10 NEWSDIGEST
BEAVERBROOKS REAPS COMMS REWARDS
B
eaverbrooks, the jewellers is enjoying cost-savings, productivity gains, greater staff
effi ciency and improved customer service, following the roll out of a managed communications solution from Vodat International. Patrick Walker, head of IT at
Beaverbrooks, explained: “We needed to streamline in-store processes and improve the effi ciency of the business so we could meet our customers’ needs quicker. We have big plans for the role the intranet can play within our business so we needed to partner with someone who could help us achieve these goals and support us as we look to take our business to the next level.” The investment includes the addition of 3G as back up and wireless access points across Beaverbrooks’
66 stores. Beaverbrooks’ area, display, and training managers get better access to head offi ce systems when in store, enable more fl exible customer service and deliver resilience with
Vodat’s PCI [Payment Card Industry] compliant EFT ‘electronic fi le transfer] processing service that is currently being implemented. The introduction of voice-over
internet protocol (VoIP) systems has also seen the business dramatically reduce the cost of phone calls, while the technology also allows the management team to log in via the intranet to gain important information in real-time. And, while previously music in the store was played through a stereo system so the same background music was played day in and day out. Walker explained, “We can now send regular updated music playlists out to the store over the broadband connection, which provides better ambience within the store environment.”
LEICESTER CITY GIVES CRM A SPORTING CHANCE
Leicester-based software company, Green 4 solutions is turning success in developing marketing systems with Microsoft Dynamics technology to a new breed of performance management.
With a customer roster made up of big-name sporting companies that includes the Football League, the specialist in customer relationship management (CRM) and e-marketing for the leisure industry and three- times Microsoft “Reseller of the year” is now branching out into sport performance analysis for Leicester City Football Club (FC). The current English Championship promotion contender and existing Green 4 solutions CRM customer required a product that would enable it to collate all the data collected from players during training and matches, reports Retail Technology correspondent, Daniel Aylott. After looking at the current
packages available, head of performance analysis at Leicester City
RETAIL TECHNOLOGY MARCH/APRIL 2010
Andy Blake believed that they were not fl exible enough for the areas the club wanted to measure and analyse. Green 4 Player Per4mance allows data concerning training intensity, hydration levels, muscle soreness, match performance and many more to be compared with much greater effi ciency. Blake explained: “Previously analysing all the collected data was a much more time-consuming task involving multiple spreadsheets. Using Player Per4mance data can be viewed and analysed within a few clicks.” By basing Player Per4mance around Microsoft Dynamics CRM, Green 4 has produced a package that centralises all the teams data collected from various third-party performance analysis tools, such as ProZone and Polar. The software also allows the coaching staff to send alerts to players via email or SMS, reminding them to perform certain tasks or just to get a good night’s sleep. Players also have the ability to send their coaches information
regarding their quality of sleep and perceived muscle soreness when they wake up; the coaching team then receives this information before the players arrive for work. Any problems the players may report are fl agged by the system enabling the coach to easily view and react to problem. This provides a more streamlined solution compared to players completing questionnaires when they arrive for training. Player Per4mance also improves
communication between the coaching staff because all the training and performance information is centralised. Physiotherapists can easily monitor the training loads of players and report any issues to the coaching staff.
Using CRM technology as a
platform for developing such sports science software has helped Leicester City FC to save time and money in development costs, while ensuring that the software can be modifi ed as its needs develop in future.
◆ Three
months after the announcement that the Information Commissioner’s Offi ce is to be granted new powers from April 6th, 65% of people are still ignorant to the fact that they could cost their organisation £500,000 if their actions cause a “deliberate or negligent” breach of personal data, according to a study of 500 city workers sponsored by Cyber-Ark Software.
◆ LA Fitness, YO! Sushi, Firebox. com, Goldsmiths and Nationwide Autocentres are some of the retailers signing up to become national partners of the latest UK retail rewards scheme, Barclaycard Freedom. Barclaycard said these and thousands of small and midsized retailers begun offering reward money to Barclaycard customers since the scheme launched in March.
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