Wal-Mart Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Wal-Mart - Assignment Example This power should not be misused but used judiciously to enhance operations and for the overall growth of the company. Management information is helpful so long as it helps in the decision process but in most cases the systems designer systematically neglects the decision that could be made from the information (Stern, 1970). Instead, it is used to analyze questions by manipulating the data. 2. Management Information Systems Stern (1970) defines management system as an â€Å"automated system, which presents information both internal and external to the business that aids in making a specific set of routine decisions†. Systems are often created with miscellaneous pieces of data but they are seldom used or sometimes even misused. MIS should force the system designer to work with the manager and specify the most relevant data needed. The information generated should help the manager in making better decisions and this difference should be measurable. The definition of MIS implies that it is not worth building an MIS system unless the managers are willing to use it. MIS has never been rightly used as a control system for better decisions. 3. Background – Wal-mart Wal-mart plays a significant role in the US economy. Founded by Sam Walton in 1962, it has grown from a single store to a mammoth international corporation. As of 2007 Wal-mart operated more than 3400 stores and is the largest employer in the United States (Basker, 2007). Its first store opened in 1988 as an experimental format. Wal-mart is the largest retailer in the world with its sales being larger than the sales of the three big retailers combined – Carrefour, Home Depot and Metro. It is the biggest retailer of jewelry and groceries in the United States (Dan, 2002). Twenty-four of all toothpaste is purchased at Wal-mart’s (Dan, 2002). Wal-mart own 18 Lear-jets and employs 60 pilots. Wal-mart’s success is attributed to its expert logistics system and its cost-conscious â€Å"corporate culture† (Basker & Noel, 2009). 4. Importance of MIS for Wal-mart Wal-mart was an early adopter of technology and information system. Wal-mart achieved competitive advant age by being a leader in adopting technology in its operations (Basker, 2007). Wal-mart has three basic philosophies behind their Information system – they run a centralized information system from Arkansas for all their operations; they have common systems and common platforms and their third philosophy is to be merchants first and technologists second (Lundberg, 2002). They allow a great deal of flexibility as well so that people in the local markets can adapt to local situations. Wal-mart defines it success with the customer and everyone at Wal-mart has the same definition of success. Wal-mart believes that their merchants, suppliers, customers and business leaders must have access to information as this helps them to better understand the needs of tomorrow (Rollin, 2008). It has technological edge in inventory control, logistics and distribution. All its stores and distribution centers are connected to the company headquarters through computer network. Wal-mart was also a n early adopted of bar-code technology which reduced the labor cost of processing shipments. The software – Retail Link – helped to bring the suppliers close to the individual stores