Responding To digital Disruption The Woolworths Way
While disruption presents significant opportunities for Australian businesses, the biggest risk facing leaders and executives is not to take any action at all.
It’s now a fact: ignoring the wave of digital disruption will result in the loss of customers, and ultimately result in business failure of extinction.
Business leaders only have to look at the demise of big brands like Nokia, Video Ezy and Kodak who are on the brink of extinction due to a lack of innovation, to see the threats of disruption are very real.
According to Ryan Fahy, CTO at Woolworths there are a number of implications for large organisations if they don’t formulate a strategy about how to respond to digital disruption.
“The risk is there’s a competitor out there who we don’t know about, who has a good idea that will hurt our business.
“If we don’t respond to it, or we respond to it too slowly, they would have already made huge inroads into the sector and potentially have started taking customers away from us,” he said.
So what steps is the retail giant Woolworths taking to tackle the threats associated with digital disruption, as well as to take advantage of the opportunities it can provide?
Fahy said there are a number of elements of Woolworths’ digital strategy and a number of methods are required to overcome the challenges the business has faced on the road to digital transformation.
The challenge: innovating in a large organisation
Woolworths is a large and complex organisation, whose customers rely on being provided with high-quality products.
And as to be expected in a large organisation, there are a huge number of processes and people involved in delivering high quality service and products to customers Australia-wide.
Fahy said it has been these processes, and the fact that Woolworths is such a big organisation, which has been their biggest limitation in terms of innovating.
“Innovation requires a business to move and respond quickly. This is something that has been a big challenge for us.
“It’s forced change across the board, because moving quickly means that different parts of our organisation need to interact and talk to each other, when traditionally in the past they would not,” he said.
Fahy believes responding to digital disruption is about taking risks and accepting that failure may be involved.
This can be somewhat daunting for a large business like Woolworths, with numerous internal systems and processes.
“Taking risks is a big part of digital disruption, and if you’re going to fail, fail quickly. In our organisation there has been a reluctance to fail in some respects, so we’re trying to get people used to the idea it is ok to fail.
“If you look at the skill sets in large organisations such as ours, huge risk-taking mentalities is generally not part of our company’s DNA.
“It’s also again difficult to justify taking a risk when you are taking those risks with other people’s capital – such as our shareholders,” he says.
Despite this, Fahy said he has been pleasantly surprised with the reaction of Woolworths staff to digital transformation, and the idea of ‘risk taking’ in the wake of digital disruption.
“Even within large organisations like ours, there are enough people who have that risk taking mentality and can do it with a sense of stewardship over the stakeholders funds.
“We’re finding we do have people within our company that have the right spirit and mentality to facilitate innovation,” he said.
Creating a culture of innovation
According to Fahy, the idea of creating a holistic, detailed digital strategy is not always the right step for oragnisations to take when it comes to innovation.
Instead, Fahy believes a digital strategy comes down to putting the right capabilities in place and getting the right people in different parts of the organisation to communicate.
“For me, digital strategy is creating the right culture, the right relationships, the right dialogue and the right capabilities.
“This enables staff to have the right degrees of freedom to respond to external challenges, but also allows them to be agile and nimble enough to respond to the opportunities bought about by disruption,” he said.
One way Woolworths is facilitating a digital culture, is through the creation of a ‘chief customer and data officer’ in September 2014, who is at the heart of the organisation and drives innovation based on changing customer behaviour.
Fahy said data is being used in two ways in order to meet changing customer demands bought about by digital.
“On one hand we’re using data to see how we can better meet the needs of our customers. But we’re also using data and innovation in terms of how can we actually improve the movement of physical goods for our customers.
We are working on new and better ways of delivering those foods at the right place at the right time, to meet our customers’ needs,” he said.
One example of how Woolworths is responding to their changing customer needs, is through the creation of it’s first dedicated online store, which opened at Mascot in Sydney in August 2014.
And with Woolworths’ total online sales, including general merchandise, exceeding $1 billion for the first time in 2014 – growing 40 per cent in the December half – it was a smart move to make.
While it is too early to say if the company will open up more dedicated online stores across the country, it certainly shows how they are finding new ways to engage their customers, adapting and innovating in order to remain relevant in digital market.
Fahy believed another important aspect of any companies approach to digital, large or small, should be learning and partnering with other organisations.
“We’ve got a reasonable number of interactions where we are trying to expose our people to nimble and agile entrepreneurial organisations to see how we can work together.
“This could involve start-ups, or even smaller organisations with a very different perspective on the market. In some cases they might have a capability that could help us out, and in other cases we might have something that could help them out,” he said.
Please login with linkedin to comment
Jamie OliverLatest News
Sydney Comedy Festival: Taking The City & Social Media By Storm
Sydney Comedy Festival 2024 is live and ready to rumble, showing the best of international and homegrown talent at a host of venues around town. As usual, it’s hot on the heels of its big sister, the giant that is the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, picking up some acts as they continue on their own […]
Global Marketers Descend For AANA’s RESET For Growth
The Australian Association of National Advertisers (AANA) has announced the final epic lineup of local and global marketing powerhouses for RESET for Growth 2024. Lead image: Josh Faulks, chief executive officer, AANA Back in 2000, a woman with no business experience opened her first juice bar in Adelaide. The idea was brilliantly simple: make healthy […]
Is Meta’s New AI Chatbot Too Left-Wing?
Meta's chatbot accused of being left-wing after being caught wearing a Che Guevara T-shirt & listening to Billy Bragg.
TV Ratings (23/04/2024): Why Did No One Tell Angela That Farmer Wants A Wife Is Set On A Farm?
As wonderful as this headline is, let's face it, we all know an 'Angela', don't we?
PubMatic Unveils New AI Partnership To Turn Social Posts Into Ads For Any Digital Channel
Here's some nifty tech for turning social posts into ads. Assuming said posts aren't one-star character assassinations.
Intuit Mailchimp Makes A Splash With Its First Australian Brand Campaign
Ever laugh along at a gag you didn't get so as not to appear dumb? Get ready for more feigning with this new work.
GumGum’s Rob Hall: Advertisers Can No Longer “Rely On Binary Descriptions” Of Consumers
If anyone's got their finger on adtech's pulse, it's Rob Hall. He also avoids using the good paper in the office printer
Mastercard Nabs Florencia Aimo From Marriott International
Marriott International's Florencia Aimo jumps from the hotel business to the exploitative credit card one.
Bastion Agency Appoints Cheuk Chiang As New ANZ CEO
Cheuk Chiang takes the reins over at Bastion Agency. But not the rains down in Africa.
Spotlight On Sponsors: Major Sponsorship Wins After A Disappointing Week In Sport
B&T continuing our deep dive into local sport sponsorships & that's despite not a single offer of a free ticket as yet.
Macca’s Marketing Director, Samantha McLeod On Big Mac Chant: “What Was Once Old Is Now Cool Again”
Macca's using the power of nostalgia in latest Big Mac campaign. Well, only for those who've ever eaten one sober.
World Premiere Of Midnight Oil: The Hardest Line To Open Sydney Film Festival 2024
Oil's biopic to open Sydney Film Festival. Here's hoping Molly Meldrum will take his pants down at the premiere.
Entries Are Now Open For The 2024 Brandies, IntelligenceBank’s Annual Brand Marketing Awards
The Brandies are, of course, a prestigious marketing gong and not the mystery tipple favoured by nannas everywhere.
The Fred Hollows Foundation Appoints Ardent For PR
Yes, we all like to have a joke at PR's expense. But sometimes it does important work, like this.
AI, eCommerce & Marketing Specialists Are In Increased Demand By Businesses, New Data From Fiverr Shows
Has your philosophy & anthropology degree left you with nothing but a huge HECS debt? Here's what you should've studied.
Perth’s First 3D Anamorphic Billboard Arrives Courtesy Of oOh!media
Do you love a buzzword? Now you can add anamorphic to the list as it relates to billboards, not a colleague's ears.
MasterChef Australia & Crown Resorts Launch Unique Dining Experience With ALUMNI
A pop-up restaurant staffed by MasterChef contestants! That's fine dining prices for first-year apprentice chef cuisine!
Amanda Laing Announces Resignation From Foxtel Group
Foxtel's chief commercial & content officer heads for the exits. Read nice things the bosses said about her right here.
The Lost Letters From Our Diggers: News Corp Unveils ANZAC Day Special
It's nice when brands respectfully acknowledge ANZAC Day.
Howatson+Company Acquires Akkomplice
Large indie acquires a slightly smaller indie. Much like a shark eating a tuna, just with less thrashing and blood.
Google Delays Third-Party Cookie Deprecation Again
In good news for the sale of picture library biscuit photos, Google continues to tease over the end of cookies.
Education A Low Priority For Aussies More Concerned With Cost Of Living Forethought Study Reveals
Study finds Aussies cutting back on education due to cost of living. Booze & Uber Eats sales remain largely unaffected.
“I’m Still The Same Person That I Was”: Rikki Stern Says “Fucc It” To Cancer Stereotypes
B&T always happy to promote the anti-cancer cause. Even brands that massively overdo it with the hot pink.
The Unapproved Climate Certification Allegedly Causing Mass Greenwashing
Are you left flummoxed in the canned tuna & free range eggs aisle? Just wait till this green certification gets up.
TV Ratings (22/04/2024): Fans Mock “Over The Top” Reaction To New MasterChef Judges
MasterChef returns for its 2024 season. B&T stands by putting peppercorns in Gravox & no one will be any the wiser.
Dentsu Restructure: Muddle, Harvey & Johnston Take Leadership Baton As Bass & Yurisich Exit
A large broom has swept through Dentsu's local ops this morning, taking with it some big names & the air con's cobwebs.
Industry Shares Trends Shaping The Industry This International Creators Day
B&T's asking adland creators to reveal their top trends. And it's not good news for your Jenny Kee cardigan collection.
Mable Extends HOYTS Sensory Screenings Partnership
Mable has extended its HOYTS sensory screening partnership. Vigorously defends its two-star Oppenheimer review.
Orphan Launches ‘They Need Our Help. We Need Yours’ For Children’s Cancer Institute
Anything to do with childhood cancers has B&T's 110% support. That said, we do ignore the red meat & alcohol warnings.
Smile Team Orthodontics & Keep Left Collaborate On Smile-Inducing Campaign
As parents would attest, given the cost of orthodontics you'd expect this campaign to be a lavish production indeed.
Opinion: How Video Calls Neglect Learning Diversity
Need an excuse to duck out of a video call this arvo? Show this to your boss.
DoubleVerify Achieves First-Of-Its-Kind Responsible AI Certification From TrustArc
DoubleVerify receives responsible AI certification. However, not its robotic vacuum that's been seen menacing the cat.
Smile For A Good Cause: The Social Media Campaign Giving Back To The Community
Are you known as the office Austin Powers? More for you teeth than shagability? Get snappy new fangs with this news.
Elon Musk Mocks Albo After ESafety Wins Court Injunction Against X
Albo's 2024 from hell continues - Rabbitohs in crisis, down in the polls and now feuding with world's richest man.
Real Estate Developer In Hot Water Over “Sexually Exploitative” OOH Campaign
Real estate agents again tops in the 'least trusted profession' polls, nudging used car salesmen & ad creatives.
Epsilon’s Shane Hanby: Post-Cookie Era Relies On “Teamwork” Between Brands, Marketers & Tech
This pro predicts more "teamwork" in a post-cookie era. Which spells bad news for the uncooperative or plain stubborn.