the.world.is.flat-第31部分

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！


competitors。　
Now　Wal…Mart；　in　its　latest　supply…chain　innovation；　has　introduced　RFID…radio　
frequency　identification　microchips；　attached　to　each　pallet　and　merchandise　box　that　
comes　into　Wal…Mart；　to　replace　bar　codes；　which　have　to　be　scanned　individually　and　
can　get　ripped　orsoiled。　In　June　2003；　Wal…Martinformed　its　top　one　hundred　suppliers　
that　by　January　1；　2005；　all　pallets　and　boxes　that　they　ship　to　Wal…Mart　distribution　
centers　have　to　come　equipped　with　RFID　tags。　（According　to　the　RFID　Journal；　〃RFID　
is　a　generic　term　for　technologies　that　use　radio　waves　to　automatically　identify　
people　or　objects。　There　are　several　methods　of　identification；　but　the　most　common　
is　to　store　a　serial　number　that　identifies　a　person　or　object；　and　perhaps　other　
information；　on　a　microchip　that　is　attached　to　an　antenna…the　chip　and　the　antenna　
together　are　called　an　RFID　transponder　or　an　RFID　tag。　The　antenna　enables　the　chip　
to　transmit　the　identification　information　to　a　reader。　The　reader　converts　the　radio　
waves　reflected　back　from　theRFID　tag　into　digital　information　that　can　then　be　passed　
on　to　computers　that　can　make　use　of　it。〃）　RFID　will　allow　Wal…Mart　to　track　any　pallet　
or　box　at　each　stage　in　its　supply　chain　and　know　exactly　what　product　from　which　
manufacturer　is　inside；　with　what　expiration　date。　If　a　grocery　item　has　to　be　stored　
at　a　certain　temperature；　the　RFID　tag　will　tell　Wal…Mart　when　the　temperature　is　
too　high　or　too　low。　Because　each　of　these　tags　costs　around　200；　Wal…Mart　is　reserving　
them　now　for　big　boxes　and　pallets；　not　individual　items。　But　this　is　clearly　the　
wave　of　the　future。　
〃When　you　have　RFID；〃　said　Rollin　Ford；　the　Wal…Mart　logistics　vice　president；　〃you　
have　more　insights。〃　You　can　tell　even　faster　which　stores　sell　more　of　which　shampoo　
on　Fridays　and　which　ones　on　Sundays；　and　whether　Hispanics　prefer　to　shop　more　on　
Saturday　nights　rather　than　Mondays　in　the　stores　in　their　neighborhoods。　〃When　all　
this　information　is　fed　into　our　demand　models；　we　can　become　more　efficient　on　
136　
when　we　produce　＇a　product＇　and　when　we　ship　it　and　then　put　it　on　the　trucks　in　exactly　
the　right　place　inside　the　trucks　so　it　can　flow　more　efficiently；〃　added　Ford。　〃We　
used　to　have　to　count　each　piece；　and　scanning　it　at　＇the　receiving　end＇　was　a　
bottleneck。　Now　＇with　RFID＇；　we　just　scan　the　whole　pallet　under　a　bubble；　and　it　
says　you　have　all　thirty　items　you　ordered　and　each　box　tells　you；　'This　is　what　I　
am　and　this　is　how　I　am　feeling；　this　is　what　color　I　am；　and　am　I　in　good　shape'…so　
it　makes　receiving　hugely　easier。〃　Procter　&　Gamble　spokesperson　Jeannie　Tharrington　
talked　to　Salon。com　（September　20；　2004）　about　Wal…Mart's　move　to　RFID：　〃We　see　this　
as　beneficial　to　the　entire　supply　chain。　Right　now　our　out…of…stock　levels　are　higher　
than　we'd　like　and　certainly　higher　than　t　


he　consumer　would　like；　and　we　think　this　technology　can　help　us　to　keep　the　products　
on　the　shelf　more　often。〃　RFID　will　also　allow　for　quicker　remixing　of　the　supply　
chain　in　response　to　events。　
During　hurricanes；　Wal…Mart　officials　told　me；　Wal…Mart　knows　that　people　eat　more　
things　like　Pop…Tarts…easy…to…store；　nonperishable　items…and　that　their　stores　also　
sell　a　lot　of　kids'　games　that　don't　require　electricity　and　can　substitute　for　TV。　
It　also　knows　that　when　hurricanes　are　coming；　people　tend　to　drink　more　beer。　So　
the　minute　Wal…Mart's　meteorologists　tell　headquarters　a　hurricane　is　bearing　down　
on　Florida；　its　supply　chain　automatically　adjusts　to　a　hurricane　mix　in　the　Florida　
stores…more　beer　early；　more　Pop…Tarts　later。　
Wal…Mart　is　constantly　looking　for　new　ways　to　collaborate　with　its　customers。　Lately；　
it　has　gone　into　banking。　It　found　that　in　areas　with　large　Hispanic　populations；　
many　peoplehad　no　affiliation　with　a　bank　and　were　getting　ripped　off　by　check…cashing　
outlets。　So　Wal…Mart　offered　them　payroll　check　cashing；　money　orders；　money　
transfers；　and　even　bill　payment　services　for　standard　items　like　electricity　
bills…all　for　very　small　fees。　Wal…Mart　had　an　internal　capability　to　do　that　for　
its　own　employees　and　simply　turned　it　into　an　external　business。　
TOO　MUCH　OF　A　GOOD　THING　
Unfortunately　for　Wal…Mart；　the　same　factors　that　drove　its　instinct　for　constant　
innovation…its　isolation　from　the　world；　its　need　to　dig　inside　

itself；　and　its　need　to　connect　remote　locations　to　a　global　supply　chain…　also　got　
it　in　trouble。　It　is　hard　to　exaggerate　how　isolated　Bentonville；　Arkansas；　is　from　
the　currents　of　global　debate　on　labor　and　human　rights；　and　it　is　easy　to　see　how　
this　insular　company；　obsessed　with　lowering　prices；　could　have　gone　over　the　edge　
in　some　of　its　practices。　
Sam　Walton　bred　not　only　a　kind　of　ruthless　quest　for　efficiency　in　improving　
Wal…Mart's　supply　chain　but　also　a　degree　of　ruthlessness　period。　I　am　talking　about　
everything　from　Wal…Mart's　recently　exposed　practice　of　locking　overnight　workers　
into　its　stores；　to　its　allowing　Wal…Mart's　maintenance　contractors　to　use　illegal　
immigrants　as　janitors；　to　its　role　as　defendant　in　the　largest　civil…rights　
class…action　lawsuit　in　history；　to　its　refusal　to　stock　certain　magazines…like　
Playboy…on　its　shelves；　even　in　small　towns　where　Wal…Mart　is　the　only　major　store。　
This　is　all　aside　from　the　fact　that　some　of　Wal…Mart's　biggest　competitors　complain　
that　they　have　had　to　cut　health…care　benefits　and　create　a　lower　wage　tier　to　compete　
with　Wal…Mart；　which　pays　less　and　covers　less　than　most　big　companies　（more　on　this　
later）。　One　can　only　hope　that　all　the　bad　publicity　Wal…Mart　has　received　in　the　
last　few　years　will　force　it　to　understand　that　there　is　a　fine　line　between　a　
hyperefficient　global　supply　chain　that　ishelping　people　save　money　and　improve　their　
lives　and　one　that　has　pursued　cost　cutting　and　profit　margins　to　such　a　degree　that　
whatever　social　benefits　it　is　offering　with　one　hand；　it　is　taking　away　with　the　
other。　
Wal…Mart　is　the　China　of　companies。　It　has　so　much　leverage　that　it　can　grind　down　
any　supplier　to　the　last　halfpenny。　And　it　is　not　at　all　hesitant　about　using　its　


ability　to　play　its　foreign　and　domestic　suppliers　off　against　each　other。　
Some　suppliers　have　found　ways　to　flourish　under　the　pressure　and　become　better　at　
what　they　do。　If　all　of　Wal…Mart's　suppliers　were　being　squeezed　dry　by　Wal…Mart；　
Wal…Mart　would　have　no　suppliers。　So　obviously　many　of　them　are　thriving　as　Wal…Mart's　
partners。　But　some　no　doubt　have　translated　Wal…Mart's　incessant　price　pressure　into　
lower　wages　and　benefits　for　their　employees　or　watched　as　their　business　moved　to　
China；　whence　Wal…Mart's　supply　chain　pulled　in　18　billion　worth　of　goods　in　2004　
from　five　thousand　Chinese　suppliers。　〃If　Wal…Mart　were　an　individual　economy；　it　
would　rank　as　China's　eighth138　
biggest　trading　partner；　ahead　of　Russia；　Australia　and　Canada；〃　Xu　Jun；　the　spokesman　
for　Wal…Mart　China；　told　the　China　Business　Weekly　（November　29；　2004）。　
The　successor　generation　to　Sam　Walton's　leadership　seems　to　recognize　that　it　has　
both　an　image　and　a　reality　to　fix。　How　far　Wal…Mart　will　adjust　remains　to　be　seen。　
But　when　I　asked　Wal…Mart's　CEO；　H。　Lee　Scott　Jr。；　directly　about　all　these　issues；　
he　did　not　duck。　In　fact；　he　wanted　to　talk　about　it。　〃What　I　think　I　have　to　do　is　
institutionalize　this　sense　of　obligation　to　society　to　the　same　extent　that　we　have　
institutionalized　the　commitment　to　the　customer；〃　said　Scott。　〃The　world　has　changed　
and　we　have　missed　that。　We　believed　that　good　intentions　and　good　stores　and　good　
prices　would　cause　people　to　forgive　what　we　are　not　as　good　at；　and　we　were　wrong。〃　
In　certain　areas；　he　added；　〃we　are　not　as　good　as　we　should　be。　We　just　have　to　get　
better。〃　
One　trend　that　Wal…Mart　insists　it　is　not　responsible　for　is　the　off…shoring　of　
manufacturing。　〃We　are　much　better　off　if　we　can　buy　merchandise　made　in　the　United　
States；〃　said　Glass。　〃I　spent　two　years　going　around　this　country　tryingto　talkpeople　
into　manufacturing　here。　We　would　pay　more　to　buy　it　here　because　the　manufacturing　
facilities　in　those　towns　＇would　create　jobs　for＇　all　those　people　who　shopped　in　
our　stores。　Sanyo　had　a　plant　here　＇in　Arkansas＇　making　television　sets　for　Sears；　
and　Sears　cut　them　off；　so　they　decided　they　were　closing　the　plant　and　going　to　move　
part　to　Mexico　and　part　to　Asia。　Our　governor　asked　if　we　would　help。　We　decided　we　
would　buy　television　sets　from　Sanyo　＇if　they　would　keep　the　plant　in　Arkansas＇；　and　
they　didn't　want　to　do　it。　They　wanted　to　move　it；　and　＇the　governor＇　even　talked　
to　the　＇Japanese　owning＇　family　to　try　to　persuade　them　to　stay。　Between　his　efforts　
and　ours；　we　persuaded　them　to　do　it。　They　are　now　the　world's　largest　producer　of　
televisions。　We　just　bought　our　fifty　millionth　set　from　them。　But　for　the　most　part　
people　in　this　country　have　just　abandoned　the　manufacturing　process。　They　say；　'I　
want　to　sell　to　you；　but　I　don't　want　the　responsibility　for　the　buildings　and　
employees　＇and　health　care＇。　I　want　to　source　it　somewhere　else。'　So　we　were　forced　
to　source　merchandise　in　other　places　in　the　world。〃　He　added；　〃One　of　my　concerns　
139　
is　that；　with　the　manufacturing　out　of　this　country；　one　day　we'll　all　be　selling　
hamburgers　to　each　other。〃　
The　best　way　to　get　a　taste　of　Wal…Mart's　power　as　a　global　flattener　is　to　visit　
Japan。　


Commodore　Matthew　Calbraith　Perry　opened　a　largely　closed　Japanese　society　to　the　
Western　world　on　July　8；　1853；　when　he　arrived　in　Edo　（Tokyo）　Bay　with　four　big　black　
steamships　bristling　with　guns。　According　to　the　Naval　Historical　Center　Web　site；　
the　Japanese；　not　knowing　that　steamships　even　existed；　were　shocked　by　the　sight　
of　them　and　thought　they　were　〃giant　dragons　puffing　smoke。〃　Commodore　Perry　returned　
a　year　later；　and　on　March　31；　1854；　concluded　the　Treaty　of　Kanagawa　with　the　Japanese　
authorities；　gaining　U。S。　vessels　access　to　the　ports　of　Shimoda　and　Hakodate　and　
opening　a　U。S。　consulate　in　Shimoda。　This　treaty　led　to　an　explosion　of　trade　between　
Japan　and　the　United　States；　helped　ope