Retail Technology Integration for Leading Department Store Chain

Program, Portfolio, & Project Management

Key Capabilities Demonstrated

Program Management and mobilisation

Business Analysis

Development resources (.Net and React) via delivery partner

Flexible resource provision

Retail business process and technology analysis

SofM helped a major retailer integrate processes and technology across brands, unlocking shareholder value through streamlined operations and cost savings

Situation

A leading department store chain recently announced a significant business integration initiative, merging the operations of two of its major brands.

This strategic move aimed to streamline operations, reduce costs, and leverage the strengths of both brands to enhance market competitiveness.

A key aspect of this integration was the migration of one brand’s merchandising, inventory management, product management, and supply functions to the other brand’s processes and systems.

With tight timeframes to meet shareholder and customer expectations, a large program was mobilised to undertake the technology migration work.

Challenge

The client faced several challenges in executing this large-scale technology integration:

Complex systems landscape: The two brands had disparate systems and processes, making integration a complex undertaking.
Data migration: Large volumes of data needed to be migrated accurately to ensure business continuity and maintenance of historical records.
Business process alignment: Processes needed to be harmonised while maintaining the unique strengths of each brand.
Tight timelines: There was a short timeframe to meet shareholder expectations whilst ensuring minimal disruption to ongoing service. This put significant pressure on the technology and business teams.

What we did

SofM was engaged to help mobilise the integration program through the provision of Program Management Services to the Technology team.

We provided a range of key roles, including Project Managers, Business Analysts, PMO resources, and onshore developers.

SofM has since played an ongoing role in the program by providing program management, flexible resourcing, business case development, process optimisation services and program management advice.

Outcome

SofM’s involvement in the program enabled the retailer to quickly address critical capability and capacity gaps and enable the program to progress within challenging time and budget constraints.

The integration effectively harmonised systems and provided better data insights for management decision-making. Consolidation of systems and processes led to significant cost savings.