the.world.is.flat-第30部分

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offices；〃　said　my　host；　spokesman　William　Wertz。　The　corporate　suites　are　housed　in　
offices　that　are　one　notch　below　those　of　the　principal；　vice　principal；　and　head　
counselor　at　my　daughter's　public　junior　high　school…before　it　was　remodeled。　When　
you　pass　through　the　lobby；　
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you　see　these　little　cubicles　where　potential　suppliers　are　pitching　their　products　
to　Wal…Mart　buyers。　One　has　sewing　machines　all　over　the　table；　another　has　dolls；　
another　has　women's　shirts。　It　feels　like　a　cross　between　Sam's　Club　and　the　covered　
bazaar　of　Damascus。　Attention　Wal…Mart　shareholders：　The　company　is　definitely　not　
wasting　your　money　on　frills。　
But　how　did　so　much　innovative　thinking…thinking　that　has　reshaped　the　world's　
business　landscape　inmany　ways…come　out　of　such　a　Li'l　Abner　backwater？　It　is　actually　
a　classic　example　of　a　phenomenon　I　point　to　often　in　this　book：　the　coefficient　of　
flatness。　The　fewer　natural　resources　your　country　or　company　has；　the　more　you　will　
dig　inside　yourself　for　innovations　in　order　to　survive。　Wal…Mart　became　the　biggest　
retailer　in　the　world　because　it　drove　a　hard　bargain　with　everyone　it　came　in　contact　
with。　But　make　no　mistake　about　one　thing：　Wal…Mart　also　became　number　one　because　
this　littlehick　companyfrom　northwest　Arkansas　was　smarter　and　faster　about　adopting　
new　technology　than　any　of　its　competitors。　And　it　still　is。　
David　Glass；　the　company's　CEO　from　1988　to　2000；　oversaw　many　of　the　innovations　
that　made　Wal…Mart　the　biggest　and　most　profitable　retailer　on　the　planet。　Fortune　
magazine　once　dubbed　him　〃the　most　underrated　CEO　ever〃　for　the　quiet　way　he　built　
on　Sam　Walton's　vision。　David　Glass　is　to　supply…chaining　what　Bill　Gates　is　to　word　
processing。　When　Wal…Mart　was　just　getting　started　in　northern　Arkansas　in　the　1960s；　
explained　Glass；　it　wanted　to　be　a　discounter。　But　in　those　days；　every　five…and…dime　
got　its　goods　from　the　same　wholesalers；　so　there　was　no　way　to　get　an　edge　on　your　
competitors。　The　only　way　Wal…Mart　could　see　to　get　an　edge；　he　said；　was　for　it　to　
buy　its　goods　in　volume　directly　from　the　manufacturers。　But　it　wasn't　efficient　for　
manufacturers　to　ship　to　multiple　Wal…Mart　stores　spread　all　over；　so　Wal…Mart　set　
up　a　distribution　center　to　which　all　the　manufacturers　could　ship　their　merchandise；　
and　then　Wal…Mart　got　its　own　trucks　to　distribute　these　goods　itself　to　its　stores。　
The　math　worked　like　this：　It　cost　
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roughly　3　percent　more　on　average　for　Wal…Mart　to　maintain　its　own　distribution　center。　
But　it　turned　out；　said　Glass；　that　cutting　out　the　wholesalers　and　buying　direct　
from　the　manufacturers　saved　on　average　5　percent；　so　that　allowed　Wal…Mart　to　cut　
costs　on　average　2　percent　and　then　make　it　up　on　volume。　
Once　it　established　that　basic　method　of　buying　directly　from　manufacturers　to　get　
the　deepest　discounts　possible；　Wal…Mart　focused　relentlessly　on　three　things。　The　
first　was　working　with　the　manufacturers　to　get　them　to　cut　their　costs　as　much　as　


possible。　The　second　was　working　on　its　supply　chain　from　those　manufacturers；　
wherever　they　were　in　the　world；　to　Wal…Mart's　distribution　centers；　to　make　it　as　
low…cost　andfric…tionless　aspossible。　The　third　was　constantly　improving　Wal…Mart's　
information　systems；　so　it　knew　exactly　what　its　customers　were　buying　and　could　feed　
that　information　to　all　the　manufacturers；　so　the　shelves　would　always　be　stocked　
with　the　right　items　at　the　right　time。　
Wal…Mart　quickly　realized　that　if　it　could　save　money　by　buying　directly　from　the　
manufacturers；　by　constantly　innovating　to　cut　the　cost　of　running　its　supply　chain；　
and　by　keeping　its　inventories　low　by　learning　more　about　its　customers；　it　could　
beat　its　competitors　on　price　every　time。　Sitting　in　Bentonville；　Arkansas；　it　didn't　
have　much　choice。　
〃The　reason　we　built　all　our　own　logistics　and　systems　is　because　we　are　in　the　middle　
of　nowhere；〃　said　Jay　Allen；　Wal…Mart's　senior　vice　president　of　corporate　affairs。　
〃It　really　was　a　small　town。　If　you　wanted　to　go　to　a　third　party　for　logistics；　it　
was　impossible。　It　was　pure　survival。　Now　with　all　the　attention　we　are　getting　there　
is　an　assumption　that　our　low　prices　derive　from　our　size　or　because　we're　getting　
stuff　from　China　or　being　able　to　dictate　to　suppliers。　The　fact　is　the　low　prices　
are　derived　from　efficiencies　Wal…Mart　has　invested　in…the　system　and　the　culture。　
It　is　a　very　low…cost　culture。〃　Added　Glass；　〃I　wish　that　I　could　say　we　were　brilliant　
and　visionary；　＇but＇　it　was　all　born　out　of　necessity。〃　
The　more　that　supply　chain　grew；　the　more　Walton　and　Glass　understood　that　scale　and　
efficiency　were　the　keys　to　their　whole　business。　Put　simply；　the　more　scale　and　scope　
their　supply　chain　had；　the　more　things　they　sold　for　less　to　more　customers；　the　
more　leverage　they　had　

with　suppliers　to　drive　prices　down　even　more；　the　more　they　sold　to　more　customers；　
the　more　scale　and　scope　their　supply　chain　had；　the　more　profit　they　reaped　for　their　
shareholders。　。　。　
Sam　Walton　was　the　father　of　that　culture；　but　necessity　was　its　mother；　and　its　
offspring　has　turned　out　to　be　a　lean；　mean　supply…chain　machine。　In　2004；　Wal…Mart　
purchased　roughly　260　billion　worth　of　merchandise　and　ran　it　through　a　supply　chain　
consisting　of　108　distribution　centers　around　the　United　States；　serving　the　some　
3；000　Wal…Mart　stores　in　America。　
In　the　early　years；　〃we　were　small…we　were　4　or　5　percent　of　Sears　and　Kmart；〃　said　
Glass。　〃If　you　are　that　small；　you　are　vulnerable；　so　what　we　wanted　to　do　more　than　
anything　else　was　grow　market　share。　We　had　to　undersell　others。　If　I　could　reduce　
from　3　percent　to　2　percent　the　cost　of　running　my　distribution　centers；　I　could　reduce　
retail　prices　and　grow　my　market　share　and　then　not　be　vulnerable　to　anyone。　So　any　
efficiency　we　generated　we　passed　on　to　the　consumer。〃　
For　instance；　after　the　manufacturers　dropped　off　their　goods　at　the　Wal…Mart　
distribution　center；　Wal…Mart　needed　to　deliver　those　goods　in　small　bunches　to　each　
of　its　stores。　Itmeant　that　Wal…Marthad　trucks　going　all　over　America。　Walton　quickly　
realized　if　he　connected　his　drivers　by　radios　and　satellites；　after　they　dropped　
off　at　a　certain　Wal…Mart　store；　they　could　go　a　few　miles　down　the　road　and　pick　


up　goods　from　a　manufacturer　so　they　wouldn't　come　back　empty　and　so　Wal…Mart　could　
save　the　delivery　charges　from　that　manufacturer。　A　few　pennies　here；　a　few　pennies　
there；　and　the　result　is　more　volume；　scope；　and　scale。　
In　improving　its　supply　chain；　Wal…Mart　leaves　no　link　untouched。　While　I　was　touring　
the　Wal…Mart　distribution　center　in　Bentonville；　I　noticed　that　some　boxes　were　too　
big　to　go　on　the　conveyor　belts　and　were　being　moved　around　on　pallets　by　Wal…Mart　
employees　driving　special　minilift　trucks　with　headphones　on。　A　computer　tracks　how　
many　pallets　each　employee　is　plucking　every　hour　to　put　onto　trucks　for　different　
stores；　and　a　computerized　voice　tells　each　of　them　whether　he　is　ahead　of　schedule　
or　behind　schedule。　〃You　can　choose　whether　you　want　your　computer　voice　to　be　a　man　
or　a　woman；　and　you　can　choose　

English　or　Spanish；〃　explained　Rollin　Ford；　Wal…Mart's　executive　vice　president；　who　
oversees　the　supply　chain　and　was　giving　me　my　tour。　
A　few　years　ago；　these　pallet　drivers　would　get　written　instructions　for　where　to　
pluck　a　certain　pallet　and　what　truck　to　take　it　to；　but　Wal…Mart　discovered　that　
by　giving　them　headphones　with　a　soothing　computer　voice　to　instruct　them；　drivers　
could　use　both　hands　and　not　have　to　carry　pieces　of　paper。　And　by　having　the　voice　
constantly　reminding　them　whether　they　were　behind　or　ahead　of　expectations；　〃we　got　
a　boost　in　productivity；〃　said　Ford。　It　is　a　million　tiny　operational　innovations　
like　this　that　differentiate　Wal…Mart's　supply　chain。　
But　the　real　breakthrough；　said　Glass；　was　when　Wal…Mart　realized　that　while　it　had　
to　be　a　tough　bargainer　with　its　manufacturers　on　price；　at　the　same　time　the　two　
had　to　collaborate　to　create　value　for　each　other　horizontally　if　Wal…Mart　was　going　
to　keep　driving　down　costs。　Wal…Mart　was　one　of　the　first　companies　to　introduce　
computers　to　track　store　sales　and　inventory　and　was　the　first　to　develop　a　
computerized　network　in　order　to　share　this　information　with　suppliers。　Wal…Mart's　
theory　was　that　the　more　information　everyone　had　about　what　customers　were　pulling　
off　the　shelves；　the　more　efficient　Wal…Mart's　buying　would　be；　the　quicker　its　
suppliers　could　adapt　to　changing　market　demand。　
In　1983；　Wal…Mart　invested　in　point…of…sale　terminals；　which　simultaneously　rang　up　
sales　and　tracked　inventory　deductions　for　rapid　resup…ply。　Four　years　later；　it　
installed　a　large…scale　satellite　system　linking　all　of　the　stores　to　company　
headquarters；　giving　Wal…Mart's　central　computer　system　real…time　inventory　data　and　
paving　the　way　for　a　supply　chain　greased　by　information　and　humming　down　to　the　last　
atom　of　efficiency。　A　major　supplier　can　now　tap　into　Wal…Mart's　Retail　Link　private　
extranet　system　to　see　exactly　how　its　products　are　selling　and　when　it　might　need　
to　up　its　production。　
〃Opening　its　sales　and　inventory　databases　to　suppliers　is　what　made　Wal…Mart　the　
powerhouse　it　is　today；　says　Rena　Granofsky；　a　senior　partner　at　J。　C。　Williams　Group　
Ltd。；　a　Toronto…based　retail　consulting　firm；〃　in　the　2002　Computerworld　article　on　
Wal…Mart。　〃While　its　competition　guarded　sales　information；　Wal…Mart　approached　its　
suppliers　as　if　they　were　partners；　not　adversaries；　says　Granofsky。　By　implementing　
a　col…　


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laborative　planning；　forecasting；　and　replenishment　（CPFR）　program；　Wal…Mart　began　
a　just…in…time　inventory　program　that　reduced　carrying　costs　for　both　the　retailer　
and　its　suppliers。　'There's　a　lot　less　excess　inventory　in　the　supply　chain　because　
of　it/　Granofsky　says。〃　Thanks　to　the　efficiency　of　its　supply　chain　alone；　Wal…Mart's　
cost　of　goods　is　estimated　to　be　5　to　10　percent　less　than　that　of　most　of　its　
competitors。　
Now　Wal…Mart；　in　its　latest　supply…chain　innovation；　has　introduced　RFID…radio　
frequency　i