Allsorts, retail chain stores (Microsoft Business Intelligence)

The implementing solutions Microsoft Business Intelligence allowed retail chain stores of Assorti to strengthen the leading positions in such exacting and quickly changing sector as retail. The network of Assorti grocery stores was ahead of competitors at the expense of the verified solutions of the retail sales based on the fast and exact analysis.

The created network in 1992 Assorti company is the largest grocery retail chain in the Komi Republic. Now the retail chain stores are included 20 shops located in the main Syktyvkar. Eight hundred employees of the company, locating floor spaces in 6,678 sq.m., about hundred thousand people daily provide service. In other words, through Assorti shops there pass about a half of all residents of Syktyvkar, providing Assorti of 12% of the market of retail sales in the city and its next suburbs.

Situation

To save a leading position in the market in the conditions of a difficult economic situation resolute actions were required. Information technologies were not the first what the management of Allsorts paid attention to – the previous solution was implemented all a year ago and was supposed that it will be relevant long enough.

The linking of the Microsoft SQL Server 2005 and Microsoft Windows Server 2003 was the center of a program part of IT infrastructure of retail chain stores. Budgeting and monitoring were assigned to Microsoft Office PerformancePoint Server 2007. Automation of trade operations was assigned to the solution ASTOR: Retail chain stores 6.0, and for the organization of document flow the software of Directum company was used.

The system created based on these solutions showed the working capacity, however very quickly it turned out that on information processing a lot of time left. Its complex analysis was impossible because of limitation of procedural reports of the accounting systems. And strengthening of a leading position in the market is impossible without fast and exact information analysis about sales and predictability of business.

Essentially new instruments of information analysis and decision support were required. Such tools had to provide the staff of the company complex and flexible with opportunities and also increase reliability of results and reduce terms of preparation of the reporting.

In such situation it turned out that the system implemented everything a year ago did not give an opportunity for carrying out the marketing analysis of required flexibility. The implemented system did not allow to keep the analysis of a consumer basket or joint sales – a key task at a research of efficiency of marketing actions.

From the technical point of view, the lack of the uniform data warehouse containing detailed analytics and giving to users flexible opportunities for data processing was the main lack of an existing solution. Aggregated data from the accounting systems which did not allow to execute deep analytics (for example, to within the check) were used, so it was impossible to reveal patterns in the made purchases.

Choosing a Solution

Having got into a difficult situation the management of retail chain stores went to the non-standard solution – urgent reorganization of the working system. Use of already available infrastructure was extremely desirable that would allow to save the made investments. It predetermined that the solutions which are not offered by Microsoft company were not even considered.

It was obvious what by own efforts in the shortest possible time will not cope with a major problem. The partner on the one hand having the wide experience of implementing solutions of Microsoft and which on the other hand is accurately understanding specifics of retail was required. And such partner was found – the BILab company from St.-Petersburg, the proposing own ready-made solution for management of retail retail chain stores – BILab Retail Analytics created on the Microsoft Business Intelligence platform became him.

Implementation

The choice of the implemented components and necessary requirements to infrastructure was performed proceeding from amounts of data, requirements to the speed of reporting and requirements to security. From the technical point of view the choice of the Microsoft BI platform is caused by its scalability and rich with functionality. As already available software was used, investments which are earlier made in it remained. In particular, for monitoring it was decided to use the built-in MS SQL Server tools for recording of processes of accomplishment and maintaining tables of logs. Existence in the MS SQL Server of services of integration did not allow to establish without special difficulties cooperation of the implemented system with the solution which was available in the company ASTOR: Retail chain stores 8.0.

As the client application it was decided to use Microsoft Excel - it allowed to minimize training costs of users. Users work with a system via the interface usual and familiar to them.

During the project the data warehouse was developed for collecting and consolidation of detailed information on sales to all retail network. From the transaction systems of the shops supporting work via the system of connectors information is loaded into the data warehouse. The greatest complexity in the course of implementation was caused by a problem of ensuring steady operation of mechanisms of information exchange through weak communication channels with shops from which 80% 64-256 KB / page.

Thanks to operational work of staff of BILab, and also to opportunities of the solution BILab Retail Analytics implementation of all system, beginning from requirements gathering, development of structure of the data warehouse and necessary functionality and finishing with training of employees and input of a system in commercial operation, all development process and implementations managed to be completed within two months.

Results

Specialists of Allsorts consider that they managed to solve all assigned tasks. Thanks to implementation of BILab Retail Analytics the company had new opportunities of the analysis and planning that made possible more exact planning of marketing actions and assessment of their influence on sales. And ease of use of Microsoft Excel and flexibility of the analytical Microsoft BI platform allow users to save time for preparation of the reporting significantly.

The user note that the analysis of structure of checks and joint sales became the most demanded functions of a new system of a business intelligence.

The head of information technology of retail chain stores of Allsorts Ivan Balabayev is happy. "The main thing in a new system not even not that it allowed to lift the business analysis in the company on new height without essential costs for updating of the hardware park – Balabayev tells. – important the fact that it allows to concentrate on information analysis, but not on process of its receiving".

Prospects

In the long term – accumulation of functionality of the implemented system. It is planned creations of the corporate data warehouse and use of all opportunities of Microsoft Office PerformancePoint Server 2007. In particular to increase in forecasting accuracy and management of pricing it is going to apply algorithms Data mining.