Santa is busy, retailers are too !
This is my favourite time of the year. We’re in the home stretch to close out the year, and retailers are ready for Black Friday. In the USA, that is traditionally Friday after Thanksgiving Day, November 28th. Canadian retailers are already getting in on the action. We’re seeing pre-emptive advertising, special deals and discounts, and one-day sales. Hopefully, these retailers have taken Santa’s lead, and are running SAP software so that their shareholders and employees have a good Christmas too.
At the North Pole, the elves are busy filling orders using SAP IS Retail. They’ve allocated the right amount for Santa’s sleigh, based on predictive analytics – they’re using HANA to forecast toys necessary due to historical behaviour and Naughty or Nice lists. Using our price optimization capabilities, they’ve made sure all the toys are free. The Ariba Network was used to source good toys for nice girls and good boys. Social media analytics by Netbase told retailers and Santa what every kid wanted.
I’ve also learned SAP Lumira visualization has become quite popular with one reindeer in particular. Rudolph likes the ability to highlight opportunities with a big glowing red circle, that matches his nose. Think of the sheer amount of Big Data he has to process! Flight paths, wish lists, and carbon footprint all matter, and so mining big data from Christmas past is so important to ensure a great Christmas present and future.
Even Scrooge can be heard cackling with glee, now that he closes his books 5 days sooner with the COPA accelerator, using HANA to wrap up his year end.
Moms and Dads everywhere are using Mobile Shopping powered by the same SAP Mobile Platform 3.0 that the elves use to keep track of orders, and ensure timely manufacturing and delivery. Santa’s iPad Contracts2Go from GICOM app and archiving by OpenText allow him to negotiate with suppliers for the best deals, and file the paperwork in seconds.
Mobile payment with SAP Mobilizer technology pays the bills, using magic messaging built by Sybase elves.
The retailers are ringing their sales at SAP POS by GK Software, and bells are ringing in town squares, calling shoppers to town.
Meanwhile, I hop on the internet using my Android tablet, and shop online with retailers powered by hybris software. Goods arrive quickly, and Planning for Retail ensured what I wanted was in stock when I wanted it. And yes, Transportation Management 9.0 ensures Santa’s Workshop is coordinating deliveries via the right reindeer, to ensure all have good cheer.
Happy Holidays to all, and to all a good byte!