, G.H. (2005). Access to the General Education Curriculum for Students with Significant Cognitive Disabilities. Teaching Exceptional Children, 38(2), 6-13.
Finch, R. (2006). Workable Learning Strategies. Virginia: Core Book Publications.