Nina Lund, Author at Microsoft Industry Blogs http://approjects.co.za/?big=en-us/industry/blog Wed, 31 May 2023 23:45:20 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://approjects.co.za/?big=en-us/industry/blog/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/cropped-cropped-microsoft_logo_element-32x32.png Nina Lund, Author at Microsoft Industry Blogs http://approjects.co.za/?big=en-us/industry/blog 32 32 Industry 4.0 and the magic of software at Hannover Messe http://approjects.co.za/?big=en-us/industry/blog/manufacturing-and-mobility/2017/05/11/industry-4-0-magic-software-hannover-messe-2017/ Thu, 11 May 2017 22:21:44 +0000 Microsoft's Nina Lund shares her highlights from the Hannover Messe 2017 industrial fair and what stood out for the consumer packaged goods industry.

The post Industry 4.0 and the magic of software at Hannover Messe appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs.

]]>
A week ago, the Hannover Messe 2017 edition wound down after five intense days, 225,000 visitors and 6,500 exhibitors showcasing technological and thought-leading wonder. The consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry attended in a big way as usual, and we were both honored and delighted to host many CPG companies in our booth this year.

Our booth was impressive… And yes, I’m still having these wonderland moments… From Tetra Pak’s HoloLens maintenance scenario to Rockwell Automation’s (fourth-generation) digital twin for the customizable packaging line, many of our CPG customers told us they hadn’t realized Microsoft was so active in manufacturing.  

What’s a fourth-generation digital twin, you say? It was one of the highlights of our show. Using mixed reality, technicians and operations maintenance teams can now access, in real time, a digital replica of a machine or a production line to diagnose its health. 

The ability to be able to understand what needs to be done to return to normal running patterns without actually stopping the machine is valuable to say the least, in most production scenarios. Then to enable remote access for maintenance experts using mixed reality to teach sophisticated equipment mastery at a distance was really a showcase of the magic of software.

By super-imposing digital imagery of the step-by-step guidance needed to fix a broken machine, we optimize operations and allow everyone to be their most productive as well as avoid unnecessary travel for maintenance calls.

You can learn more and see some great examples with our customers and partners in these videos.

The digital journey that our own supply chain organization showcased was also of interest, particularly the transformation from reactive to predictive to cognitive. In that context, what bubbles up as a glaring need for most, is the importance of having and articulating a data strategy. When the Internet of Your Things starts to provide you with millions of data sets per minute, having clarity on what to do with all that data becomes “the new black.”

The robot from Sarcos Robotics for those hard-to-reach places created the animation and excitement, and drew people to the booth, while OSIsoft’s PI Integrator combined with Neal Analytics’ advanced analytics scenarios at the front end enable a myriad of connected devices to transform information into actionable insights.

Ecolab’s Water Management for sustainable water consumption in manufacturing is one of my personal favorites. As shared in this case study, “The morning cup of coffee after your three-minute shower took 55 gallons of water to produce. The shirt you’re wearing commanded another 700 gallons of water to create, and the car you drove to work required a staggering 39,090 gallons to build.

“The United Nations’ 2015 World Water Development Report predicts that by 2030 demand will outpace supply by almost 40 percent and two-thirds of the world population could be under stress from lack of fresh water. Under pressure to operate more sustainably, governments and industries worldwide are turning to Ecolab for help. The company protects vital resources by helping companies achieve net-zero water usage—producing goods with infinitely recycled water—and providing access to fresh water for more people.”  

This year’s Hannover Messe show definitely produced many moments of discovery. We’re keen to work with you on sustainability topics across your business. To find out what we’re working on in supply chain, for example, you can read my blog here

We hope to see you in our booth next year!

LinkedIn: Nina Lund

Twitter: @lund_nina

The post Industry 4.0 and the magic of software at Hannover Messe appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs.

]]>
How blockchain can transform the consumer goods supply chain http://approjects.co.za/?big=en-us/industry/blog/retail/2017/05/08/blockchain-can-transform-consumer-goods-supply-chain/ Mon, 08 May 2017 17:00:04 +0000 Need a better handle on your consumer goods supply chain? Learn how blockchain technology can help make you more secure, smart, and transparent.

The post How blockchain can transform the consumer goods supply chain appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs.

]]>
Supply chains are becoming increasingly globalized, growing ever more complex, with raw materials and products being transported across many disperse geographical locations. Food distributors face an especially tough time as recent years of extreme global weather patterns disrupt their normal supply lines. Procurement teams are left making tough choices about where to source, working with unfamiliar suppliers and less visibility into the full supply chain.

That diminished visibility can create many challenges for unwitting companies, including being blamed for food fraud or just losing track of shipments. Food fraud alone is estimated to cost the global industry $30-40 billion every year. And it is widespread; recently, Interpol seized 2,500 tons of adulterated food in 47 countries.[i]

Supply chain visibility is not just important for tracking fraud—it’s also key to pinpointing tainted products. Bacteria can work its way into a package of peas without any intentional tampering. If an issue is discovered, by regulators or consumers, they need to be able to quickly isolate the problem to ensure consumer safety and minimize damage to their reputation. Without deep visibility into the supply chain, small mistakes can have significant costly and reputational consequences.

What if retailers and consumer goods manufacturers could make sure there were no holes in their supply chain and provide transparency into how that food had been treated during transportation and storage?

As digital techniques mature, their different use cases broaden. Blockchain is a technology that has already been present in the financial services industry for some time, and increasingly there is interest to deploy it for transparency reasons when it comes to food.

Blockchain in CPG

 

Blockchains are digitally-recorded ledgers stored in transaction groups called blocks, which are then distributed and stored across a network of computers and servers. As transactions are made, they are consolidated into a new “block” containing data that builds upon the previous block and stored in a chain, hence the name “blockchain.”

This creates a linear record of entry that has complete integrity—each block is secure and the incorporated data is preserved immutably across multiple ledgers.

Blockchain technology empowers businesses to maintain transparent, secure record keeping, track the provenance of goods, and provide a method to engage in secure transactions.[ii] For retailers and consumer goods companies, these capabilities can mean the difference between a widespread recall and pulling a few tainted packages, or even precluding issues in the first place.[iii] With blockchain, companies can use smart contracts to make and verify transactions in near real time—streamlining business processes and saving money.

Let’s look at how blockchain is transforming retail and consumer goods supply chains.

Micro-level goods tracking and efficiency

Many of today’s supply chains span countless stages and many geographic locations, making it hard to track goods or trace the origin of incidents.[iv] Blockchain dramatically enhances transparency, enabling all parties to trace a product’s journey along the supply chain.[v] If a restaurant or a grocer can quickly identify all parties involved in the supply of sensitive or high-value categories, they could potentially save significant amounts of time and money with dates, locations of inspection, and inspection results all visible in the distributed ledger.

Wal-Mart is trialing blockchain to address this exact problem.[vi] By tracking the provenance and supply chain journey of individual packages of produce and pork, they aim to pinpoint and prevent outbreaks of illness. A blockchain database enables Wal-Mart to acquire vast amounts of supply chain data that the company can use to deliver food to stores more efficiently, reduce spoilage and waste, and cut costs.[vii]

Streamline the supply chain with smart contracts

Smart contracts are one of the most revolutionary aspects of blockchain. Instead of being drawn up on paper, contracts between parties are written as code into the blockchain and recorded into a ledger. These contracts are incredibly difficult to tamper with thanks to the cryptography-based transactions of blockchain. The contracts are then executed according to pre-determined triggering events, such as transferring funds the moment a shipment arrives at the store.[viii]

At the National Retail Federation (NRF) convention in January, Mojix introduced a supply chain management tool that uses blockchain-based smart contracts. Mojix uses RFID hardware to carefully track the delivery of goods, ensuring reliability and providing data on reducing overhead for retailers. Then, Mojix combines that data with smart contracts based on Microsoft’s Azure Blockchain-as-a-service platform.

Scot Stelter, Mojix’s vice president of product marketing, explains how a smart contract can specify an exact product flow along the supply chain. “At each step of the way, that’s a smart contract, where effectively a box gets checked, cryptographically locked and published to the blockchain,” he said. “When I am at the end of the chain, I can track the provenance of berries so when they arrive I know if they are fresh. All parties to a contract have to agree that all the boxes are checkable…”[ix]

Implementing blockchain

The potential for blockchain to revolutionize retail supply chain efficiency is clear. Microsoft supports the rapid, low-cost, low-risk, and fast-fail platforms that enable developers to experiment with a growing number of distributed ledger technologies. The recently launched Blockchain-as-a-Service (BaaS), built on Microsoft Azure, helps organizations like Mojix develop, test and deploy blockchain applications using Azure DevTest labs. With Microsoft, developers are experimenting with retail processes and applications on a flexible, scalable and trusted cloud platform.

Get started today

Learn more about the decentralized applications already being built with blockchain here. Start a free trial of Azure and start building your idea today.

LinkedIn: Nina Lund

Twitter: @lund_nina


[i] http://time.com/4412535/food-fraud-olive-oil/

[ii] http://www.wired.co.uk/article/jessi-baker-wired-retail-2015

[iii] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-11-18/wal-mart-tackles-food-safety-with-test-of-blockchain-technology

[v] https://www.accenture.com/us-en/insight-highlights-cgs-blockchain-cpg-and-retail-industries

[vii] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-11-18/wal-mart-tackles-food-safety-with-test-of-blockchain-technology

[viii] http://blockgeeks.com/guides/smart-contracts/

[ix] https://redmondmag.com/blogs/the-schwartz-report/2017/01/microsoft-pitches-blockchain-to-retailers.aspx

 

 

 

The post How blockchain can transform the consumer goods supply chain appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs.

]]>
The Transformation Imperative: for the good of all of us http://approjects.co.za/?big=en-us/industry/blog/retail/2017/04/20/transformation-imperative-good-us/ Thu, 20 Apr 2017 12:00:36 +0000 Microsoft helps consumer goods and retail companies every day to transform their business for a better tomorrow. Find out more.

The post The Transformation Imperative: for the good of all of us appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs.

]]>
Whenever spring comes, I look at the transformation of nature before my eyes, and I can’t help but think that we in the Western World have it all wrong. Nature teaches us the same lessons every year, and we can both see and hear those lessons, yet it feels as if we increasingly detach ourselves from those cycles.

We feel inclined to look at life as a linear event, minute after minute, day after day, year after year – when it really is circular! I recently read a book about the Chinese concept of time, which is circular; where the present is always connected to the past, and I do earnestly believe that we need to learn from this school of thought. If we also consider that a lot of (too much!) food goes to waste and packaging material to landfill, why in the world are we still only talking about things, and not doing more? Is change really that hard for us? There’s a hint in the circular…

A recent study by Accenture of the UN Global Compact CEO’s pointed to an emerging degree of optimism, when it comes to implementing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: in fact 9 of 10 CEO’s believe that sustainability will have real impact in their industry. Interestingly, the same CEO’s also are starting to feel a personal responsibility about what happens to the planet.

Microsoft’s mission—to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more—aligns strongly with the United Nation’s global agenda for sustainable development from 2015 through 2030. The UN General Assembly articulated that agenda in a set of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) “seeking to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure prosperity for all”. There is a white paper which shares our high-level vision for how the digital transformation of the global economy can and must address the key challenges underlying the UN’s Sustainable Development Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals.

Information and data are the lifeblood of modern organizations. The more time workers in those organizations need to spend locating and understanding information, the more they will impede that organization’s ability to compete, creating vicious circles instead of virtuous ones.

When I occasionally, like Alice, slip “Through the Looking Glass” I hear the Queen again: “Now, here, you see, it takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place. If you want to get somewhere else, you must run at least twice as fast as that!” If we in the Consumer Goods space are to really have an impact on reducing waste and creating real impact for future generations, we need to “start running” to transform. As digital transformation enables us to become more productive, we can, strangely enough free up time to do more of the things we love. And when we do things we love to do, we are happier, more creative and we deliver true innovation – we win, the planet wins and our children will inherit a better place to live in. “Imagination is the only weapon in the war against reality” as Jules de Gautier, French philosopher once said.

Optimizing routine tasks to free up time to do the things that your organization cares deeply about can come much faster through accelerated digital transformation. We help consumer goods and retail companies every day to transform their business for a better tomorrow. To learn more, go here.

LinkedIn: Nina Lund
Twitter: @lund_nina

The post The Transformation Imperative: for the good of all of us appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs.

]]>
Driving efficiency and sustainability in consumer goods http://approjects.co.za/?big=en-us/industry/blog/retail/2017/03/23/driving-efficiency-and-sustainability-in-consumer-goods/ Fri, 24 Mar 2017 01:40:47 +0000 Sustainability and business value aren’t at odds. Learn how your retail organization can reduce waste for the sake of your bottom line and the environment.

The post Driving efficiency and sustainability in consumer goods appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs.

]]>
It’s time to make waste in the consumer goods industry a thing of the past.

The razor-thin profit margins that are common across retailers and consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies mean that every increase in efficiency has the possibility to be a major differentiator. But furthermore, cutting down waste is a priority for many companies in the retail sphere that have committed to fighting for environmental sustainability. There is still a long way to go in the effort to cut down the manufacturing energy, transportation, and food waste that result from the sale of consumer goods. Companies are aware of these problems, and are taking seriously their responsibilities to the environment.

Sixty-three percent of consumer goods CEOs, compared to the global average of 54 percent, believe that sustainability issues are “very important” to their future success. And groups like the Consumer Goods Forum are bringing together these globally-conscious retailers, manufacturers, servicece providers, and other stakeholders around the world that have made commitments to best practices that will drive efficiency and sustainability across the industry. The accountability and commitments that come from groups such as the Consumer Goods Forum is key to the industry’s movement toward environmental sustainability. But additionally, the advent of new technologies puts increased efficiency and sustainability clearly in reach. Let’s look at some of the problems in the status quo of retail and CPG today, and what moves CPG companies and retailers can make – with the help of new technology – to optimize for efficiency and environmental sustainability.


Optimizing inventory management

Today, retailers and CPG companies are facing new dynamics in the market, and average product life cycles are shorter than ever. Companies are rapidly launching new products – and they are up against intense odds, as only 15% of new consumer packaged goods go on to succeed in the market. The cost of stocking excess products, particularly unsuccessful ones, cuts drastically into retailers’ budgets: the average cost of stocking excess inventory is 20-25% the value of their goods. This competitive environment poses a significant challenge for inventory management. Companies have to gather data on product performance with greater speed and granularity than ever before in order to quickly recognize overstocked or understocked products, and then adjust their inventory accordingly. The risk of running out of stock of high-performing items, or having shelves full of slow-moving products that eventually must be sold on clearance or disposed of, is costly.

A sub-optimal inventory mix doesn’t just drag down the profits of retailers and CPG companies: it also contributes to harmful food waste. Roughly one-third of the food produced in the world for human consumption every year — approximately 1.3 billion tons — gets lost or wasted. Ten percent of that food waste occurs at the retail stage. Wholesome food that could help feed families becomes the single largest contributor to landfills instead, and also comes with wasteful transportation and energy expenditures along the way. When overstocked food items sit on retailers’ shelves until they expire, it contributes to this waste. Everyone throughout the food supply chain, from producer to consumer, has a part to play in reducing waste. For retailers and CPG companies, this means having a more precise understanding of product demand and adjusting their inventory accordingly. When companies prioritize an optimized inventory, the result is less financial and environmental waste.


Contributing to a more efficient workforce

For CPG companies, retail execution is a critical activity that tends to be personnel-heavy and inefficient (EKN Outlook, 2016). From route-planning at the beginning of the day, to data collection at stores, to manual compliance checks, employees on retail execution teams spend much of their time on activities that should be automated. When CPG companies free up the time of their retail execution professionals, it ensures that they can focus on the most important part of their job: building and maintaining relationships with retailers.

The environmental benefit of increasing efficiency in the mobile workforce is significant as well. Having their days optimally planned could be the difference between five days of circuitous, fuel-wasting driving and four days of more efficient routes. Empowering employees with digital tools frees them from pen and paper while checking up on their stores, ultimately saving them time. Automated planogram checks save retail execution professionals time as well – and are closer to the possibility of having on-site, robotic planogram checks, rather than requiring a trip from an employee. Together, these increases in efficiency mean less time spent on the road, less fuel consumption, and fewer emissions. When implemented across a large CPG organization, all those miles saved add up.

Optimize for efficiency and sustainability with Microsoft

To help make these goals a reality, retailers and CPG companies need faster insights from the data they have and the data they collect to empower change in habits. At Microsoft, we have seen the ongoing digital transformation of the retail and CPG industries empowering companies to achieve their business and sustainability goals, thanks to effective use of all data available to brands. This allows them to remove the guesswork from everyday processes and make more effective decisions.

You can learn more about Microsoft’s ongoing sustainability efforts, and about some of Microsoft’s SaaS and cloud solutions for the retail and CPG industries such as Neal Analytics’ Inventory Optimization solution and AFS’ Retail Execution solutions at AppSource.com.

LinkedIn: Nina Lund

Twitter: @lund_nina

The post Driving efficiency and sustainability in consumer goods appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs.

]]>
Machine Learning + Retail Execution = Supercharged store visits and data analysis http://approjects.co.za/?big=en-us/industry/blog/retail/2017/03/10/machine-learning-retail-execution-supercharged-store-visits-and-data-analysis/ Fri, 10 Mar 2017 20:17:20 +0000 For retail execution teams, Machine Learning helps optimize route plans, expedite store visits, and deepen data analysis. Learn more about in-market solutions today.

The post Machine Learning + Retail Execution = Supercharged store visits and data analysis appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs.

]]>
Have you ever imagined how different your day would be if you had a dedicated personal assistant? Someone who could arrive early and stay late, doing the administrative legwork so that you could make the most of your time. Look no further than Machine Learning – an emerging technology that enables computers to learn from and make predictions about data without explicit instructions.

For Consumer Goods Companies (CPG), Machine Learning can, for example, ensure that field reps are routed to store visits more efficiently and empowered to manage daily tasks quickly. Imagine for example if you could deploy a robot to check the aisles for merchandising compliance, freeing up your human capital to focus on more value-added tasks. Saving time in store gives reps the opportunity to complete more visits, resulting in potentially significant cost-savings. But Machine Learning does more than streamline store visits—it is an effective way of applying historical data to a problem by creating a model and using it to predict future behavior. Over time, Machine Learning identifies patterns and trends—like when a promotion works and with what parameters—that stakeholders can leverage to improve company strategy.

Read on to learn more about how Machine Learning could help CPG companies plan where to go and what to do, get more done with less data entry, and deepen data analysis.

Automate and Optimize Route Planning

A lot of work goes into identifying which points of sale must be visited, with what frequency, and what has to be done there. Imagine being empowered by software that considers multiple factors beyond geography to automatically predict the best time to visit a particular store and improve overall routing efficiency. If a store usually has a slump every July, recently hired a new manager, or has a new promotion coming up, the software will adjust routing accordingly to optimize employee time. Machine Learning technology also generates tailored to-do lists for store visits that are based on what a particular store needs. So before the account rep gets to the store, they will be aware of issues like faulty equipment and they won’t have to spend time determining which tasks are required. Once reps arrive on site, the software can also help them streamline their audit activities.

Enable the ‘Perfect’ Store Visit

When the account reps are conducting a store audit, imagine having technology that helps them be more efficient with their time. Not only would they be able to avoid pen and paper—which 64% of retail execution professionals still use[1]—but they could skip digital data entry by using digital image recognition and speech-to-text functionality. Digital image recognition allows reps to take pictures of product displays in the store instead of recording inspection results manually. From an image, a model can evaluate out-of-stocks, facings, prices, share of shelf, and planogram compliance. Whereas a human operator would have to visually assess each detail to find errant product placement, the software finds errors and inconsistencies in seconds. Machine Learning also enables reps to verbally dictate notes, commands, and order placements to a wearable device such as a smart watch or headset. The system isolates key words from the dictation, which will trigger actions in the Retail Execution software. Digitally-captured data saves retail execution professionals time, and avoids the mistakes inherent to manual data collection. Data from the visits is disseminated in real time, so that managers receive audit results immediately instead of months after completion.

Deepen data analysis

Once the data has been collected, the final benefit of applying Machine Learning in retail execution is to find patterns in data that can help predict the best step to take next. CPG companies are dealing with enormous volumes of data on sales, store inventories, deliveries, and promotions at thousands of retail outlets. Using spreadsheets for tracking and analysis is time-consuming, and spreadsheets can only do what you tell them to do. But Machine Learning automatically identifies common patterns and trends that would normally be difficult to uncover. For example, a ML solution can analyze data to predict the exact impact of a promotion in a major store chain, or determine the ROI of a loyalty program at a certain store. Understanding data at a granular level makes it easier to measure product performance, recognize issues, and scale best practices across the board.

Microsoft Machine Learning

Machine Learning can significantly help route field employees more efficiently, automate repetitive manual processes, and improve data analysis and insights across the organization. Ultimately, these benefits help you keep up with the growth of your product market and make better decisions about promotions, campaigns, and investments. Microsoft and its partners will continue to drive ongoing investments in Machine Learning and retail execution to help better position CPG companies for an increasingly digital age.

To learn more about current in-market solutions for retail execution, take a look at AFS POP Retail Execution and AFS Retail Execution on AppSource today.

[1]EKN Outlook, 2016

The post Machine Learning + Retail Execution = Supercharged store visits and data analysis appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs.

]]>
Empowering tomorrow’s CMO and retail execution teams with advanced analytics and cloud technologies http://approjects.co.za/?big=en-us/industry/blog/retail/2017/02/22/empowering-tomorrows-cmo-and-retail-execution-teams-with-advanced-analytics-and-cloud-technologies/ Wed, 22 Feb 2017 20:05:54 +0000 Chief Marketing Officers can dramatically enhance CRM strategies by adopting advanced cloud analytics. Try the Microsoft and AFS Retail Analytics Solution today.

The post Empowering tomorrow’s CMO and retail execution teams with advanced analytics and cloud technologies appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs.

]]>

When was the last time you reevaluated your organization’s data and analytics capabilities?

Many consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies already have an approach to data collection and analysis, and are seeing the benefits of data-driven marketing efforts. And while most Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) use analytics to form strategy, their organizations may have the capabilities required to make even greater progress, particularly when it comes to using the most advanced techniques available in the market today to measure the end-to-end impact of a campaign, or to adapting quickly thanks to revealing insights generated in near real time. In fact, 44 percent of CPG companies say they don’t have adequate resources to interpret the output of analytics tools.[i]

Consequently, building analytics muscle is becoming a top priority for marketing leaders—65 percent of marketers say that using outcome-based KPIs will be key over the next five years to measure success, especially as CMOs’ focus shifts to personalizing customer conversations.[ii] New analytics techniques make it possible to move away from simply observing historical customer behavior and into creating predictions that drive seamless customer experiences and higher revenue. Companies who focus outside of operational efficiency on providing top-notch digital customer experiences are poised to outperform their peers.[iii]

At Microsoft, we believe that advanced analytics techniques such as machine learning can play a vital role in a CMO’s marketing and customer relationship strategies. For example, CPG companies can better anticipate customers’ preferences and needs using more multi-dimensional analytics, leading to better SKU optimization and new product introduction. But doing so at scale requires capabilities like access to real-time, in-store data and systems, and the ability to manage ever-growing data volumes. Today’s cloud-based solutions deliver exactly those kinds of capabilities, enabling you to quickly derive new insights and pass them on to your teams.

When analytics can be amplified with the power of cloud computing, they can be especially useful for retail execution professionals, who benefit from having access to the latest insights regardless of where they are. In this post, we explore how cloud-based analytics help CMOs and their retail execution teams in the field drive better results.

Get near-real-time data from stores

Acquiring data from stores on a monthly or bi-weekly basis should be a thing of the past. Cloud-based technologies make it possible to capture and send data in near real-time, a potential game-changer for marketers. Studies have found that access to on-the-spot, store-level information, including POS sales and on-hand inventory data, can help improve sales by 10 percent.[iv]

Having access to timely, relevant data is an important differentiator – in one survey, 64 percent of retail executives said that analytical capabilities give them a clear competitive advantage.[v] By using cloud-based analytics, companies can equip professionals in the field with the latest insights, empowering them to make more informed decisions.

The cloud is also what enables marketing leaders to have a full view of the business, utilizing analytics to monitor stock and distributors and track campaigns. Cloud-enabled technologies like digital shelves automate the inventory audit process and give clear line of sight to every level of the company. This data can be sent directly to the CMO from in-store teams, with the analysis of products to watch already complete thanks to automated machine learning capabilities.

Improve performance with better insights

CMOs have long been able to compare historical year-over-year (YoY) performance with geographical data. Advanced analytics enhance that, enabling leaders to easily manage the complexity of pricing and optimizing the marketing mix for a given area. Algorithms can utilize historical trends, external sources like weather data, and current sales data to provide a more holistic, real-time picture of performance, in addition to providing predictions about the future performance of specific SKUs and more.

Advanced analytics make it possible to get ahead of problems, like triggering alerts regarding the risk of low inventory or faster-than-expected sales. This helps brands quickly reevaluate promotions, product placement, and other execution elements. It also allows teams to see the details of why particular strategies are working and accurately forecast their ROI. In the future, machine learning technology will also provide recommendations on how to improve sales at struggling stores.

With data stored in the cloud and mobile-friendly analytics solutions, CMOs and field teams have access to near-real-time reports anytime, anywhere. Team members at every level can track performance, and drive rapid adjustments when there are issues.

Increase efficiency of retail execution teams

Take shelf management as an example. Imagine starting a big campaign to promote a certain brand of soda when suddenly you receive an alert that a group of stores didn’t receive the inventory they were expecting. Imagine having real-time information that drastically reduces the resources required to make adjustments while supply is being normalized.

Andres Jejen, Global Product Director for Retail Execution at AFS Technologies, noted in an interview that “when you’re managing product in millions of locations, it’s easy to see the advantage to having a continuous flow of information. [Representatives] have all the information they need…the moment they walk into a store and will know how to manage store inventory to be as effective as possible.”[vi]

Assortment decisions are critical to in-store success—32 percent of shoppers decide what to buy at the store shelf when they see products and deals.[vii] Cloud solutions support optimal in-store execution by making information easy for reps to access. By providing field teams with the latest insights and guidance, you enable them to take the right actions faster, such as executing on planogram or promotion changes.

To learn more about current Software-as-a-Service solutions for retail execution, take a look at AFS POP Retail Execution and AFS Retail Execution on AppSource today.


[i] EKN 2016

[ii] http://www.isba.org.uk/news/2015/09/10/greater-self-reliance-new-agency-models-and-performance-based-metrics-are-top-priorities-as-cmos-prepare-for-2020

[iii] http://www.gartner.com/it-glossary/digital-business

[iv] EKN 2016

[v] Retail Insights Survey, Microsoft, 2015

[vi] https://blogs.microsoft.com/iot/2016/11/07/retail-execution-best-practices-in-the-age-of-iot-qa-with-industry-leader-afs-technologies/

[vii] EKN 2016

 

 

 

 

The post Empowering tomorrow’s CMO and retail execution teams with advanced analytics and cloud technologies appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs.

]]>
Stepping into the future of retail execution http://approjects.co.za/?big=en-us/industry/blog/retail/2016/12/13/stepping-into-the-future-of-retail-execution/ Tue, 13 Dec 2016 18:07:49 +0000 The future of retail execution is bright for consumer goods brands – and it starts by embracing data tech today with Microsoft and AFS Technologies.

The post Stepping into the future of retail execution appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs.

]]>
Data is pervasive in the retail industry, but today, very few Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) companies are using it to its fullest potential. Without means to capture and transform data, CPG companies are missing out on critical revenue-driving opportunities to improve efficiency and precision in retail execution. And as the technology footprint in this sector grows, the gap between those who embrace digital transformation and those who stick with legacy technology will continue to widen.

Legacy approaches create inefficiencies and missed opportunities

Over the last several decades, experienced retail execution professionals have relied on paper and legacy technology to run their daily operations. A recent EKN poll found that 64% of these professionals were still doing physical paperwork in-store[i]. The result of this reliance on manual, dated approaches is excessive work for employees and a lack of visibility into real-time customer trends[ii].

Let’s look at the typical day of a retail execution professional constrained by legacy technology. They start out their day prioritizing store visits, planning their traffic routes, calling up old audit records, and reviewing open orders and operational activities using PC-only applications. Not only are employees stuck behind their desks planning rather than actually engaging out in the field, this process is also full of guesswork. Next, once employees are out conducting store visits, the information gathering process is slow, inefficient, and often riddled with mistakes. Imagine capturing information using physical pen and paper the first time around and then having to manually translate the same information a second time into a slow, electronic database. Undeniably, this process is prone to human error and drains valuable time that could be spent with customers.

By the time the day is over, account reps and their managers have limited capacity to analyze store performance or share best practices. Key pieces of information captured throughout the day via email and spreadsheets must now be analyzed and processed in order to derive insights that then must be relayed across the organization. These inefficiencies from daily operations, perpetuated by legacy technology, contribute to the stress retail execution practitioners experience. It’s no wonder the EKN polls report that high employee turnover is common within retail execution teams.

Opportunities of today’s data analytics technology

Now, let’s look at the opportunities available today: new technologies such as big data and advanced analytics are enabling CPG companies to take steps toward faster, more intelligent retail execution. IDC estimates that retail companies taking full advantage of their data have the potential to raise an additional $94B in revenue over companies that don’t[iii]. With the advent of unlimited computing capacity in the cloud and advanced analytics capabilities, retailers now have the ability to combine massive amounts of data types of all varieties, velocities, and volumes[iv]. This can include information from loyalty programs, customer reviews, social media posts, in-store monitoring of customer behavior, and even external factors like weather and local events. Gathering all of these data sources into one combined view enables retailers to discover subtle patterns, make predictions, and solve problems more quickly and more accurately than ever before.

Retail execution professionals empowered by data and analytics can already begin to transform every part of their day, making tasks more efficient and precise. Mobile, data-driven planning using retail execution apps frees representatives from the confines of their desks, enabling them to spend more of their day in the field. Equipped with mobile devices that provide instant access to relevant data, reps can capture data more quickly and accurately during visits, and spend more time having meaningful conversations rooted in data with location managers.

And better yet, by connecting real-time data from store performance, brands have the opportunity to deliver fresh perspectives and relevant best practices across their organization to equip their sales associates with the most effective strategies. This, in turn, enables CPG companies to better deliver relevant products, services and marketing messages to customers.

Today, the AFS Retail Execution solution, built on Microsoft cloud technology, puts these transformative capabilities into reach. Its robust, flexible mobile solution is designed to empower field representatives to quickly manage daily tasks and deliver on their retail execution objectives. The solution supports field sales and merchandising planning more effectively, executing on-site tasks more efficiently, and understanding the business more holistically. AFS Retail Execution offers an industry-specific set of features that fulfill the core set of requirements for field sales execution. In addition, it is designed with a level of configurability that allows you to address advanced requirements and unique needs without software customization.

Extending the value of data analytics

Digital transformation is not just about the technology that’s available today – it’s about the potential for expansion in the future.  By embracing a data-driven approach now, CPG companies are setting themselves up to win long-term with advanced analytics, machine learning, and IoT technologies. These technologies will enable retailers to make the most of business opportunities and apply a more effective approach to marketing, merchandising, and other retail execution processes.

The growing capabilities of advanced analytics and machine learning increasingly take the guesswork out of retail execution. In its most basic form, comprehensive data enables CPG companies to see which branches are successful. However, with advanced analytics, CPG companies can dive into the details of why particular strategies are working and determine their ROI. In the future, machine learning technology will preemptively suggest ways to improve struggling branches.

With IoT, retailers will soon be able to install smart sensors on shelves that provide the real-time data necessary to order additional inventory in advance and significantly reduce out-of-stock rates. IoT can even help demystify customer behavior by correlating in-store traffic patterns with weather, holidays, local events, new products, and campaigns. This, in turn, enables CPG companies to better align inventory with demand based on a variety of factors.

Although technologies such as advanced analytics, machine learning, and IoT are rapidly delivering value, many CPG companies are slow to adopt these technologies due to legacy constraints and aggressive sales goals that must be met. There’s simply not a lot of time to rock the boat. However, brands need to take the first step today by getting away from the pencil and clipboard. Microsoft is committed to helping CPG companies realize the game-changing potential of today’s technologies by offering a path forward with AFS POP Retail Execution.

Try it today

Want to learn more about AFS POP Retail Execution? Try the preview solution at www.appsource.com today and learn more about how Microsoft and AFS is turning business process into business advantage for organizations across the globe.

LinkedIn: Nina Lund

Twitter: @lund_nina


[i] EKN Outlook, 2016

[ii] Reflexis Inc, 2016 http://www.reflexisinc.com/solutions/

[iii] IDC Data Dividend Study and Survey, 2014 http://0ca36445185fb449d582-f6ffa6baf5dd4144ff990b4132ba0c4d.r41.cf1.rackcdn.com/IG_Data%20Dividend_FV.pdf

[iv] “Getting started with IoT”, Microsoft, 2016 https://enterprise.microsoft.com/en-us/industries/retail-and-consumer-goods/getting-started-with-iot-the-five-ways-retailers-can-drive-down-costs/

The post Stepping into the future of retail execution appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs.

]]>