STORES Magazine - April 2008 - (Page E4)

The POS system (along with the others mentioned above) must also be able to feed seamlessly into the retail enterprise’s business intelligence (BI) solution. BI consists of two parts: the ability to integrate and correlate data from multiple sources into a single coherent view of an enterprise’s performance, and the ability — usually through hierarchical dashboards, multi-dimensional cubes, scorecards or other graphic representations — to report on that performance in a quick, easy-to-grasp way. According to a report from the Aberdeen Group based on a December 2007 survey of more than 200 retail companies4, BI is the top technology that retailers will be focusing on in 2008. Based on matrix of sales, profitability and growth, Aberdeen divided responding retailers into three groups: Best-in-Class, Average and Laggards. The findings revealed that Best-in-Class retailers were twice as likely as Average companies to have increased gross margin over the past year by gathering and acting on business intelligence, and a startling 14 times more likely than Laggards to have done so. The leading business pressure motivating all respondents to focus on BI was the need to respond more rapidly to customer demand. The leading challenge to doing so — one cited by 49 percent of respondents — was a lack of clean data for analysis. Data integration, cleansing and reporting are functions of a BI solution. Providing clean, accurate, and timely data is the function of a well-integrated POS solution. For any successful, highly competitive retailer — especially one dealing with the complexities of an expanding global environment — tight integration of POS with all other enterprise systems, especially BI, is essential. • Time to market and ROI. Select a solution that has a proven track record to get you to market quickly so you can begin to reap the rewards. • Service and support availability. Having a product that supports a retailer’s global growth is one thing, but being able to provide worldwide services is equally important. Many will try to use third parties, which in many cases can work well; however, the companies that have offices and provide services in various countries are the ones committed to providing global solutions and services. Whatever implementation model is chosen, the system needs to be easily upgradable: If you’re growing now, you’ll probably still be growing next year. To move easily into new stores/countries/regions, you’ll need a flexible deployment model matching your distributed versus centralized technology needs. This calls for a POS system that can be expanded by customizing, upgrading versions or adding modules as needed to a core solution. GLOBAL IT INFRASTRUCTURE AND SUPPORT All five key POS considerations argue for a single-source provider. Globalization is making the old retail infrastructure strategy of buying and integrating “best of breed” solutions inefficient and obsolete. Nevertheless, any global POS system must be able to rely on global support. POS systems are the critical front line of revenue generation, so when there is a problem, store personnel need to be able to turn to one source — anywhere and in any language — for help. This requires a system based on one common technology platform, and a vendor offering a global network of expertise and support. EASE OF IMPLEMENTATION AND UPGRADABILITY Integration is also a component of the fourth capability required of a global POS system: ease of implementation and upgradability. Implementation considerations include: • Enterprise requirements. Different size retailers have different requirements. A smaller company may want a supplier that can act as a de facto IT consultant and provide a complete, preconfigured system; a Tier One retailer, on the other hand, may simply want to add a whole new application integrated to an existing solution. • Degree of difficulty in configuring and implementing the system. It’s inevitable that different countries are going to have different configurations. Consider a solution that can offers flexible POS configuration options with a strategy to implement and manage from a central location, whether that be from corporate or an in-market office. E4 EPICOR GLOBAL POS CAPABILITY Epicor Software Corporation, a global supplier of business solutions with more than 20,000 customers in over 140 countries, brings more than 35 years of specific retail experience to its design, implementation and support of retail solutions. It has recently expanded its already extensive Epicor CRS POS solution offerings through the acquisition of the NSB Group; the combined company enables retailers to expand internationally with ease, and supports their globalization strategies every step of the way. To learn more about Epicor’s global POS capabilities and how they can complement your company’s global expansion plans, visit epicor.com. EPICOR / APRIL 2008 http://epicor.com http://epicor.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of STORES Magazine - April 2008

STORES Magazine - April 2008 Contents Executive Editor's Page President's Page More Retailers Bagging Monthly Comp-Store Reports Time-Warner Center's Economy-Defying Results What Shoppers Think 10 Things You May Have Missed Numbers Worth Counting Full Price/Markdown Retail People Eating Locally Grocery Concept2Watch Restaurants Online Services Marketing Human Resources Product Lifecycle Management E-Commerce: Peer Reviews Drive Online Buyers Kiosks Recycling Operations Payment Systems POS Logistics E-Commerce: Getting Personal Website Management LOEB Retail Letter Arts Update Point of View NRF News Retail Industry Calendar Last Laugh

STORES Magazine - April 2008

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