payments - Retail Systems

SBU, Wipro Technologies, says: “When it comes to pulling retailers
toward the cloud, it is important to consider the different
drivers for large enterprises versus smaller businesses. What
we’re seeing is that for larger businesses, the cloud presents a
real opportunity to optimise their existing infrastructure, particularly
if they are expanding into a new geography or launching
a new brand. For smaller businesses, current pressures mean
they’re ready to do really interesting things with their infrastructure
and reinvest in their core platform.
“While agility is a much talked about term, it is often misplaced.
The key question is agility for whom? Retailers need
agility at customer touch points, which is why CRM in the cloud
is really taking off.
“There is a huge opportunity for retailers to use the cloud
to enhance the customer experience in-store. This opportunity
isn’t just about providing customers with free Wi-Fi, but what
this then enables that will convert the customer into a loyal
shopper. For example, using Wi-Fi to deliver apps for special offers
or other geo-location services.”
Fit to change
It’s not just retailers across the pond who see cloudy skies
ahead, a recent survey by Fujitsu – Fit to Change – found that
cloud technology is really taking off among retailers in the UK as
well. Sixty per cent of those surveyed cited cloud computing as
an enabler to their business.
Andy Taylor, director, private sector division, Fujitsu, says:
“The figures are impressive, particularly when compared to
telco/utilities companies which came in at half of this result.
And with the sheer amount of change that the retail industry
is faced with – such as external factors and volatile market
conditions, it is no surprise that retailers are seeing cloud as the
panacea. It offers a great amount of flexibility, where retailers
can scale up and down – but also get their services out quickly –
we are talking weeks rather than months.
“One of the main drivers in cloud adoption is cost. IT budgets
continue to be squeezed across the board – and retailers are
feeling it as much as any industry. They have to start thinking
radically and addressing the problem – and cloud can help solve
this – when tackled in the right way. Rather than lose control
over their data, they should be working with suppliers who take
on the risk, but give the retailer control and create a dynamic
infrastructure which will drive out cost.
“Some retailers are already exploiting public clouds as their
web hosting platforms. However in order to overcome security
and privacy issues and for retailers to really maximise the use of
cloud in the back office , the next step is an ‘enterprise ready’
public cloud that can cope with the specialised IT needs of large
retailers. The potential for collaboration within the retail sector
with such a platform is significant.”
Taylor believes retailers need to look for cloud solutions that
provide them with the best of both worlds – a combination of
in-house delivered IT coupled with applications and infrastruc-
cloud computing feature
ture provided across as mix of public and private cloud(s). An
approach which provides the flexibility and agility required to
remain cutting edge and competitive while ensuring business
critical data and processes are as secure as they need to be – a
hybrid cloud model.
Pub chain group, Mitchells & Butlers, implemented a superfast,
commercial-grade broadband service and private cloud
after partnering with Fujitsu. “The cloud creates tremendous
business innovation,” comments Tony Bentham, CIO, Mitchells &
Butlers. “Thanks to the flexibility offered by cloud technology,
we can design new applications in weeks rather than months,
ensuring that new ideas can be deployed faster. This enables us
to offer new services such as electronic order capture, table
booking and employee training, at minimal cost and without the
need for further substantial investment in technology.”
Another retailer realising the benefits of cloud technology is
Ocado. through Google Apps for Business they were able to give
their employees the power to access emails at home and on the
go via the cloud.
Paul Clark, director of technology at Ocado, says: “Eighteen
months ago we were one of the first retailers to adopt Google’s
cloud-based collaboration suite, Google Apps for Business. 1,600
of our staff needed access to emails, documents and other
data from multiple sites, on the move and even from home, so
we were looking for a way to liberate them from their desktops
and made the decision to take that step into the cloud. As a
web-based service, Google Apps for Business offered not only
a solution to this requirement but also the promise of improved
productivity and internal communication.
“Cloud computing has helped us improve collaboration
through being able to quickly access and work on shared documents,
even from mobile devices. This has led to more efficient
and smarter working practices, helping to drive further innovation
within the business and ensure that we continue to provide
our customers with the fastest and most reliable delivery
service possible. We love the fact that Google Apps continues to
innovate and develop new features and are excited about the
further benefits we expect to see across the business.
“Using Google’s BigQuery technology, we are also starting to
use the cloud to securely store and analyse some of the huge
volumes of data that we generate on a daily basis”
Managing peaks
One word that is frequently associated with cloud technology
is agility – something that is all important for retailers. Having a
cloud hosted solution gives the IT team more time to focus on
coming up with cool new consumer facing features, like apps
and store locators. So in that way cloud can be a god-send, as
Simon Dunleavy, director of managed services at Maginus, attests.
“More and more retailers are leaning towards using a hosted
cloud service, as it relinquishes the burden of IT maintenance
enabling them to concentrate on their core business competen-
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June - July 2012 RS 23