Wal-Mart to Cut Management Role to Simplify Store Operations

Bloomberg reports:

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is eliminating a layer of in-store management, part of efforts to simplify operations at the world’s largest retailer.

The company will cut the role of zone manager and transfer the duties to other managers, Wal-Mart spokesman Kory Lundberg said. The change, affecting about 14,000 employees, is meant to reduce bureaucracy and put more power in the hands of people running Wal-Mart’s 4,500 U.S. stores. The company began notifying employees of the decision this month, Lundberg said.

Until now, employees in zone-manager positions -- generally about six workers per store -- had responsibility over several departments. One of them, for instance, might oversee the pharmacy, health and beauty-product sections. In recent years, Wal-Mart has had zone managers in addition to individual department managers.

Greg Foran, Wal-Mart’s U.S. chief executive officer, has been working to improve customer service at stores. “How stores serve customers in a simple, repeatable and sustainable way” was among the priorities he outlined in a recent meeting of U.S. executives, according to an internal document.

Efficiency.