Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) hired Linda Dillman in 1991 through an acquisition, and she eventually became the Chief Information Officer of the world's largest retailer. Wal-Mart, in many ways, transformed the power of information to gain incredible efficiency and insight into supply, demand and supplier logistics under Dillman's watch. in 2006, however, Dillman took on the post of benefits and Risk Management -- not her specific cup of tea. One must wonder why she took the post, then?

Wal-Mart's U.S. sales Chief Eduardo Castro-Wright recently said that the retailing giant was going to being targeting specific customer demographic groups in its stores in an attempt to market in a more customized and personable way to its core base of consumers. Although I will believe that when I see it, Wright said that the process would take about 24 months -- a time period I can't believe based on the sheer number of Wal-Mart stores and the incredible undertaking to get this rather-large show on the road.

But, will abandoning its one-size-fits-all approach be the downfall of the company? Ok, that may be a little bit melodramatic, but Newswise talks about this very prospect, and I found the idea intriguing. Wal-Mart's IT, logistics and merchandising systems were designed for a fragmented and shotgun approach to selling and merchandising the same goods in a "cookie cutter" type of way across the nation.

As Wal-Mart has found out, though, this approach has not worked well in overseas markets, which did not acclimate to Wal-Mart's global one-size-fits-all store approach. Quite the contrary, in fact, and so much that it closed up shop in Germany and moved out. International markets were probably a harbinger on what Wal-Mart was soon to face here in the U.S. as it tries to stoke growth and draw more customers into stores.

So, can Wal-Mart radically change the way it merchandises its inventory as it targets specific groups like it's never done before? Is a rather-large systems change in order for the global retailing giant to ensure this? My guess is yes, and with Wal-Mart's reputation for logistical expertise in the retail field, I would expect nothing less.