Walmart CEO explains what the most coveted skills are and points to store managers
Since artificial intelligence and demographic changes reshape the labor market in the United States, the largest private business owner in the country is trying to determine the skills that its workers may need and the broader confrontation for the future.
On Thursday, Walmart hosted more than 300 experts and representatives in the workplace from other companies participating in the workforce initiative, the first skills, a project to develop and fill in stable jobs based on what people know how to do instead of whether they have attended the college.
Retail stores have already launched their employee training programs and certificates programs to meet the needs of Walmart to truck drivers and maintenance technicians, and Adwan, American companies say they cannot recruit them quickly enough with experienced traders.
Walmart says it plans to present a program similar to the skills of artificial intelligence next year through a new cooperation with Openai, the company behind ChatGPT.
The Associated Press sat with the CEO of Wall Mart Doug McMelon at the company’s headquarters in Benonville, Arkansas, to talk about artificial intelligence and American workforce. The interview was released for clarity and length.
AP: What do you think of the public health market, given the uncertainty about the definitions and the economy?
McMelon: I would like to say to a large extent fixed condition. Decline numbers decrease. I remember what happened during the epidemic and lung for that experience, things feel more stable now. I think the pace of change in the recruitment market is smaller and easier to manage.
AP: What are the biggest factors that affect Walmart workers? Fear of artificial intelligence, or their checks, not keeping up with inflation?
McMillon: We continue to invest in wages. So I think this helps some, and this process will continue. Since AI and the future of employment, I think most of the time, our people are excited about that because they saw new tools that they receive that make their jobs better. This helps them take less steps.
Our sales grow a lot. I think people are optimistic about the future of what their lives can look like.
AP: What are the functions that can be eliminated or added due to artificial intelligence?
McMillon: I think no one knows how exactly he will play this. The way you feel for me is that each function is mainly changed. And I think the best way to think about it is “finishing”. How can I tend to the role I have, regardless of this role, to adopt new tools, benefit from them and make things better than in that?
While see through our company, we have everything from the store’s partners to the supply chain partners. Of the 2.1 million people (globally), at least 75,000 of them are jobs in the home office. All others work in a store, club, distribution center. And I think that these jobs are gradually changing. We still want to serve customers and members with people. The change may occur in terms of its connection to the functions of the home office faster.
AP: When will you have a clearer idea?
McMillon: I don’t know that there will be a moment when we all have clarity. I think the way for all of us to approach it, especially here in Walmart, is just a transparent, honest, human and direct way, and talking to people in real time about what we learn and what we do and why we do that. This is the way we plan to lead through this.
AP: Do you think artificial intelligence will lead to fewer workers in Walmart?
McMillon: One of the largest areas of change in the past decade is associated with hypocrites working in our stores, and choosing delivery and receipt orders for our customers. We have something north of 200,000 people doing this job, however we have the same (total) number for people working in Wall Mart Lam
How did we do that? Other tasks and other jobs have changed, which enabled us to create new jobs that pushed more and have fewer old jobs that went away. I hope what is happening with our progress through this is that there will be positives and negatives, but the network ends up until there is more people because we have more ideas on how to grow.
AP: What do you think of the most required skills?
McMillon: The first thing that comes to mind is store managers. Being a store manager is a great work and such a difficult job. It is a job that is well paid, and it is pushing well for some reason. You interact with society with large numbers of people. You have a large number of colleagues. You have large sales numbers to serve. And those skills enjoyed by the store manager human and artistic. I think we have the skills as human beings. They were always, and that will be honest in the future.
AP: Why is there a shortage of roles such as maintenance technicians?
McMelon: To some extent, it is a lack of awareness. I think most Americans may not know what technology is doing that helps to care for our stores and our clubs and we can help them learn how to be a technique. The same is true for our drivers. So we have a need to take out the word so that people know that there are some great functions.
AP: Do you think Walmart will be able to fill in such gaps as the contraction of the migrant group?
McMillon: We have been able to do this so far, and I expect to continue to find great people who want to join the company and our rotation rates have decreased, which is useful.
AP: How important is this initiative to employ a skills -based employment?
McMillon: I think we are all working on learning and moving in the future towards a world that Amnesty International fulfills its promise, and the best way to do this is to work together and share information and learn together. It will accelerate our ability to apply for this so that we can do better work in our successful position. This is in the end what we are trying to do. The change in the world will happen. Our choice is to tend to learn (and help), so that there are better results for all concerned.
2025-09-28 15:00:00
