Retailer makes paper cuts

Citation

(2001), "Retailer makes paper cuts", Work Study, Vol. 50 No. 5. https://doi.org/10.1108/ws.2001.07950eab.003

Retailer makes paper cuts

Retailer makes paper cuts

In a bid to cut down on paper-based internal communication, WH Smith has implemented an intranet based on technology from the Interchange Group. This allows communication with the chain's 130 travel retail stores around the country. The group was looking to move staff away from administrative tasks onto "core business", meeting the needs of customers. To achieve this they needed to consolidate, rationalise and enhance the current administrative tasks, and the range of equipment being used. As part of the overall solution, Interchange has introduced Livelink, a desktop communications tool that can be used for document management, workflow, collaboration and searching, thus enabling the sharing of information between staff in the different stores. The first four stores in which the intranet was installed previously had no electronic point of sale (EPOS) equipment or email access; all contact was by "traditional" fax and telephone. Now, these stores can order on-line and share information. In the larger stores there have been even more benefits. For example, at Terminal One (Heathrow) there is a 24-hour operation consisting of 11 shops with three different shifts in each. Livelink has allowed the different shifts, and the different stores, to communicate easily with each other; co-operative working is much simpler and much more effective.