By Tom Mitchell in Beijing and Jonathan Birchall
Financial Times
October 23 2008

Walmart, the world's biggest retailer, yesterday told its Chinese suppliers to meet strict environmental and social standards or risk losing its business.

"Meeting social and environmental standards is not optional," Lee Scott, Walmart's chief executive, told a gathering of more than 1,000 suppliers in Beijing.

"A company that cheats on overtime and on the age of its labour, that dumps its scraps and its chemicals in our rivers, that does not pay its taxes or honour its contracts - will ultimately cheat on the quality of its products."

Walmart has been pursuing a drive to improve its reputation on environmental and social issues over the past three years, in response to growing criticism in the U.S. over issues including labour conditions in its supplier factories.

The directive, which will be codified in a Walmart suppliers' agreement, comes at a difficult time for China-based manufacturers, caught between rising production costs and the effect of the global financial crisis on consumer demand in their largest overseas markets.

The requirements include a clear demonstration of compliance with Chinese environmental laws, a 20 per cent improvement in energy efficiency at the company's 200 largest China suppliers, and disclosure of the names and addresses of every factory involved in the production process. The company will require a 25 percent rise in the efficiency of energy-intensive products, such as flat-screen TVs, by 2012.

Mr. Scott said the retailer also wanted to move away from the short-term focus that has characterised its relationships with Asian suppliers.

"We have traditionally purchased in a very transactional manner," said Mr Scott. "We need deeper, longer-term relationships with suppliers so it is not based on the last penny."

Some suppliers grumbled about the conditions spelled out by Walmart, which has a reputation for driving hard bargains. It is estimated that each year the company sells about $30 billion worth of China-made goods, giving it enormous negotiating power over suppliers.

"It's going to make things a lot worse," said one manufacturer at the meeting, who asked not to be identified. Others were more relaxed. "If they don't like it, they are not going to be doing business with Walmart," said one U.S.-based Walmart supplier who sources components from China.

By Kimberly Morrison
THE MORNING NEWS

More than 2,800 job seekers flooded the Northwest Arkansas Job Fair on Monday, vying for positions with some 70 regional employers.

It was the largest turnout yet for the three-year-old regional job fair, said Gretchen Laffoon, director of workforce and small business for the Rogers-Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce, which hosted the event at the John Q. Hammons Center in Rogers. There were 2,500 available positions at the job fair, but a remarkable level of interest in jobs not offered at the fair.

Cameron Smith Associates boasts the largest executive search firm for Wal-Mart supplier teams, and advised a packed room of more than 100 hopefuls on how to break into the high-paying world of Wal-Mart supplier teams.

There are more than 1,200 suppliers with offices in Northwest Arkansas, employing some 5,700 people, said Cameron Smith. There are another 400 "third tier" suppliers, or companies that support direct suppliers to Wal-Mart, that make up "Vendorville."
Those jobs are tough to land without experience, but there are ways to get a foot in the door, Smith said.

"Everything is branding these days," said Smith. "When you're on the job market, you have to sell your brand. Your brand is what you stand for."

Building on that brand means networking at Chamber of Commerce events and learning about how supplier teams work at Doing Business in Bentonville, a speaker series for suppliers, or 8th and Walton, a Bentonville company that teaches courses on various aspects of working with Wal-Mart.

It also may mean working for less or working for free through an internship with a supplier, but could also mean a big payoff with a secure job.

"These careers are plentiful and about as recession-proof as it gets," Smith said. "People are not going to stop eating and buying consumables."

The influx of Wal-Mart suppliers over the last five years drove Northwest Arkansas to the largest increase in population in the state at more than 12 percent. In turn, the labor force increased 14.6 percent, according to the Department of Workforce Services.

The region continues to have a lower unemployment rate than the state. August unemployment for Northwest Arkansas was 3.6 percent, compared with the state level of 4.8 percent.

Mark May of Rogers, who attended the seminar, entertained the idea of breaking into a Wal-Mart supplier job, but said he would continue to look for other positions. May served more than two decades in the U.S. Air Force and worked a handful of odd jobs in the area, most recently a temporary job with Mercy Health. He hoped it would grow into something permanent before the company began two rounds of layoffs that dashed his prospects there.

"I'm looking most anywhere," he said. "I like new challenges and variety. I prefer to work with smaller organizations and places where I can make a difference. Wal-Mart is probably too big for me."

Michelle Singhoth of Springdale said she applied to Wal-Mart and a handful of other companies hoping to get a clerical or administrative position. With two children in tow -- a 10-month-old and a 2-year-old -- Singhoth and boyfriend John Robertson took turns with the kids to grab applications.

"He pushed me to come to the fair," Singhoth said.Robertson attends school and works full time, but she had been working on and off while raising their children. She worked most recently at a hotel, and applied to the Embassy Suites. The experience may prove valuable for the burgeoning hospitality industry, which is among the top 10 fastest growing occupations in Arkansas.

"I'm hopeful," she said. "We'll see."

by Cameron Smith

Some days it seems the only constants in the world of retail are change and Walmart.  In a slower economy, Wal-Mart continues to fare well. But with over 100 million consumers in the U.S. shopping its stores every week, Walmart must continue to reinvent itself to ensure it is creating a pleasant shopping experience.

Right now Walmart is seeking more in-depth market, category and consumer insights to support a major shift in the merchandising organization.

Suppliers will need to adapt to keep pace.

• Providing insights Walmart expects as it develops strategies going forward will be key to strong supplier relationships and influence with Walmart.
• Leaner teams mean CPG managers will require unparalleled technical expertise balanced by fact-based selling skills.
• Job descriptions for analysts and category advisors will continue to evolve rapidly as Walmart makes substantial changes to how they evaluate POS and shopper insight information.
• Attracting and retaining talent with the experience and skills to adapt to these new business rules is essential.

It all comes down to recruiting and retaining the best people.
Cameron Smith & Associates has earned the reputation as experts and trusted advisors to the Walmart supplier community. We are uniquely positioned to keep pace and even anticipate changes to Walmart’s expectations of suppliers to help your company achieve cutting-edge results. Our business is connecting the best people, the best companies and the best resources in Bentonville and beyond.

Best-in-Class Resources
CPG Diagnostic: Tighter hiring restrictions and the need for CPG firms to reduce risk on how analysts and category advisors actually perform in the trenches inspired the launch of CPG Diagnostic. “Connecting the dots” is an essential skill category managers use to assemble the puzzle of disparate data sources. CPG Diagnostic delivers an evaluation of frontline team members’ abilities and finally allows companies to rank candidates accurately and objectively on key skills before making critical hiring decisions.

8th & Walton:  8th & Walton is a Bentonville-based supplier development company offering services and solutions for organizations to do business better with the world's largest retailer. High performers with experience working inside Walmart and within the supplier community teach tools essential for doing business in Bentonville.

Connect with the Best and Brightest.
Walmart will move forward to meet consumer needs whether every supplier can keep pace or not. Successful teams will need agility, speed and talent. Let CSA introduce you to the best and brightest talent in Northwest Arkansas and best-in-class resources to better manage and grow your Walmart business.

Sincerely,

Cameron Smith

by Gene Eggman

Why is it that making a “Things to Do List” helps us accomplish more in life?  I had one of my mentors once tell me “Failure to plan, is a plan for failure.” 

My focus here is on resources for managing your time. Do you have those days when you feel really great in all that you accomplished?  What sets those days apart from others?  For me it is making a “Things to Do List” at the end of the day for the next day and then completing all that I set out to accomplish.

There are two excellent sources that I have seen businesses provide their employees over the years: the Day-Timer and the Franklin Covey planner. These resources both offer time management products including planners, journals and even home organizers in software or notebook formats.  If you are a creative visual type person that likes a paper format in a planner, you might want to check out the Bubble Planner.

If you are not currently using a planner to help manage your work and personal life, you might wants to check out some of the products offered through the following sites:

http://www.bubbleplanner.com/
http://www.daytimer.com/
http://www.franklincovey.com/