In the highly-competitive retail industry, companies try to leverage just about every advantage and innovation they can think of to get ahead. Those that don't risk shrinking sales and worse. History is littered with the stories of retailers that couldn't adapt to disruption. While the pace of transformation has always been brisk, the pandemic sped it up dramatically as retailers leaned more into digital omnichannel solutions along with the need to offer touchless transactions and curbside service. Customers liked what they saw, and their expectations were permanently changed. Employee attitudes have altered too, and filling positions has never been more challenging.
Speedy evolution is here to stay. Meeting customer and employee expectations requires seamless omnichannel experiences with easy-to-use mobile technology that's nimble and adaptable. As technology develops, it continuously creates new use cases and potential competitive advantages. To stay ahead, retailers must be mobile-first. That's more than adopting mobile solutions piecemeal. Mobile-first is a holistic principle that puts mobility at the heart of strategy, operations, and the user experience. It should be at the forefront of technology roadmaps and investments. Recent Stratix research shows that retailers are not as mobile-first as they think. A lack of centralized decision-making means they're missing opportunities like multi-use devices that lower costs, deliver higher productivity, and create better user experiences.
2022 Retail Enterprise Mobility Outlook Research
