Walmart’s overall methods of supply chain management differ little from the main components of most supply chains: purchasing, operations, distribution, and integration. But the retailer has refined the methods.
A supply chain begins with purchasing managers who determine which products will sell, find vendors and arrange deals for the products.
The operations portion of a supply chain focuses on demand planning, forecasting and inventory management. Forecasts estimate consumer demand for a product based on historical data, external drivers such as sales and promotions and changes in trends or competition.