Retailers need to analyse their transactions in order to provide intelligence that will enable them to improve merchandising, allocation, promotions, pricing and customer service. But Andrew Blatherwick asks if the only route to a better understanding of the business is a ‘rip and replace’ strategy for legacy systems?
Retailers need to analyse their transactions in order to provide intelligence that will enable them to improve merchandising, allocation, promotions, pricing and customer service. But Andrew Blatherwick asks if the only route to a better understanding of the business is a ‘rip and replace’ strategy for legacy systems?
Legacy systems are often perceived to be outdated, and many believe that they should be completely replaced with a more modern alternative. However, Andrew Blatherwick, president of BI provider Manthan Systems Europe, argues it is these legacy systems that are the providers of data that drive business intelligence (BI), which offers a whole host of benefits.
Firstly, replacing a legacy system with a more contemporary product might seem appealing, but it can prove highly expensive, time consuming and risky, making this option simply not viable for many retailers. Additionally, the overhaul procedure can often be a very lengthy process, in some cases not being fully implemented for up to two years; a stark contrast to Manthan’s ability to deploy within 80 to 100 days, according to Blatherwick. Many retailers are now looking to ‘sweat their assets’ to get more from their existing systems.
BI makes the difference
He said Manthan, which operates solely in the retail sector, is implementing its BI solutions to a number of retailers, for hem to turn their data into real and useful information. Crucially, he added BI could make such a big difference to retailers’ bottom lines, which highlights just how vital it is in order to survive and thrive in the highly competitive retail space.
Blatherwick takes up the point: “Transactions within retail haven’t really changed that much and most legacy systems were built for transaction processing. So, if legacy systems are still managing the transactions, what is the problem? A retailer can surround them with best of breed-focused solutions to manage the rest of the business. However, one area that is crucial is getting information out of the legacy environment. Legacy applications were never built for presenting useful information to management, never had the capacity for analytical review of the data and certainly do not have the presentation layer to be able to present information in a meaningful, timely manner.
“This is why modern focused BI solutions have evolved,” Blatherwick continued. “The problem with most BI solutions on the market is that they are either elaborate reporting devices or are large complex tool kits designed for the generic IT market that do not understand the needs, structures and hierarchies of a retailer.
Managing retail complexity
“Retail organisations today have more data and complexity than ever before, but what is needed are true guided analytics that make sense of it all and guide the retail executive to the key facts. This eliminates the need to sift though mountains of data or write purpose built reports, which often provide inaccurate information and are delivered too late to be of any use.”
He concluded: “Retailers need tools that increase their productivity by alerting them to problems and directing them as to where to look to find the solution, and most of all, everyone in the organisation needs to be looking at information from the same data source whilst also having the ability to tailor specific information to the role they play in the company.
“Many retailers, using generic BI solutions, are finding the licensing model adopted by the ‘traditional’ vendors cost prohibitive as they are licensed per seat. This makes it difficult for information to be shared across large numbers of employees. Manthan offers its solution on an enterprise license model, thereby enabling retailers to make the best use of information across all lines of business, irrespective of the number of users.”
