"Datawatch|ES has very effectively ended our old manual processes of distributing paper reports, storing microfiche, and rekeying data. We now have an automated, web-based reporting and analysis system. Datawatch|ES has brought Foodarama into the e-business realm in a short period of time."

 

Foodarama is a leading supermarket retailer in New Jersey, operating 22 Shop-Rite stores with annual revenues of $900 million. Foodarama implemented Datawatch|ES to archive and distribute reports to store and corporate managers via the web. Users now easily work with reports, plus the data, on demand with no programming, while slashing expensive paper report printing, delivery, and microfiche expenses.

TWO KEY BUSINESS NEEDS: LOSE THE PAPER (AND MICROFICHE), AND KEEP THE DATA

"Would you like paper with that?" is a familiar-sounding question for grocery shoppers, but that question takes on an entirely different meaning when discussing Foodarama's old paper-intensive reporting system. The large volumes of paper being produced were not acceptable. "Historically, Foodarama relied on a paper-based reporting system and some microfiche," explains Jim Connolly, Director of Information Systems for Foodarama. "We used to print and courier reports three times a week to our 22 stores, plus print additional reports for corporate use. For report archival, we were utilizing an outside service company to transfer some reports to microfiche."

"The paper, printing, courier and microfiche costs were substantial, but we were not gaining much value for our money," adds Tom Flynn, Director of Accounting for Foodarama. "Stores typically had to wait two or three days for their reports, reducing the window of opportunity to effectively act on the data. Also, workers within corporate headquarters were keying data from printed reports into spreadsheets in order to analyze the data, a needless waste of valuable time."

"We initiated an evaluation of solutions for electronic enterprise reporting, as well as solutions addressing our data analysis needs," says Jim. "That evaluation process lead us to select Datawatch|ES as one solution to address both of these key requirements."

THE BUSINESS SOLUTION: DATAWATCH|ES

Datawatch|ES brings powerful web-enabled technologies together to solve two key business needs that tend to walk hand in hand in most organizations: easy access to current and historical reports, plus analyze data without expensive new programming.

First, Datawatch|ES provides enterprise reporting without paper and without the hassles of antiquated technologies such as microfiche or COLD systems. Instead, Datawatch|ES automatically captures report print files, "bursts" and indexes the reports based on content, such as by store number, and then stores the report sections into the Datawatch|ES archive, ready for web-based retrieval with complete security.

Datawatch|ES then enables users to transform retrieved online reports into live online data with just the click of a mouse. Foodarama selected ES for Excel, a Datawatch|ES module allowing for exporting of data to an Excel worksheet or template.

"Datawatch|ES has replaced our old system of printing and shipping paper reports, and replaced our microfiche system with a web-enabled report archive," says Jim. "Of course, ES for Excel has eliminated manual rekeying of data into spreadsheets."

TRANSFORMS KEY RETAILING REPORTS INTO LIVE DATA, WITHOUT PROGRAMMING

Datawatch|ES is now used by Foodarama to routinely store and retrieve corporate accounting and payroll reports, as well as critical retailing reports, such as inventory control reports, store financial statements, and merchandising reports containing substantial Point of Sale information. "All our reports — plus the data — are now regularly accessed by our store and corporate managers using the Datawatch|ES web-enabled system," says Jim. "Of course, managers now get their reports and data immediately, instead of waiting three days or the paper. And Datawatch|ES' security features ensure proper report access for each user."

By selecting Datawatch|ES, Foodarama also sidestepped expensive and complex alternative data analysis solutions. Such solutions typically require substantial new database programming, often to arrive at the very same data yielded from existing reports. "We already had valid, proven reports from our different internal systems for payroll, accounting and merchandising," Jim says. "Our merchandising reports, for example, already contain the data we need to focus on Key Performance Indicators in retailing — sales volume, gross profit, average sales by customer, sales by square foot, inventory turnover, and more. We just need the ability to work with that report data any way we wish. Datawatch|ES gives us this capability, by transforming our reports into live online data automatically. We can then work with and analyze this data right away, with no programming and no live database connections necessary."

E-BUSINESS SAVINGS AND BENEFITS FOR ALL RETAILERS

Foodarama's savings on paper and microfiche costs alone will result in a Return On Investment (ROI) from Datawatch|ES within twelve months, without even taking into consideration the business and workflow benefits resulting from managers being able to easily access reports and data.

"Our Datawatch|ES system was implemented in a matter of weeks, and our store managers and corporate team began working with Datawatch|ES with no significant end user training," says Jim. "It has proven to be a very valuable and user-friendly solution."

"Datawatch|ES has very effectively ended our old manual processes of distributing paper reports, storing microfiche, and rekeying data," adds Tom. "We now have an automated, web-based reporting and analysis system. Datawatch|ES has brought Foodarama into the e-business realm in a short period of time."

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