IBM is working with British retailer Marks & Spencer Reliance India Pvt Ltd (M&S India) to modernize its supply chain, drive integration between online and in-store business while improving improve the customer experience.
“M&S is scaling its omni-channel capabilities in India with IBM Sterling Supply Chain Solutions. The company is driving faster delivery of products to customers by streamlining the order fulfilment process using IBM Sterling’s Order Management with real-time Inventory Visibility, a microservices-based solution running on IBM Cloud, along with call centre capabilities to expand its digital presence and accelerate business growth," the company said in a statement on Thursday.
This project is an outcome of IBM’s collaboration with IBM Business Partner Acuver Consulting Pvt. Ltd. to help M&S India deploy an omni-channel order management system for faster go-to-market, enhanced order fulfillment capabilities and improved customer experience. Acuver Consulting is part of IBM’s partner ecosystem.
The pandemic has prompted retailers across the board to make tier online-offline shopping experiences more swift. This is as consumers spend long hours online, browsing sites and expect a swifter delivery of products.
“Addressing the shift in consumer dynamics we have expanded our digital capabilities and modernized our technology stack using IBM Sterling Supply Chain solutions to bring our online and store technologies closer to deliver seamless omnichannel experience to our customers. Acuver’s technical excellence, understanding of the supply chain and approach to solve problem enabled seamless implementation and timely delivery," Vishal Kapil, chief technology officer, Marks & Spencer India.
Citing a study by the IBM Institute for Business Value (IBV), in association with the National Retail Federation (NRF), IBM said that more than half of retail and consumer products executives are focused on building agility to adapt faster to changes in demand.
“Aligned to this market trend, the solution offers common inventory publish mechanism to distribute stock across M&S’s own website and marketplaces, and offers easy identification and tracking of operational issues for speedy resolution," it added.
Retailers looking to succeed in a competitive consumer market like India are pivoting towards establishing dynamic and responsive supply chain which is interconnected to their ecosystem and processes, said Viswanath Ramaswamy Vice President, Technology, IBM Technology Sales, IBM India and South Asia said.
Sourced from Live Mint