Interview with the director of the department of IT of Toy Store retail network Sergey Kondarev

Sergey Kondarev, director of the department of IT of Toy Store retail network

TAdviser: Sergey, tell, please, what main business applications are used in the head company and branches of Toy Store?

Sergey Kondarev: At the moment we still use diverse applications from different vendors: management system for retail network Oracle, solutions of 1C for ensuring financial processes, accounting. From last year in Toy Store the large-scale project on transition to a single platform of SAP is kept.

The project is performed within a global task of the company of increase in operating profit of business in the conditions of expansion of Toy Store and to cost reduction, including – for the cost reduction account of support of IT systems. Support of systems existing now costs much. By our calculations, total cost of ownership a new IT environment will be about 10-15% lower than present.

We will use industry solution for automation of retail of SAP for Retail. Among the implemented modules –SAP Merchandising for management of the basic retail processes - the range, pricing, purchases, transactions of shops, etc., SAP Forecasting&Replenishment for forecasting and management of trade inventories and SAP EWM for management of distribution centers. Besides, it is going to implement the solution of POS Data Management for detailed check analytics and audit of sales, the platform of a business intelligenceBusiness Objects and later -SAP HCM for personnel management and SAP Planning for Retail for commodity planning. We also transfer financial processes to SAP.

Within the first stage of this project which we are going to complete in the current year a transfer on new solutions of the distribution center of network, head office and two shops in Moscow is made. Finally we expect to complete the project on transition to a single platform of SAP in 2015. Until at us a part of the existing systems in integration with SAP will continue to be used.

TAdviser: How does this project move ahead? What is already made by this moment?

Sergey Kondarev: A system is completely unrolled, now there is its setup under specific objectives of Toy Store. On finance, for example, about 60% of settings, about 30% of settings - on logistics are already executed. It is possible to tell that the first phase of the project is completed half.

As integrator on the project the consulting division of SAP CIS acts. Works are conducted according to the planned terms. Their course is controlled, including, and representatives of Competence Center of SAP for Retail from Germany: to us there came the German auditor, we weekly call up to the German side. It means that our project is in a high priority for SAP.

TAdviser: Whether it is possible to give examples still of some most important IT projects which were implemented Toy Store in 2013?

Sergey Kondarev: Last year we unrolled a new warehouse management system Infor in which implementation the companies were engaged NVision and IRT Group. It is possible to tell, it already made profit: in particular, allowed Toy Store to fulfill successfully during high seasons - during a school season and an autumn and winter season. In a new system the warehouse technologies which allowed to process more effectively goods flows and to use warehouse resources were implemented.

To it we used a system for management of the warehouse Exceed WMS, however it ceased to correspond to requirements of our technology development therefore the decision to replace it was made. Now we are on the final phase of its canceling.

Besides, last year we improved operating activities of a workplace of the cashier in shops of Toy Store due to its automation, having implemented new cash modules and having optimized document flow. It allowed to lay off already by this moment about 200 chief cashiers in shops and to cut down, thus, staff expenses.

TAdviser: Whether the company has own DPC?

Toy Store uses two DPCs, both of them are located in Moscow. One of them - the main - is our own, and as the second DPC capacities of hosting provider are used. This solution is based on providing disk space and technical support of data processing to us based on one of the Moscow data centers.

At this solution we do not depend on such factors as the possible shortage of human resources. Also we have advantages in an opportunity to quickly increase computing resources, including temporary - under temporary projects and periodic loads. It is possible to refer lack of capital costs of construction to other advantages and, the most important, we can quickly receive ready infrastructure under necessary tasks.

According to our plans, by the end of 2014 that which we rent now, and our own data center - reserve, something like castling should become the main DPC for a while. Such "castling" is connected with the project of transition to a single platform of SAP about which I spoke above. The main applications will be transferred to DPC hosting, then we upgrade our own DPC, we will delete from it applications which are taken out of service - for example, Oracle, and then we will perhaps transfer to it the used applications back.

Also we have server capacities and in regional branches. On them the main business applications used on site are also unrolled: on clients, the movement of goods on shops, cash software, etc.

TAdviser: How the IT service of Toy Store is arranged? How much does the person in it work?

At the moment, the central IT service of Toy Store is about 100 employees. In regional branches of Toy Store (RO Siberia, RO the Urals, RO the Volga region, RO the South, RO the Northwest) from 4 to 6 employees of technical support whose activity is coordinated by the central technical support service using the automation equipment of ITSM processesof HP Service Manager work.

For providing IT services to users and support of IT infrastructure, the central IT service of Toy Store actively uses outsourcing schemes. An example of like those are service of printing, service of the automated jobs, service contracts of a cash and specialized retail store equipment.

TAdviser: What else processes are sent to the companies on outsourcing?

As suppliers of such services for us several companies which accompany also opening of new shops, since creation of engineering infrastructure for them and up to support of the office equipment act. It is possible to tell, everything that does not disturb is brought to outsourcing in Toy Store, and helps business.

Since 2013, for example, we transferred service of engineering infrastructure in 225 shops of Maykor company. In addition, the company renders to Toy Store, a full range of services in creation and start in work of the engineering systems in new super - and hypermarkets.

In 2013 we opened 41 shops in Russia and Kazakhstan, and in 2014 we are also going to increase their quantity in the cities of presence of network and to enter the new regional markets. At such growth rates as our maintenance services of the engineering systems are the most optimal way in terms of reduction of finance and time expenditure.