FDRSG Spring Technology Conference

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FDRSG Spring Technology Conference Web Enabled
Applications for Grocery Store Operations Present
ed by Peter T. Wolf
April 17, 2002
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Presentation Agenda

• Retail Market Drivers
• Web Application Environments
• Loss Prevention - Web Based Example
• Summary - Questions Answers

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Retail Market Drivers
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Retail Market Drivers

• Multi-Channel Retailing
• The ability for customers to choose when, where
  how they interact with retailers
• Distributed Computing
• Flexible deployment of applications, databases,
  transaction services with real-time connectivity
  to physical stores
• Improved communications infrastructure makes
  store connectivity affordable (e.g. VPNs,
  Internet)
• Customer-Centric Retailing
• Knowing your customers, recognizing
  understanding their needs
• Operational Efficiency
• Driving out costs, improving customer service,
  improved training retention of employees

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The Retail Value Chain

• The Retail Value Chain represents how retailers
  source receive products from suppliers and then
  market sell the products to customers via all
  applicable customer points of interaction (POI).
• There are two distinct components

Retail Value Chain
Supply Chain
Customer Chain
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The Retail Value Chain? (Contd)
Distribution Logistics
Customer/Demand Chain
POI/Sales Channel
Supply Chain
Warehouse Management
Focused on Buy Side
Focused on Sell Side
All functions that support the interaction
between a retailer suppliers (i.e. product
focus)
All functions that support the interaction
between a retailer customers (i.e. customer
focus)
Retail Value Chain
Sales Operation
Inventory Management Merchandising
Retail Enterprise
Customer Sales (Market Basket) Analytics
Product Vendor Analytics
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Customer Chain Management Solutions

• Customer Chain Management Solutions is
  Triversitys term to describe the suite of
  solutions focused on the customer
• Typical Customer Chain functions include

Customer Point-of-Interaction (POI)
Sales Operations
Analytical Systems

• Traditional POS
• E-Commerce
• Kiosk Applications
• Handheld POS
• Mobile Commerce
• Self-Checkout
• Catalog/Mail Order

• Customer Loyalty/Promotions
• Payment Processing
• Liability Tracking
• Returns Processing
• Workflow Management
• Workforce Management

• Market Basket Analysis
• Executive Information Systems
• Customer Analysis
• Loss Prevention
• Sales Audit

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Web Application Environments
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Web Enabled - Stepping Stones

• Web enabled applications involve adding a Web
  interface to traditional applications that may
  have been created even before there was a web
• The bald man with a toupee
• Looks like he has hair
• Cant grow the hair
• Not sure it will stay on in a typhoon

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Web Enabled Does Not Mean BAD

• Enhance value of current applications and
  technologies
• User access to legacy data easily with familiar
  browser interface

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Web Based - The Future is NOW!

• Web based applications are built from the ground
  up to run over the Web
• The man with natural hair
• When winds shift and styles change that hair can
  and will - adapt

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Web Based - Caveats

• Most new web based applications are scaled down
  versions of their feature rich web enabled
  versions
• Web based applications are bandwidth sensitive
  requiring high speed internet connections

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Why web based computing?

• Web Based Computing - The Abacus Analogy

Loyalty Partner
Regional Server
Corp. Server
Store Server
POS
POS Client
Item Data
Customer DB
Loyalty
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Why ?

• Reduce Total Cost of Ownership
• Automatic deployment of updated components or
  configuration data.
• Consolidate multiple applications on one
  infrastructure.
• The same framework will support multiple
  enterprise applications (Mulit-Vendor)
• Easier Administration (everything is web enabled
  and remotely accessible)
• Drive license fees down

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Technology does what ?

• Configurable, component-based business logic
• Retail business functions are written as discreet
  components and then assembled into applications
• Components will rely on configuration settings to
  implement specific behavior (Configurator
  Approach)

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How can I deploy my architecture ?

• ...thin-client, thick-client, and enterprise
  server solutions.
• Thin Client interpretations
• A terminal running thin software
• User Interface Peripheral Support
• Actual business components run elsewhere
• A terminal with no moving parts
• Could run thick or thin software (e.g. thick for
  stand-alone functionality)
• A legacy terminal with low processing power

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Enterprise Computing Platforms

• Microsoft .NET (COM )
• Evolved from MTS (96)
• Hosts COM or .NET components
• Only for Windows 2000/XP
• Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE)
• Many vendors implement containers
• Enterprise JavaBeans (EJB) components
• Virtually any platform

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Grocery Application Examples
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FraudWatch

• Frame of Reference
• FraudWatch is
• the point-of-sale data analysis and reporting
  application
• that quickly and easily detects questionable
  transaction patterns, and delivers relevant,
  actionable information
• to retail loss prevention professionals anywhere
  in the world over a secure internet connection.

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FraudWatch

• The 30-Second Commercial
• For Retailers
• Who need to reduce fraud and policy violation at
  the point-of-sale
• FraudWatch is the POS data analysis and reporting
  application
• that quickly and easily detects questionable
  transaction patterns, and delivers relevant,
  actionable information to retail loss prevention
  professionals over a secure internet connection
• Unlike other loss prevention software
  applications
• our product employs the most unique algorithms
  developed by LP experts for retail LP
  professionals.

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Summary - Why the Web?

• Universal client access via standard web browser
  tools and analysis
• Minimal installation cost and time (vs..
  traditional models)
• Reduces MIS cost and hassles
• Quicker and easier upgrade process

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Thank You! Peter T. Wolf pwolf_at_triversity.com