PERFORM — Pioneering the Digital Future for Omnichannel Retail Managers

Results in brief

Pioneering the Digital Future for Omnichannel Retail Managers

Due to new technological developments and the ongoing digitalisation the traditional retail sector is currently exposed to major challenges. Digital Retail started with the development of e-commerce, where major global players in Asia (Alibaba, Rakuten) and the US (Amazon, eBay) are dominating the market. In this market, traditional European brick-and-mortar retailers face hard challenges. However, most customers do not prefer pure online retailers, but a hybrid model, since traditional stores provide them with the opportunity to experience products, and to receive personal advice from experts. On the other hand, they switch to online retailers when they value lower prices, time and location independence, a bigger product selection, more detailed product descriptions and product reviews. Thus, customer behaviour changed and they switch between channels to suit their personal requirements. This is what we refer to as Omnichannel Management in Digital Retail. However, Europe lacks such retailers and consequently companies are losing customers. Thus the overall goal of PERFORM was to establish a European training network to prepare the next generation of Digital Retail Managers to tackle Digital Retail challenges through a combination of training and research. This objective was achieved by the following sub-goals: - Establish an international and intersectoral European Training Network to train a new generation of highly skilled professionals of Digital Retail Managers by offering training and research in an international, intersectoral and interdisciplinary environment that combines academic and non-academic practice and experiences. - Sustain the training network by planning for a structured PhD Programme for Digital Retail and exploit the results by dissemination and communication to all relevant stakeholders and exploit IP results. - Develop sustainable business models for the Digital Retail sector. - Examine approaches to increase the customer experience along the customer journey. - Investigate how technologies can be used to provide innovative Digital Retail services and create a unique customer experience. - Develop a knowledge base on Digital Retail operations and analytics.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union

Project objective

The overall goal of PERFORM is to establish a European training network to prepare the next generation of Digital Retail Managers. Established Business Models need to be revised as customer behaviour is changing. Customers no longer prefer online or instore purchasing but switch between channels to suit their own personal requirements. Innovative digital technologies such as Internet of Things, Big Data, advanced analytics as well as augmented reality novel payment systems and visualisation concepts can create a unique and individual customer experience. With PERFORM we create a coherent customer experience for Digital Retail by combining online and traditional offline retail to an integrated Omnichannel system addressing the following 4 research objectives: ● Develop sustainable business models for the Digital Retail sector. ● Examine approaches to increase the customer experience along the customer journey. ● Investigate how technologies can be used to provide innovative Digital Retail services and create a unique customer experience. ● Develop knowledge base on Digital Retail operations and analytics. We will assist the Digital Retail sector to realise valuable strategic options for local EU retailers related to the Single Digital Market. PERFORM builds an interdisciplinary network including various disciplines (such as technology, business and behaviour science) and will educate Early Stage Researchers. PERFORM provides a timely response to the increasing need from the retail sector for highly skilled graduates and researchers, which are highly sought after in industry and academia. We offer exciting career perspectives based upon existing and future job profiles within the digital retail industry. The research programme of PERFORM will develop new methods, concepts and technology implementations for Digital Retail. Both academic and non-academic participants of PERFORM will contribute to strengthening the Innovation Capacity in Europe.

Original text from CORDIS.

Participants

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF IRELAND MAYNOOTH · MaynoothCoordinatorIreland
AWS-INSTITUT FUR DIGITALE PRODUKTEUND PROZESSE GGMBH · SaarbruckenGermany
BlueRock Logistics · DEN BOSCHUnknown Region
DUBLIN CITY UNIVERSITY · DublinIreland
FH OO FORSCHUNGS & ENTWICKLUNGS GMBH · WelsAustria
INTERSPORT Austria Gesellschaft mbH · WelsAustria
LINNEUNIVERSITETET · VaxjoSweden
NTS Retail Solutions · LeondingUnknown Region
Qreach Ltd. · DublinIreland
RAIFFEISENLANDESBANK OBEROSTERREICHAG · LinzAustria
Scheer Management GmbH · SaarbrückenGermany
TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITEIT EINDHOVEN · EindhovenNetherlands
Technology For Mobile · WarszawaUnknown Region
UNIVERSITAT LINZ · LinzAustria
UniMarkt · SalzburgUnknown Region

PERFORM · Pioneering the Digital Future for Omnichannel Retail Managers

Results in brief

Pioneering the Digital Future for Omnichannel Retail Managers

Project objective

Participants

Links