Organizational Structure Paper

Organizational Structure Paper

Organizational structure is used by many corporations around the world because it gives configuration to management, staff, and tasks with the end result of accomplishing the company’s direction and goals. Along with structure, organizations utilize separate functions to organize the activities that are required by each department, such as marketing, financing, or human resources. The way an organization blends differentiation and integration based on the uncertainty of external environment helps determine the organizational design best suited for the company. This paper will give a brief overview of Wal-Mart Inc. and discuss their organizational structure, along with a compare and contrast of other styles of structure that are different from Wal-Mart. It will discuss the organizational design and how organizational functions can influence and determine the structure of Wal-Mart.

In 1962 Sam Walton opened the first Wal-Mart in Rogers Arkansas with the visionary leadership to help customers and communities save money so they could live better. From the beginning, Sam Walton surrounded himself with people who had big ideas and were not afraid to take risks (Wal-Mart.com, 2013). Wal-Mart has become a global organization and expanded with Sam’s Club and Wal-Mart Neighborhood Markets. Today, Walmart operates over 11,000 stores under 69 different banners in 27 countries, employing 2.2 million associates across the globe (Wal-Mart Inc., 2013). With their numerous stores and huge employee base, Wal-Mart is a perfect example on how vital it is to implement an organizational structure.

An organizational structure is the way a company positions people and jobs so that tasks can be executed to meet goals or objectives. Structure gives managers and employees an understanding of how duties are performed and a manager or boss to report to. Factors like what kind of work the company performs, how big or small the company is, the geographic locations, and the various products a company has or produces all play a huge role as to what type of structure a company may utilize. The organizational structure that Wal-Mart utilizes would be considered a divisional structure and can be broken down into three divisions; product structure, market structure, and geographical structure. Wal-Mart benefits from a divisional structure by allowing the company to focus on customers, services, and the products they provide.

In order to compare and contrast Wal-Mart’s divisional structure, it is important to understand the functional and matrix structures. A functional structure strategically places employees in a specific department based on the duty or task they are able to perform. The benefits of a functional structure are the abilities to encourage and strengthen skills, along with knowledge from all parties involved. When comparing Wal-Mart’s divisional structure,