Organization Structures and Cultures
Case of Walmart and John Lewis
What is Organization Structure
Indicates the way in which the elements in the organization are organized. (Robbins and Mathews, 2009)
It defines the power, responsibility as well as the authority with in the organization.
There are various types of organization structures based on size of the organization, nature of the business and the maturity of the organization.
Wamart Inc
World’s largest supermarket chain with presence over 20 countries.
It was founded by Sam Walton who inspired the company with his personal values to save people’s money
The philosophy of Walmart is to provide goods at lowest possible price on a daily basis
With time the business have evolved creating various businesses namely Walmart US, Walmart International, Sam’s Club and Discount Centers
Organization Structure of Walmart – Divisional Structure
Divisional structure is a situation where the organization is structured around various business divisions which could be based on products or geographical location or any other parameter that create divisions within the organization.
(Robbins and Mathews, 2009)
Divisionalized structure is overlooked by a headquarter and the authority is delegated to business units with responsibility to make profits in their respective business
divisions.
At Walmart, divisionalization based on product/services as well geographical locations can be identified
John Lewis
S Retailing chain primarily based in UK
S Small in size compared to Walmart
S Operates online as well as offline stores
S Specializes in Fashion relation items and Household items
S Organization is structured based on the functions within the organization that are key to the day to day success
Organization Structure of John
Lewis – Functional Structure
Functional structure is an organization structure where the organization is structured based on the key functions of the organization and such key functions could include Human resource management, sales and marketing, procurement and so on. (Robbins and Mathews, 2009)
Suitable for small scale organizations who focus on functional excellence. (Robbins and Mathews, 2009)
Authority is delegated to functional managers to achieve targets that are set based on each function.
Organizational Culture
Organization culture is a system of shared meaning held by the members of the organization that distinguishes them from the other organizations. (Schein, 1985 cited in
Dwivedi, 1995)
The organization can be highly influenced by leadership of the company as well as the process, procedures within the company that distinguishes the company from the rest in the environment.
Organization Culture of
Walmart – Power Culture
Walmart’s culture is heavily influenced by its founder Sam Walton who set a group of shared values within the company
Sam and his family are considered to be the center of the web with significant level of power in the organization.
Company still believes in philosophy of the founder and that drives them forward while differentiating themselves from the other players
The company has an open culture where there is no major power gap between superiors and subordinates. The open door policy encourages ideas from lower level employees to be executed.
However, this structure is not in line with the divisionalized structure as divisional leaders are not given prominence in the culture.
Organization Culture of
John Lewis – Role Culture
There is no highly influential person behind the culture as in the case of Walmart
Culture is heavily focused on roles and functional specialism within the company
There is a high power gap between the superiors and subordinates and there is high level of bureaucracy.
However, employees within the department have understanding and the organization culture heavily focused on functional departments trying to improve their performance.
Identified to be in line with the functional structure of the company
References
Dwivedi R K (1995). Organizational Culture And Performance .
New Delhi: M D Publications .
Robbins S P and Mathews M (2009). Organization Theory:
Structure, Design, And Applications. 3rd ed. USA : Pearson Prentice Hall
