Foschinidata

Foschinidata, the division responsible for the group’s in-house information and communication technology (ICT) services, experienced a high level of activity during the past year. Planned future activity will be equally intense, bearing testimony to the group’s continuing reliance on this technology (ICT) and to the benefits it offers to the retail industry.

The division has developed an ICT delivery model which allows the group to undertake large and technically challenging projects on time and within budget. This model was put to full use in the past year in an ongoing drive to improve operational efficiencies and reduce costs.

Key initiatives successfully achieved during the past year included the following:

  • replacement of the group’s sales audit system with the Windows Biztalk system;
  • introduction on a pilot basis of an electronic time and attendance system for the group’s stores;
  • development of an electronic funds transfer (EFT) system which is integrated at store level with the group’s point-of-sale (POS) system;
  • implementation of a system known as “Size Scaling by Intellect” to the retail apparel divisions (so that the correct sizes and quantities of garments can be determined for delivery to stores in accordance with their history of sales); and
  • the roll-out of an electronic style card system to the retail divisions.

Total capital expenditure of the ICT division for the year amounted to R59 million. Operating expenses were R184 million, representing 2,3% of sales. Budgeted operating expenses for the next year are broadly in line with those of the past year and capital expenditure will grow by 20%.

Key initiatives for the 2009 year include:

  • commencement of roll-out of the time and attendance system to all the group’s stores;
  • commencement of the EFT system in all the group’s stores;
  • upgrading of the @home division’s merchandise and planning systems;
  • upgrading of the group’s data storage and data back-up technologies;
  • commencement of a three-year process to replace the existing warehouse management system in the group’s distribution centres with a system known as Manhattan;
  • implementation of an advanced security and Intrusion prevention system on the group’s networks;
  • commencement of a business user data mining and business intelligence (BI) initiative (which provides a central repository of business data for analysis and interrogation at different levels by the use of open-source tools);
  • continuation of a server consolidation and virtualisation programme designed to improve operational efficiencies, reduce infrastructure costs and reduce the carbon footprint of the ICT infrastructure, and hence align it with the group’s “Environment Green” initiative; and
  • developing and enhancing various credit systems to cater for new financial products.

With governance objectives in view, a number of exercises were conducted to test the disaster recovery plans on which the group relies for business continuity.