biretail client success stories_ benefit magazine

8/4/2019 BIRetail Client Success Stories_ Benefit Magazine

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IT ONRENTA VIABLEWAYTOAUTOMATEYOURBOOTSTRAPPEDRSIilL BDSI

To thrive in this competitiveworld, every organisationneeds to build its brand name,capture market share, and grow at apace that is reasonably faster than itscompetitors. Allthis requires accessto a realtime view of a business'health as well as the market trends.

But there are many smallorganisations, especially those withmodest budgets that still function thegood oldway and perform tasks likemaintaining data, preparing businessreports, and so on, either manuallyor via disparate software solutions.Such firms find themselves playingcatch-up, and discover that their biggercompetitors are far better equipped toidentify and tap market trends.

Since department heads in such

Anklt TuteJa I BenefiT Bureau

organisations keep grappling withthe issue ofmanaging processes andinformation, they invariably fail toconcentrate on market trends and othersuch key areas.As a result, they either lagbehind or grow at a very poor rate.

HowITcanhelpThe solution lies in transforming theorganisation's wayof functioningso that there is a seamless flowofinformation across departments. Also,it is important that the key decisionmakers in the company have access toorganisation data, MIS(managementinformation system) reports andinsights, in realtime. Allthis and a lotmore can be achieved by switchingto ITsolutions, which can helpfirms to integrate operations, ensure

ProductiviTy~ I

IT solutionsareno longertheprerogativeoflargeenterprises.EvensmallorganisationswithmodestITbudgetscanthinkofautomatingtheirmanagementprocesses,byswitchingto theaffordablepay-as-you-gomodel.

transparency across the organisationand also forecast market trends.

"Some of the challenges smallbusinesses face today are the changingforces of competition, changingworkplace requirements, and the needto focus on core competencies. Thus,these small firms need an efficientIT solution to support their growth,"observes Ramshankar N, head, StrategicPrograms, RODE (Ramco OnDemandERP), Ramco Systems.

But organisations that arebootstrapped or are still small, despiteknowing the merits of adopting IT,sometimes hesitate because oftheassociated costs. Ifyou too have longwanted to adopt the latest IT tools buthave resisted doing so because ofbudget-related issues, there is a way forward.

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ProductivITySwitchto 'Web-based'orrentalbusinessTsolutionsWith the availability of IT solutionslilcethe ERP (enterprise resourceplanning) system, CRM (customerrelationship management) solutionsand the lilce,at affordable rates viathe pay-as-you-go or subscription-based model (also called the SaaS orsoftware-as-a-service model), youtoo can think of automating yourbusiness and putting its growth onthe fast track. Adopting IT solutionsthat are available on rent, facilitatesthe hassle-free operations of acompany, allowing it focus on itskey area of business and operationalareas, resulting in improved businessperformance at a lower cost.

Before going anyfurther, let's firstunderstand what the term 'rental' or'Web-based IT solution' (or'SaaS')means. In simple words,Web-based ITsolutions are managed and providedto organisations over the Internetby a services provider or vendor, ona 'per month, per user' basis. Here,organisations are saved from a sizableup-front investment on the hardwareand software installations normallyrequired ifan organisation opts for anon-premise solution. In an on-premisesolution, the software isinstalled andrun on the organisation's own servers.In this case, the organisation owns thesoftware and hardware infrastructurewithin its premises. A rental Web-basedsolution proves very cost-effectiveas an organisation pays just a per-user monthly rental, which is quitemanageable.

Switching to aWeb-basedsubscription model isa better optionthan the on-premise model of ITimplementation as itreduces thehassles associated with maintaining acomplex ITinfrastructure and allowsfirms to achieve the larger objectivesin an affordable way,affirms Gaurav

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I A rental Web-based solutionproves very cost-effective as an. .or~nu~ation paysJUSt aJ;~er-userm0!ltli!y re~tal, .AI;-which IS qUIte JC,manageable.

Jain, head, Business-Europe and India(North), NovoallySoftware.

Apart from this, implementingthe right ITsolution helps establishtransparency across an organisationand helps people get access toinformation-at an affordable cost. Thishelps start-ups and small businessessave precious management time andfocus more on the market and on how toserve customers far more efficiently,saysKumarVembu, CEO,GoFrugal.BenefitsderivedThere are multiple benefits ofoptingforWeb-based or subscription-basedsolutions. They alloworganisationsto try ITsolutions that only largeorganisations could afford earlier,without making a huge upfrontinvestment. The capital expenditurerequired to be made at the outset inthe on-premise model is replacedby the much lower subscription thatthe company pays per month. Thismakes it easier for organisations tomanage their cash-flows. Besidesthere isno need for an expensive ITteam to maintain the IT solution,says Prakash Kandaraj, head, Salesand Marketing, BIRetaii.

Weturned to a feworganisationsthat arecurrentlyusingsuch solutionsto learnabout thebenefitstheyhavederivedfromthem.

Cost-effective:These solutions are

available at an affordable price andadd value to your business. GaganGandhi, director, MyKido,a retailstore that deals in kids furniture,says, "Weopted forTruePOS,asubscription-based retail P~Ssolution. Ifwe had opted for anon-premise model, wewould havepaid ~ 1,00,000to set up the entireinfrastructure. Further, itwouldrequire ITpersonnel to maintainit,which would have been anothermonthly expense for us. Thus, weopted for aWeb-based solution.Wepaid ~30,000in the beginning toimplement the TruePOSsolution, andnow everymonth wepay ~500peruser as a subscription fee."

Victorinox India, another retailcompany that sells products lilcepocket multi-tools, fine cutlery, time-pieces and travel gear has also beenusing the Bffietailsolution for a yearand a halfnow. CJ Chandhoke, COO,VictorinoxIndia, says,"Weboughtthe solution for 20users and paidapproximately ~2lakhs to set upthe infrastructure in the beginning,and now there is amonthly outflowof around ~35,000:' TherearealsosolutionslikeEazyCRMhat areavailableforfreeforalimitednumberofusersbut a companycanupgrade toa paidaccount ifthe number ofusersincreasebeyondtwo. "Formoreusersand forpremiumfeatures,ourpackagescost anywherebetween~400to~lOOO


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ProduciivlTy--I

C J Chandhoke,coo. Victorinox India

"The Web-based solutionis so easy to operate thatour sales team and storemanagers havegrownfond of working on theplication and are mostlyfound hooked to it"

Gagan Gandhi,Director . My Kido':6.doptingan integratedWeb-based retailmanagement solutionhas also helped us keepa record of employees'productivity on a dailybasis."

Rahul Singh,MO, BTB Retai l'" can access

my reports fromanywhere, I don'tneed to be in myoffice all the time,to know what ishappening there."

per user, per month," tells KWlalSinghal,director, Singhal Systems.

"The monthly subscriptionmodel makes it easy for us to takeout cash from our business. Also,the implementation went live in afew weeks' time," says Rahul Singh,MD, BTBRetail. '~s these solutionsare cost-effective, we were ableto take the plunge. We could nothave taken the risk of opting for anon-premise model, hence, we wentfor the trial version of the softwarefirst, to ascertain its effectiveness.We eventually got the Web-basedEazyCRM solution for 6 users at a costof~ 10,000 for three months," saysSwati Goel, office administrator, SNAquaSystem Inc.

No maintenance costs: Sincethese solutions are available on amonthly subscription basis, thereis no need for the organisationssubscribing to them to worry aboutissues like software upgrades, databack-ups and recovery, security, andso on. It is the service provider whoensures this. Ramshankar explains:"The customer does not have to

pay for maintenance or upgradesin the software-as-a-service model.The monthly subscription costscovermaintenance, monthly featureupgrades, new releases and so on."

Data management becomes easy:WithWeb-based ITsolutions, wherethe service provider maintainsyour business data in a structuredmanner, you can easilyhave accessto your data archive as and whenyou want. For small organisations,it is difficult tomanage data in suchan organised way, considering theirlimited expertise in ITand alsobecause their core competencies lieelsewhere. Gandhi, who has alsobeen using NetSuite, an integratedWeb-based business software suitethat includes applications likeERPand CRMsoftware, since the last 2years, explains the benefits, "Whendata ismanaged bya singleperson(the data operator), it becomesdifficult to search, retrieve andstructure the entire data, especially ifthis person leaves the organisation.But, having the company datamanaged via a vendor with a state-

of-the-art infrastructure, can help anorganisation manage data withoutwasting any time. Retrievingdata alsojust requires a fewmouse clicks."

Accessdata from anywhere,anytime: Asthese solutions areWeb-based, they let you access datafrom anywhere, anytime. "Havingimplemented the solution, I can atany time get data on my iPad. Fromanywhere, I can get to knowtherealtime sales figures for differentoutlets, and many other details likewhat is coming in and going out ofthe retail store, the profit marginsand so on," saysGandhi. Singh agreeswith Gandhi and adds, " SinceI canaccess my reports from anywhere, Idon't need to be inmy office all thetime, to knowwhat is happeningthere. Moreover,the dynamic reportsgenerated bythe system allowmeto identify problem areas on a dailybasis, and hence find solutions on-the-fly."

Helps in monitoring employees:These ITsolutions help you keepa detailed record of transactions.GandhiexplaInshowIThelpedin

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ProductiviTyautomating the business and makingbusiness processes transparent.This also made it possible for thecompany to keep a fair trackofemployees' contributions to assignedtasks. "Earlier,we had to hire manydata-entry operators to feed ininformation, create Excelsheetsand maintain a database. Toensureproductivity, we also had to keepan eye on them. Butwhen businessexpanded, it became difficulttokeep a strict vigilon employeesand track their output. Adoptingan integrated Web-based retailmanagement solution has helped usnot only in managing and monitoringinventory, but also to keep a recordofemployees' productivity on a dailybasis. Now,it ispossible to knowwho is sellinga particular product,and in what quantities. The solutiondefinitely helps us in keeping an eyeon employees, from anywhere," saysGandhi.

Helps prevent pilferage: ITsolutions, once implemented,streamline the work flowandhelp inkeeping a record ofeverybusiness activity.These solutionshelp organisations to keep acomplete record of their goods,thereby reducing the chances ofpilferage. Gandhi agrees: "Wehavewitnessed a reduction in pilferage.The solution keeps a proper recordof all transactions. There is noscope for employees to commit anymalpractice. Thus, we do not need tokeep a strict eye on employees, andcan focus on other important tasks,"quips Gandhi.

User-friendlysolutions: BeingWeb-based, these solutions are easyto use. Chandhoke shares: "In thebeginning, there was some resistancefrom the employees' side, but we tookabout a week to get the IT solutionintegrated with the organisation's44 . August2011 . BenefiT. www.consultbenefit.com

I Hyou havelongwanted to opt CorIT tools, but haveresisted doing sobecause ofbudget-relatedissues, then Web-based solutionsare the wayforward.

work culture. The solution is so easyto operate that our sales team andstore managers have grown fondof working on the application andare mostly found hooked to it. Thisin turn, has helped us save on thesalaries of coordinators who usedto focus only on data compilation,sorting and stock reordermanagement." Goel agrees andsays that even in his organization, itjust took three to four days to trainemployees to use the EazyCRMsolution that they have subscribed to.

Increase ejJiciency:Armed with aWeb-enabled solution that provides"any-time any-where" access to anorganisation's data such as stock levels,companies can run their businesses atthe maximum levels of efficiency froma costing, operational and profitabilitystandpoint. For instance, warehousescan be set up at inexpensive Tier IIand Tier III towns, while distributionnetworks can be established far andwide to enable greater market reachthan before, says Ramshankar.

A manageable operationalexpense: Unlike an on-premise modelthat is a capital expenditure for acompany, Web-based solutions canbe subscribed to without spendinga hefty sum of money. "Like everyother small organisation, when westarted our operations, our focus

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ProductivITy~ IA few best practices

, To make the most of Web-based IT solutions, here are a few best practices that organsiations should adopt before and after!the implementation of these solutions:11. Conduct a thorough research prior to making a pick: Every organisation is different, and so are its requirements. Therefore,it is imperative to undertake a comprehensive market survey before you opt for any business IT solution. There are manyfactors that need to be considered before you subscribe to any Web-based solution, such as the reliability of the vendor,data security, cost advantages, good on-going support, etc. However, factors that may determine the buying decision of onecompany may differ from that of another.Chandhoke agrees and says that it is important that an organisation assesses itsrequirements and expectations from an ITsolution, clearly. "When we were on the look out for a business intell igence solution,we had five factors in our mind that would drive our decision-cost, speed of implementation, customisation, ease of use anddata security," he shares.Gandhi also shares the considerations that helped his company ascertain which solution would be best for his business,"When we were looking out for a retail solution, we had primarily one thing in mind-data access from anywhere so that Icould keep an eye on my business from anywhere, anytime. I undertook a market survey for two to three months, and finallyopted for TruePOS."Value-addition to business, speed of implementation and reliability of the vendor were some other factors that Singh took intoaccount, before he opted for the BIRetaii solution.

2. Get IT customised: Although companies build these solutions in a way that they can be configurable withoutany customisation and may work for most organisations, yet some amount of customisation is always required,based on the niche requirements of a business. This customisation is usually to the tune of 10 to 15 per cent.Most solutions providers, typically, provide a set of customisation features, product extensions and configuration tools to meetcustomers' needs, thus removing constraints like vendor rigidity and inflexibility.!3. Keep user passwords secure: It is necessary to keep user passwords secure as an organisation's data can be misused: if someone obtains access to user passwords. In such a case, a company might suffer huge losses. The ideal practice is

, to change passwords, regularly "If someone leaves the organisation, we immediately change the passwords for that userI account," tells Gandhi.i4. Keep intouch with your vendor: Afterimplementinghe solution,organisationsshoulduse the IT solution to the maximum. possible extent, and cover asmany operational and management aspects as possible. They should also engage with vendors on

a continuous basis to make sure they share their feedback and suggestions with the former, thrash out doubts and bottlenecksin the system and communicate with the vendor on a regular basis to ensure the continuous improvement of the system. Thiswill help organisations to stay ahead of the competition and leverage a solution to extract the maximum business benefit from

, it. This will surely result in higher productivity and a higher ROI, says Vembu.15. Involvement of both IT professionals and management: To make an IT software implementation succeed, it is essential; to ensure its widespread adoption across the organisation. To do this, there should be committed involvement of both the

management and IT professionals throughout the process and its implementation. As a result, more complexities can be; addressed,and it will becomeeasierto implementand usethe solution,effectively.!6. Training:Organisationsshouldensure that their employees are trained in a proper way so that they can get the benefits ofI these solutions to the maximum extent possible. There wil l always be some initial hiccups when a new system is implemented.; Employeesusuallytendto lose their patienceand discard the new software, at this early stage.Thus,employees' queriesshould be patiently addressed by trainers, says Singhal.---offer this kind offlexibility.Apartfrom this, based on the users' andorganisation's requirements, it ispossible to add more modules andfeatures or reduce them, in yoursubscription-based IT system.Measuringthe ROIOn the subject of the return oninvestment, Chandhoke says, "It isdifficult tomonetise the return at thisstage, but for sure, there are manyqualitative and holistic benefits thatwe are experiencing. Overall,I cansee our turnover has increased by

---two to three per cent due to betterinformation management."Gandhi also feels that his companyhas been experiencing many tangibleand intangible benefits. He adds:"Firstly, the percentage of sales hasincreased. If I had not opted for theWeb-based solution, I would havebeen selling 20 to 25 per cent less thanwhat I am selling now. Besides, data isnow more structured, and employeeshave become more efficient. Mostimportantly, we can easily get to knowabout customer preferences, which iscrucial for survival, in this business."

Though Singh finds itdifficult toquantify returns, he firmly believes thatsince the cost is so low,and the benefitsto his business are so obvious, returnswould definitely be multiple times worththe investment

Though there are a lot of benefitsthat these solutions can offer, it isadvisable to go for an IT solutiononly after assessing your needs. It isimportant to critically investigate andchoose the solution that matches yourrequirements. Once the right step hasbeen taken, leverage the solution, trainemployees and make the most ofit! ..

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