Retail

Overview — Performance Management in Retail

Leading retail organizations trust Cognos software to manage operational costs, improve store performance, and drive profitable growth. For them we offer:

The right technology and solutions

Cognos, an IBM company, provides an integrated platform for retail performance management. It aggregates and leverages critical data, and delivers the scorecarding, reporting and analysis, and planning tools to optimize performance. With Cognos, retail organizations can improve their ability to make timely, informed decisions in all areas—store operations, marketing, merchandising, IT, and finance.

Cognos performance management software enables retailers and chains to:

• Align their corporate and store operations around critical revenue and profitability targets; and quickly adjust plans and resource allocations to achieve profitable growth.
• Identify, report on, and analyze trends to respond to consumer buying needs and behavior.
• Gain visibility into key metrics across the chain: sales, labor, inventory, and promotions.
• Monitor turnover and employee productivity.
• Increase cost savings by comparing and benchmarking performance across stores, channels, regions, and divisions.
• Optimize merchandise levels, minimize out-of-stocks, and manage inventory costs.

The fastest methods

To speed software deployment and maximize ROI, Cognos offers a full suite of IBM Cognos Performance Blueprints. The Blueprints address planning and performance management process areas that directly impact an organization’s ability to create business value. They consist of pre-built data, process, and policy models based on proven best practices in retail planning, budgeting, and forecasting. They provide the fastest means to effectively align strategy and execution:

• Store Operations (P&L)
• Store Development
• Strategic Promotions Planning
• Financial Merchandise Planning
• Financial Workbench Planning

The requisite experience

Many of the top players in this industry already choose Cognos, including:

• Over 325 retail stores and chains globally
• 30 percent of the world’s top 250 retailers
• 36 percent of the top 100 retailers in North America

Additional Resources:

Retail Performance Management: Increase Visibility and Drive Profitable Growth

White Paper

Learn about the benefits of using Cognos performance management to gain deep business insight, improve decision-making, and succeed in the highly competitive retail marketplace.

Retail Perspectives: Maximize the Return on Customer

Article

Three perspectives on the retail industry. Learn how customer data drives more successful campaigns, why retailers need tighter integration with their supply chains, and how the IBM Cognos Financial Merchandise Planning Performance Blueprint can improve inventory planning.

Selecting the Right Retail Planning Solution

White Paper

This software selection guide provides some key factors to consider when evaluating enterprise planning solutions, and it makes the business case for Cognos as the best-in-class performance management system provider.

IBM Cognos Retail Store Development Planning Performance Blueprint

Online Demo

Learn how Cognos retail performance management solutions can help chains align corporate objectives with operating plans to operate more profitably and efficiently.

Retail Performance Management Podcast with JCB Partners

Podcast

An interview with Brad Smith of JCB partners. Includes a survey of current trends in the retail industry and how JCB and Cognos partner to provide a retail performance management solution to improve performance in merchandising, pricing, and other key areas and walks through a typical retail performance management engagement.

IBM Cognos Financial Merchandise Planning Blueprint: Align Merchandise Plans with Corporate Strategies, Customer Demands

Issue Paper

Learn how retail chains can meet sales objectives and profitability goals through a merchandise planning process that is synchronized with both finance and operations.

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