STORES Magazine - February 2009 - (Page 60)

CONSIDER THIS / ARTS UPDATE ARTS Saves You Money BY RICHARD MADER Once again, the ARTS Pavilion at this year’s NRF Annual Convention was a focal point for retailers and vendors looking for innovative ideas and techniques for lowering the cost of retail IT. When one visitor approached the Pavilion reception desk asking, “What is ARTS and why is it important?” Dan Hopping, CEO of Next Retail Group, answered before I could by saying, “ARTS can save you money.” It was a great line that I used again and again during the show. Another retail IT veteran from the grocery sector, Bill Bittner, told visitors how well ARTS standards support the implementation of SOA. Exactly! Which is why I like to say ARTS and SOA go together like coffee and cream. SOA provides IT agility, enabling business change quickly and at less cost — so critical in tough times. The traditional Sunday ARTS Update was a testimonial by retailers to the twin themes that “ARTS saves you money” and “ARTS facilitates SOA.” Francisca VicenteTamarin revealed how El Corte Inglés used the ARTS Data Model and XML schemas to globalize its POS system. Using the model and standard schemas was a key factor in project success. Richard Mader is executive director of ARTS. and revealed how his company had used ARTS standards for data transfer during recent software upgrades to support online returns management and online layaway management. ARTS also sponsored the BIG !deas session that presented the 6th Annual RIS and IHL Store Systems Study. This study is one of the principal benchmarks we use to determine if our standards align with what is important to retailers, and ARTS once again received high marks for being attuned to the industry. Big tips from Big Lots Greg Wilmer, vice president of IT for Big Lots and cochair of the ARTS SOA Blueprint work team, discussed his company’s use of the ARTS standard RFPs to select a new POS application and confirmed that the RFP had saved Big Lots far more than the cost of its annual dues. He further described how the ARTS SOA Blueprint and Study High Point Best Practices guided the Implementing PCI Compliance company’s implementaIntegration Application to POS tion of SOA in minimal time by helping it avoid Workforce Management common missteps. Business Intelligence Perry Kramer, vice president of sales operations, corporate and distributed services for BJ’s Wholesale Club, gave session attendees tips for achieving PCI compliance, introduced the NRF/ARTS PCI Best Practices documents and went on to describe how BJ’s has posted 6-ft. printouts of the ARTS Data Model in various offices to remind associates that it is their road map for development. Cy Young, ARTS board chair and director of store systems for Burlington Coat Factory, moderated the session 60 STORES / FEBRUARY 2009 Returns on investment Key takeaways from the survey were that retailers remain very concerned about PCI compliance, integrating new applications with their POS, workforce management and implementing Business Intelligence strategies and applications. ARTS has Best Practices documents, standard XML schemas, RFPs and, for BI, the Standard Data Warehouse to facilitate all of these initiatives. While IT investment in 2009 will almost certainly be lower ARTS Support ARTS and NRF release PCI Best Practices ARTS POSlog and RTI schemas and SOA support ARTS/NRF RFP for WFM and related XML Schemas ARTS Data Warehouse and RFP for BI than it was in 2008, many retailers are planning smaller projects that will offer quick wins. Retailers that have built agile IT environments on standards will get a greater return for their dollars and will find it easier and less expensive to make enhancements. This economic downturn will end but somewhere down the road there will be another. Add agility to your IT business support by using ARTS standards and SOA to keep your business growing in good times and bad. WWW.STORES.ORG http://WWW.STORES.ORG

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of STORES Magazine - February 2009

STORES Magazine - February 2009 Contents Executive Editor's Page President's Page Are You a Pusher or a Puller? What Shoppers Think Online Retail Satisfaction 10 Things You May Have Missed Numbers Worth Counting Full Price/Markdown Retail People Cover Story - Something’s Got to Give First Look Concept2Watch Online Partners Merchandising Sustainability Inventory Systems Drug Store Systems Business Intelligence Inventory Managment Online Marketing Supply Chain - Better Data, Better Decisions Returns Management - Identifying Fraud Data Security - Securing Intimate Data Anti-Shoplifting - Mall of Shame? Risk Management - Securing Consumer Confidence Loeb Retail letter ARTS Update Point of View NRF News Retail Crossword Retail Industry Calendar End Cap

STORES Magazine - February 2009

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