Company Review – Albertson SUPERVALU

The review covers the organizational structure of Albertsons Company and the tools, techniques and policies carried out in the company. The review carries the identification and evaluation of different management and strategic procedures and systems prevalent in the company. The Albertsons Company is a food and drug retailer having about 2,300 retail stores across 31 states of U. S. A. The company has more than 200,000 employees and annual revenues of approximately $36 billion (Zoominfo. com, 2009). Albertsons was acquired by a consortium including SUPERVALU combination of brands on June 2, 2006.
Albertsons also operates under the names of Super Saver, Albertsons-Sav-on, Sav-on Drugs, Osco Drug, Max Foods, Jewel-Osco, Acme and Albertsons-Osco. As this review is based on Albertsons Company it will focus on this entity with references to SUPERVALU where appropriate. Business Operation The company’s vision statement declares that it consists a group of associates who is obsessed with becoming the leading food and drug retailer with respect to profitability, size, worth and customer satisfaction.
The mission statement focuses on the five vital components of Albertsons to ensure the vision of the company is met and the commitments of the company are achieved. The mission statement defines that the strategies and policies of the company will be formed according to the values set by the associates. Organizational Structure As the company has been acquired by SUPERVALU the organizational structure of the company is now based on that of SUPERVALU. The board of directors manages the company in the same manner as SUPERVALU.

Previously Albertsons organizational structure was revamped in 2004 to implement the Six Sigma Quality program. The company was divided into seven divisions out of which six were food divisions and one drug division. The company made a provision to open price impact stores in multiple cities across U. S. A (Progressive Grocer, 2004). The structural changes helped improve the quality of customer service and satisfaction in the subsequent years. Alternative for the Company
The previous organizational model was quite effective in terms of service but was not capable of meeting the market competition which resulted in the acquisition of Albertsons by SUPERVALU. The acquiring company implemented a new organizational structure to the stores acquired, as only the stores with most value were acquired. The new structure helps in effective functioning of Albertsons and meeting market demands and competition through excellent quality, money back guarantee, low prices and value for money. Operating Environment
The internal environment encompasses best management practices and the employees are motivated by various means. The company focuses on five basic tools to implement and control the internal environment; these include grocery distribution management system, effective retail support, customer satisfaction, effective logistics and web presence. The external environment is a highly competitive including competition from retail stores and one-stop retail businesses. The company caters to the social and demographic conditions by implementing different techniques to different branches and stores throughout the U. S.