In 2006 Wal-Mart, the second largest firm in the world by sales, was looking to improve its already efficient supply chain. The company's supply chain was closely integrated with its retail and information systems strategies and has been developed incrementally over the past 40 years. However, rivals are copying every aspect, from the way Wal-Mart cross-docks product in warehouses, to Wal-Mart's use of a sophisticated database to capture, store and disseminate store-level information to suppliers. Wal-Mart's new executive vice-president, logistics was overseeing a handful of initiatives designed to improve the firm's supply chain. However, it was not certain that these initiatives were going to have a significant impact on Wal-Mart costs, and he needed to consider what the company should do to stay ahead of the competition.
