BENTONVILLE, AR - Walmart has announced a plan to downsize from six divisions to four as part of the company’s ongoing efforts to streamline operations and stimulate growth.

“Our last field restructure was several years ago, and our business has changed over that time,” the retailer said in a statement yesterday, reported on by Reuters. “The structure we are putting in place will help improve communication and execution, streamline decision-making, and help us accelerate our pace of change.”

Though the company is currently structured across the West, South East, South Central, Midwest, and Mid-Atlantic regions, a source close to the matter said the new divisions will take on a “different look.”

“We had a similar structure in place three years ago, and we are going back to that,” the source explained, but did not give the news source further details.

As part of the restructuring effort, the company is planning to downsize from 44 regional managers to 36 and expects the overall restructuring to be completed come October.

This recent announcement is only one of a number of strategic moves the retailer has announced in recent weeks as the grocery market has continued to heat up. Walmart has announced a number of ambitious undertakings in recent days, including investing in growing its presence in the Brazilian market with a $316 million revamp plan and launching a partnership with Google to challenge Amazon’s Alexa voice shopping technology.

The current restructuring efforts could also be seen as an extension of "right-sizing" efforts that the retailer has been pursuing throughout the year.

AndNowUKnow will continue to report with more on important developments in retail.

Walmart