Building a Smarter Planet: RetailJim Zalles, Senior Managing ConsultantBusiness Analytics & Optimisation

The world is smaller and flatter.

In the face of a radically transformed economy, retailers are under pressure to retain and build customer loyalty while at the same time cutting costs and streamlining operations.

Their success will require innovative business models that rely on real-time insights to meet customers changing demands and expectations.This mandate for change is a mandate for smart

For retailers, this means effectively responding to drivers in four key areasGLOBAL ECONOMYFinancial crisisCredit crunchUnpredictable oil / commodity pricesGrowth market slowdownProduct and food safetyEnvironmental concerns

CONSUMER BEHAVIORDecreased spending abilitySavvy and informedJob insecurity and falling real estate prices

COMPETITION AND REGULATIONIndustry consolidationNew business modelsIncreasing protectionism

TECHNOLOGYHistorical underinvestment in ITPervasive connectivity and mobile devicesSecurity and compliance

To survive in todays changing retail environment, smart organizations are working to optimize theirMERCHANDISING AND SUPPLY CHAIN Gather customer information continuously and at every touch point. Manage and deliver assortments based on customer input and insights.OPERATIONS Update systems to better handle todays customer demands. Improve management across labor, assets and business processes.SHOPPING EXPERIENCE Enable customers to shop however, whenever and wherever they want. Match inventory and brand experience on the Web, in stores and via mobile devices. RETAIL

They are doing so by becoming instrumented, interconnected and intelligent.

An opportunity for retailers to think and act in new ways. Deliver a smarter shopping experience.Develop smarter merchandising and supply chains.Build smarter operations.++=

Forward-thinking retailers will fundamentally reshape their business models to cut costs and boost efficiencies while focusing on the high-value areas of merchandising and customer experience. Information FlowProduct FlowBACK OFFICE FUNCTIONSHuman ResourcesCall CentersITIndirect ProcurementFinance and AccountingSHOPPING CHANNELSKEY COMPETENCIESCUSTOMER EXPERIENCEMERCHANDISINGSUPPLY CHAINAssortmentProduct AvailabilityPrice/ PromotionsStore ExperienceCustomerServiceMultichannelConvenienceQualitySource: IBM, "Shopper advocacy: Building consumer trust in the new economy"These retailers will use multiple channels to gather real-time customer insights, which they will share with partners, suppliers and manufacturers to drive product development and assortment.

Why must we take action now?EXPANDING REACH Pervasive connections and communications, emerging markets and open trade are enabling retailers to reach entirely new customer bases.

CHANGING RISK ENVIRONMENT Systems-level complexity and the viral spread of information, as well as the widening gap between information available and information effectively managed, are demanding that retailers rethink the ways in which they handle their data.

NEW COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE The economic downturn is creating opportunities for retailers to gain share and build key capabilities through strategic acquisitions, new formats, integrated business models and globalization.

The imperative for retailers is threefold.Optimize Supply ChainRationalize AssortmentsRenegotiate termsExplore New Operating ModelsConsider Global ExpansionGet the information to actManage business performanceDeliver a smarter shopping experience.Develop smarter merchandising and supply chains.Build smarter operations.Focus on Value:Customer security and confidenceImprove efficiencyExploit Opportunities:Increase loyaltyInvest in growth playsProtect and acquire talentAct with Speed:Clearly communicateGet the information to actBusiness performance management and analyticsReduce SG&A costsImprove efficiencyRenegotiate termsClearly communicateLeverage experienceSet the agendaManage risk123Focus on winnersInvest in growth playsExplore new operating modelsLook at acquisitions and alliances

IBMs offering portfolio is aligned with the needs of retailersNext-generation e-commerceSingle view of customerCross-channel order managementDelivering a smarter shopping experienceDeveloping smarter merchandising and supply chainsRETAILERS ARE FOCUSED ONMarketing and campaign managementCheckout and self-serviceCustomer analyticsIntegrated planningProduct information managementCore merchandisingIntegrated supply chainBusiness process managementMerchant and SC dashboardsBuilding smarter operationsIBM IS DELIVERINGIT outsourcingApplication management servicesStore management servicesBPO: call center, F&A, indirect procurementEnergy performance managementRetail security

To deliver these offerings, IBM is creating a new service line in Global Business Services Business Analytics & Optimisation Leveraging IBM Software& IBM ResearchIBM Services& Know How

The BAO team will leverage IBMs $10M+ investment in softwareCreate Business ValueLower CostsILOG

SPSS

The BAO team will also leverage IBMs massive investment in R&D, working closely with our Retail team in HursleyIn the Retail Innovation Lab at Hursley, numerous strands of innovation are being brought together from computerised ink to RFID sensors and handheld information scanners to create the experience of the shop of the future. These technologies enable real-time price changes to appear on the label on the shelf, simultaneously with changes at the till, so stores can automate price reduction offers for example on products nearing their sell-by date, without having to deploy armies of staff to make it happen leaving staff free to focus on improving customers shopping experience.

RFID sensors also allow well-informed consumers to be able to much better understand the history, origins and distances travelled by the goods on the shelf, allowing more informed decisions based on purchasing preference. A hand-held information scanner can share even more information in a multi-media format on the products on offer, such as showing a preview of the DVD you are looking at, before you decide to buy it, again better informing consumers, and making them aware of a wealth of relevant offers.

IBM has anticipated emerging trends in Business Intelligence with our Smarter Planet solutionsUser interactionswith BIIT managed report developmentOLAP/ROLAP enginesData martsData warehousesData integration and ETL toolsSupport for mobile devicesAd hoc queryingDashboards/scorecardsUser self-serviceRetail-specific analyticsRetail data modelAnalytic infrastructure 2008 AMR Research, Inc.

IBMs leading retail industry solution offering for Smarter Planet is Retail Performance Analytics (RPA)Merchandising & Supply Chain (DS10) SCMMulti-Channel Retailing (DS15) AISMerchandise Operations StrategyCore Merchandise ManagementProduct Information & Attribute ManagementIntegrated Merchandise PlanningPrice / Revenue OptimizationSupply Chain Planning & ExecutionSourcing / ProcurementTotal Store (DS12) (GTS Solution)Kiosk Business SolutionsCustomer CheckoutExperiential RetailTotal Store OutsourcingWorkforce ManagementMerchandise ControlGreen StoreSecure StoreMulti-Channel StrategyNext Gen e-CommerceEnterprise Content ManagementCustomer Lifecycle Management / Single View of CustomerProduct Information & Attribute ManagementMulti-Channel Order ManagementMulti-Channel Gift RegistryEndless AisleGuided SellingMulti-Channel Contact CenterDeliver a Smarter Shopping ExperienceBuild Smarter OperationsCreate Smarter Merchandising & Supply ChainsEnrich Customer Loyalty & AdvocacyStore ExperienceConvenienceAssortmentsQualityCustomer ServiceMulti-ChannelProduct AvailabilityOptimize Supply Chain EfficiencyInventory Management & PlanningGreen Supply ChainTransportation and LogisticsStrategic SourcingSupply Chain VisibilityDrive Operational Excellence through Performance ManagementStrategic InsightCustomer IntimacySupply Chain VisibilityMerchandise ManagementWorkforce and Financial Performance MgmtRetailSolutions Solution OfferingsImperativesKey Attributes & CapabilitiesRetail Performance Analytics - RPA (DS16) AIS Enhance Merchandising EffectivenessMerchandise Planning and PlacementInventory ManagementMulti-Channel

BI Strategy & RoadmapBI GovernanceWorkforce Performance ManagementFinancial Performance ManagementMaster Data Mgmt (SVoC and PIM)Supply Chain Analytics / DashboardMerchandise Analytics / DashboardCustomer Analytics / DashboardMulti-channel Analytics / DashboardeCommerce reporting (RAPiD, ODEC)Store Performance Management

Supply Chain Analytics / Dashboard (DS16)Merchandise Analytics / Dashboard (DS16)

Customer Analytics / Dashboard (DS16)Multi-channel Analytics / Dashboard (DS16)eCommerce reporting (RAPiD, ODEC) (DS16)Store Performance Management (DS16)

Cognos 8 & FPMRBIS Business Solution TemplatesWith the RPA offering IBM can rapidly deploy smarter solutions utilizing a robust suite of software, assets and integration acceleratorsAbility to integrate with Data Mining tools: SAS, SPSS, Unica, IBM Customer Analytics Framework, TECSPre-defined set of Retail business processes and workflowsData integration services and processesPhysical and logical database designPre-built Integration with ERP / core transaction systems Mapping from data model to BSTsIBM RBIS Data ModelRetail ModelInterface ModelsETL ProcessesRetail EDWOperational Data (Detailed Customer Transactions)Reporting & AnalyticsDashboards / WorkbenchModeling & Mining Analytics InfrastructurePOSStoreCRMInventoryLogisticsProcurementChannelsFinancialMaster Data MgmtPlanningCustomer WorkbenchSolution OfferingData ExtractionData Integration, Transformation, Cleansing, Single ViewUser InterfacesCalculations, Metrics, CubesData Transformation (some)Pre-defined set of Analytical Models and data cubesGBS Services to Integrate and ImplementDB2 and pSeries

RPA is designed to address the key retail business imperativesOptimize Supply ChainRationalize AssortmentsRenegotiate termsExplore New Operating ModelsConsider Global ExpansionGet the information to actManage business performanceDeliver a smarter shopping experience.Develop smarter merchandising and supply chains.Build smarter operations.Focus on Value:Customer security and confidenceImprove efficiencyExploit Opportunities:Increase loyaltyInvest in growth playsProtect and acquire talentAct with Speed:Clearly communicateGet the information to actBusiness performance management and analyticsReduce SG&A costsImprove efficiencyRenegotiate termsClearly communicateLeverage experienceSet the agendaManage risk123Focus on winnersInvest in growth playsExplore new operating modelsLook at acquisitions and alliances

Analytics & Optimisation will change business the same way as ERP & CRM have done

Weve only just begun to uncover what is possible on a smarter planet.The world will continue to become smaller, flatter and smarter. We are moving into the age of the globally integrated and intelligent economy, society and planet.

By building intelligence into our entire retail system, retailers, manufacturers and suppliers can eliminate inefficiency and waste at every step of the chain crucial in the current economic downturn.

More importantly, retailers can better serve the new breed of empowered consumer, whose needs for high value, individual service and low prices will only grow.Let's work together to drive real progress in our world.

Backup slides

INSTRUMENTEDWe now have the ability to measure, sense and see the exact condition of everything.

Today there are over 1 billion transistors for each person on the planet.By 2010, 30 billion RFID tags will be embedded into our daily life, communicating across entire ecosystems.More than half of U.S. households regularly shop online, and 43% of Americans say they would use mobile phones to make purchases.

A 21st-century retail system will be able to track every item in real time, transform cell phones into mobile shopping devices and tap the Web to understand consumers tastes and propensities to buy.

INTERCONNECTEDPeople, systems and objects can communicate and interact with each other in entirely new ways.

The Internet is now over 1 billion people strong. By 2011, one third of the worlds population will be on the Web. There are currently nearly 4 billion mobile phone subscribers worldwide.Some 77% of online shoppers use peer reviews and ratings when making purchases.

A 21st-century retail system will be integrated end to endacross suppliers, manufacturers, partners, stores and even the end consumerthrough a host of sophisticated devices.

*INTELLIGENTWe can respond to changes quickly, accurately and securely, and get better results by predicting and optimizing for future events.

An average company of 1,000 employees spends $5.3 million a year to find information stored on its servers.Every day, 15 petabytes of new information are generatedmore than 8 times the information in all U.S. libraries.The amount of digital information generated each day is 350 times that housed in all U.S. university research libraries.

In a 21st-century retail system, companies will continuously analyze the vast amounts of consumer data they collect from multiple touch points and transform it into critical business insight.

Retail: Delivering a smarter shopping experience.SMART ISDeveloping promotions that are personalizedand timely.SMART ISEnabling customers to shop seamlessly across touch points and brands.SMART ISPutting payment and loyalty cards at the tips of customers fingersliterally.SMART ISAn exchange of advice among friends and strangers.

Retail: Delivering a smarter shopping experience.1-800-FLOWERS: Is tearing down the walls between its 14 brands through a flexible Web platform that lets the company respond to customer needs faster and more efficiently.Carrefour: Implemented a groundbreaking in-store promotion system across its supermarket and hypermarket stores that enables the planning and execution of targeted campaigns to achieve enhanced customer loyalty.Gewundhaus Gruber: Launched the first fingerprint-identification-based loyalty and payment method in Germany, allowing club members to conveniently pay for items and receive loyalty incentives. Moosejaw: Is giving customers a seamless shopping experience across the Web, stores and mobile devices while infusing customer feedback and reviews back into a system designed to continuously improve products and customer experiences.

Retail: Developing smarter merchandising and supply chains.SMART ISManufacturing the right number of a trendy item to fulfill real-time customer demand.SMART ISReducing order lead times from days to hours.SMART ISKnowing exactly where your merchandise is as it moves from the manufacturer to the customer.SMART ISDynamically allocating inventory based on real-time customer demand and inventory constraints.

Retail: Developing smarter merchandising and supply chains.Yansha: is leveraging a first-of-a-kind, real-time performance information system that provides transparency into supply chain processes to reduce order lead times, improve order accuracy and boost order acknowledgement rates.Max Bahr: Built a dynamic system that helps to determine optimal inventory levels based on inventory constraints, demand patterns and customer service levels.Metro: Uses RFID technology throughout its supply chain to help get the merchandise customers want onto the shelves right when they want it.

Retail: Building smarter operations.SMART ISQuickly consolidating new acquisitions into an existing brand as well as existing processes and systems.SMART ISUnderstanding sales trends in real time and adjusting inventory and promotions accordingly.SMART ISReducing overall operating costs while deploying new customer services more quickly.SMART ISNever allowing customer data to be breached or compromised.

Retail: Building smarter operations.Coop Group UK: Deployed energy efficient point of sale that automatically powers down after end of day processing, resulting in savings of 1.68 million kilowatt hours of electricity per year and 120K GPB in annual savings.Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory: Enhanced insight into financial and inventory performance by integrating point of sale and core systems, resulting in improved staffing schedules, sales and profitability.Elie Tahari: Built a business intelligence and performance management platform that helps match products to real customer demand.

*To replace the title / subtitle with your own:Click on the title block -> select all the text by pressing Ctrl+A -> press Delete key -> type your own text

Something meaningful is happening every human being, country, city, nation, organization, company, natural system and man-made system is becoming interconnected. This is leading to new challenges and new possibilities for progress.We are all familiar with global integration and how the planet is becoming flatter. And through interconnected communications and commerce, its becoming smaller. But something else is also going on. Something that may ultimately have a more profound affect on our society, businesses and our individual lives: the planet is also becoming smarter.Building a smarter planet is IBM's point of view on how interconnected technologies are changing the way the world literally works. That is, the systems and processes that enable: physical goods to be developed, manufactured, bought and sold; services to be delivered; everything from people and money to oil, water and electrons to move; and billions of people to work, govern themselves and live.But really, it is more than that. It is the convergence of four kinds of infrastructure the physical, the digital, the natural and the human. Real stimulus, stimulus that creates a lasting effect, will combine these elements in highly productive ways.If the musicians path to Carnegie Hall is practice, practice, practice, the retailers path to attracting and retaining customers is differentiate, differentiate, differentiate. Crucially, the differentiation must occur in areas of high value to the consumer whether store experience, or product selection, or offerings and promotions, or some combination of those and other attributes.

When we look specifically at the external forces driving change, we think in terms of four key areas: the global economy, consumer behavior, competition and regulation, and technology. Global economy considerations would include, How can we free up enough credit to maintain sufficient supply of needed goods? or How can we accurately forecast in the face of rapid changes in oil and commodity prices? On the consumer side, retailers will need to consider how they can maximize their share of consumers wallets even as those wallets are shrinking. In short, all four of the external drivers suggest crucial strategic considerations for retailers and a strategy that will help retailers to excel through the downturn will need to take all four drivers into account.

When we consider the external forces driving retailers to change, and the smarter actions they can take, we tend to think in terms of three imperatives: Customer-centric experience enabling customers to shop however, whenever and wherever they want Dynamic merchandising and supply chain gathering customer information continuously and at every touch point Flexible and cost-effective operations updating systems to better handle todays complex demands

A smarter system for retail may focus on one of the imperatives, per our earlier client examples, but will need to consider how all three will evolve as a system.

So instrumented, interconnected and intelligent are the underlying capabilities that make smart systems work and can lead to new savings and efficiency but perhaps as important to new possibilities for progress and growth.Lets move ahead to understand what instrumented means to retail.Again: delivering change across the three dimensions of smart instrumented, interconnect and intelligent and across the three retail imperatives customer-centric experience, dynamic merchandising and supply chains, and flexible and cost-effective-operations is a powerful foundation for retail success.

The result of this heightened focus on turning customer information into actionable insight? An optimal customer experience supported by delivery of the right products to the right places at the right time.Its natural, even in times of great change, for those in leadership positions to ask, why must we take action now? Wouldnt it be better to wait things out, and then make decisions with more of a view of where the retail landscape is headed? However, the fact is that if you are not taking steps to position your company in the new economic landscape, your competitors surely are. Whether its a matter of expanding your companys reach, ensuring that you are managing the changing risk environment, or responding strategically to the new competitive landscape, its important to act now.Within the three Retail imperatives that we laid out earlier, there are three dimensions shaped by the current economic environment along which retailers need to act: Focus on Value, which speaks to the changing shopping patterns of todays shoppers; Exploit Opportunities, which means focusing on where retailers can differentiate and take share; and Act with Speed, which suggests an emphasis on turning information into actionable insights. Whether Retailers are focused on one or all of the three imperatives, IBM brings a wealth and a breadth of offerings that help address the need to become smarter in order to seize the opportunities presented by the current Retail environment.Within the three Retail imperatives that we laid out earlier, there are three dimensions shaped by the current economic environment along which retailers need to act: Focus on Value, which speaks to the changing shopping patterns of todays shoppers; Exploit Opportunities, which means focusing on where retailers can differentiate and take share; and Act with Speed, which suggests an emphasis on turning information into actionable insights. We won't have this opportunity forever. As we agreed earlier, the world will continue to become smaller, flatter and smarter. We are moving into the age of the globally integrated and intelligent economy, society and planet. IBM invites you to work with us to drive real progress in the realm of retail. We welcome your ideas and look forward to the opportunity to work with you. Thank you for your attention and your input!The world is becoming instrumented there are, in fact, already over a billion transistors for every human being on earth! In the retail arena, more than half of U.S. households regularly shop online, whereas 43 percent say they would shop via cell phone. By 2010 less than one year away! 30 billion RFID tags will be embedded into our daily life, many of them integral to an efficiently running global retail ecosystem.So what will instrumented mean for retail going forward? Imagine being able to tell a customer exactly where in shipping a desired item currently is or to know when he or she enters a store what they have recently been searching for on your website. What if a customer could point their cell phone at an in-store barcode and immediately receive online reviews and recommendations? These are just a few of the possibilities that the instrumented world will offer retailers.

Note to speaker: Ask your client this question:WHAT PART OF YOUR BUSINESS WOULD YOU INSTRUMENT IF YOU COULD? This question will allow you to dig more deeply into the area of sensing. What would your client sense if they could or wanted to? For example, do they want to better understand what their customers are feeling, or perhaps the health of their suppliers? Consider that all systems can be measured, thus whatever your client desires can likely be made a reality.Now lets talk about how interconnected can enable smarter systems for retail. Communication and collaboration are at the heart of interconnected, which can enable retailers to shift to a more collaborative approach with suppliers, customers and even competitors.What can be interconnected in retail systems to enable them to work in new ways? Providing customers online forums to collaborate on product design or share ideas or experiences with each other Giving store branches greater visibility into each others inventory

Note to speaker: Ask your client this question:WHAT PART OF YOUR BUSINESS OR INDUSTRY WOULD YOU INTERCONNECT IF YOU COULD? This question starts to bridge the conversation to areas of systems thinking and interrelationships. For example, this may be the client considering how they can better manage the interrelationship of clinicians in the hospital and care-givers outside the hospital and its impact on the patient experience. This question opens doors to new connections and insight.*Now lets take a look at the third facet of the smarter planet, intelligent. When we think about retail, this tends to mean two things first, do retailers have access to the right information? and second, are retailers able to mine this information for insight insight that drives business decisions, that helps drive business results? A good example of how this can come together is with a solution called Retail Performance Analytics, in which companies are able to put in place a data analysis platform that continuously provides insight along some of retailers most important dimensions: customer segments, locations, product categories, and so on.

Note to speaker: Ask your client this question:WHAT PART OF YOUR BUSINESS WOULD YOU MAKE MORE INTELLIGENT IF YOU COULD? How is your client dealing will all of the new information? Consider a discussion that helps to assess their comfort level with how they are leveraging information for insight. In most cases, this question will lead to client challenges or opportunities to better leverage information in this new environment. Are they prepared for a smarter planet and the information it will provide?So what specifically can smart mean for retailers and their customers? It means a customer moving from web to phone to store and having their experience of the brand reinforced and strengthened throughout. It means a customer receiving a promotion for the very item that theyre looking for, at the very moment when it will most influence their shopping decision. It means customers being able to tap into each others experiences with products, brands, stores, companies in ways that increase their satisfaction with the shopping experience and therefore their loyalty.

Shown here are a few examples of where innovative retailers have worked with IBM to deliver a smarter, more customer-centric experience. 1-800-Flowers, which has multiple websites representing its 14 brands, has developed a web platform that will enable customers to shop seamlessly across all the brands. Gewandhaus Gruber, the German retailer, launched the first fingerprint identificationbased loyalty program and payment method in Germany; it earned 2.6 million15 percentof annual revenue in just six months through approximately 4,500 club members; saved 100,000 in operational costs over a comparable card-based loyalty program; and increased revenue by 4% while improving customer satisfaction. Carrefour, the French international hypermarket chain, put in place a groundbreaking in-store promotion system that enables the planning and execution of more targeted campaigns, with more rapid feedback as to their effectiveness; benefits include stronger customer loyalty and a stronger brand; faster and more profitable growth; and deeper knowledge of customers via analytics and segmentation. Moosejaw, the outdoor gear specialist, developed a multi-channel solution that blurs the lines between in-store, Web, mobile and call center and enables a unique, consistent, high-quality, fun customer experience; benefits include an enhanced ability to retain customers and grow customer base; increased site stickiness with a more interactive shopping experience and social networking; and increased customer satisfaction and conversion rates across all sales channels.

What would smarter merchandising and supply chains look like? Think about a reduction in order lead times from days down to hours. Or having the ability to know exactly where merchandise currently resides on its journey from manufacturer to customer. Then theres the age-old problem of knowing how much of a given item to order to fulfill customer demand too little, and you lose sales; too much, and you end up with excess inventory. Smarter merchandising and supply chains have the potential to provide greater headlights into demand. Not only that, but they can enable the allocation of inventory based on real-time customer demand.

Lets take a look at where a few forward-looking companies are putting smarter merchandising and supply chains into practice: Yansha, one of Chinas largest retailers, deployed a first-of-its-kind SCM platform that leverages SOA to integrate enterprise resource planning ERP and SCM applications. The platform provides Yansha new real-time performance information to generate actionable business intelligence. Results include reduced order lead time from 2.5 days to 4.5 hours; improved order acknowledgement rate from 80 to 99 percent; reduced order error rate from nine to one percent; and ROI achieved in only nine months. Metro Group, the major international retailer, is working with IBM to implement RFID technology to improve the availability of products in its stores, enhance consumers' shopping experience, and boost supply chain performance. The companies are successfully using RFID in a system which tracks shipments from suppliers to warehouses, distribution centers and stores. Max Bahr, a leading DIY retailer, worked with IBM to implement a Dynamic Inventory Optimization Solution, a comprehensive offering that helps companies determine optimal inventory levels based on cost constraints, forecasts, demand patterns and service level requirements. Benefits included customer service levels of 99 percent or higher; over 90 percent of replenishment proposals turning into orders without any review; and improved demand forecasting, fewer planners and lower replenishment costs.

Now lets take a look at what smarter operations can mean for retailers who dont hesitate to seize the opportunity. First, it can mean achieving a level of insight into sales trends that enables real-time adjustments in inventory and promotions. On the acquisition front, it means seamlessly merging new members of the brand family into the existing brand as well as systems and processes. At a macro level, smarter operations is all about reducing costs while continuing to deliver new customer services quickly and effectively. Finally, its about ensuring that customer data is never breached or compromised.

A number of retailers are already achieving significant benefits from a smarter operations approach: Coop Group UK: Coop is the worlds largest consumer cooperative, and Coop UK is the UKs largest convenience store retailer. Not only has Co-op earned a position as a leader in the retail space, but the organization has established itself as a leader in social responsibility, particularly in the realm of energy conservation. For example, the organization's head office in Manchester is Europe's largest vertical solar project, using the solar panels that cover three sides of the 25-story building to capture enough energy to power roughly 1,000 personal computers each year. Similarly, 4,000 of the organizations outlet stores are powered by energy from renewable resources. As part of this commitment to conservation, Co-op had established an aggressive target to reduce its company-wide energy consumption levels by 25 percent before 2012. After analyzing its usage patterns, the organization realized that it was wasting a great deal of energy by leaving various systems - particularly point of sale (POS) systems - online outside of store hours. The business realized that it made both economic and ecological sense to find a means to power down these systems when not in use. Coop UK teamed with IBM to design an energy efficient solution that enables network-based control of the organization's POS environment. Previously, when the company's stores closed each evening, the organization's installation of InControl store management software ran end-of-day batch processes to collate sales and inventory data from the day's transactions. This data was then sent back to the organization's head office. Thanks to the efforts of the combined IBM and Co-op team, the InControl software now also activates a controlled power-down for all of the organization's POS equipment. Conversely, when stores open up for business in the morning, the solution leverages wake-on-LAN technology to bring the POS equipment back online. Thanks to the combined efforts of its internal IT staff and IBM, Co-op can now turn off its non-essential systems at night, saving an estimated 1.68 million kilowatt hours of electricity each year. This reduction translates into roughly 120,000 in annual savings. Even better, the organization will be able to reduce its CO2 emissions by an estimated 722 tons, significantly lowering its carbon footprint and bringing Co-op closer to its overall energy conservation goals.Elie Tahari: Elie Tahari, the global fashion designer, is using IBM business intelligence technology to help gain greater visibility into customer buying habits, merchandising, and supply chain to make better use of information and become more responsive to customer needs. Since implementing the system, the retailer has been able to more effectively target new customers and boost sales by more than 10 percent, while cutting operating costs.Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory: Focusing primarily on the production of its candies, Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (RMCF) directly managed only five of its stores, relying on franchise holders to control the remaining operations. In the past, each of these more than 300 franchises maintained independent point-of-sale (POS) systems. Frequently, sales data was transmitted back to the company's main office via e-mail. Compiling this sales data into something usable took a great deal of time and effort on the part of RMCF, and by the time the data had been compiled into a usable report, it was typically outdated. Unable to see clearly into its sales and inventory processes, the company could not accurately determine the effectiveness of its marketing efforts. And without this insight, the organization was unsure of how to proceed with future campaigns. After considering between 25 and 30 other retail solution vendors, RMCF chose to team with IBM Business Partner Retail Anywhere to standardize its POS systems. Thanks to the IBM and Retail Anywhere offerings, RMCF now has a universal and affordable POS solution for its franchise locations. All stores with the solution transmit data automatically to the company's ERP systems, so management staff can easily locate current sales and inventory data. And now that the information is available, the organization can identify trends more quickly and work to ensure that sufficient inventory is in place. Even better, RMCF can identify which marketing campaigns are effective in which regions and adjust its focus accordingly. These improvements, in turn, can result in increased sales and profitability. The organization has driven further cost savings by using the sales data to more accurately staff its stores. More employees are on the clock during high sales periods, which eliminates wasted labor by staffing at the wrong times. The improved insight has even affected the organization's cooking times. Stores located in malls now cook and prepare new confections during high traffic periods, attracting more customers with the aroma of melted chocolate and caramel.