The Centre for Digital Transformation in Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad has set up a retail tech consortium with Flipkart as the principal partner for the inaugural year.
The consortium is expected to bring to the fore unbiased voices of customers on the digitalization of retail in India and help retailers understand consumers better. Flipkart will enrich the consortium with its industry knowledge, experience and consumer insights into the internet ecosystem. Some of the activities that the consortium will undertake include nationwide consumer surveys, development of case studies, conduct of field experiments and research studies, retail tech webinars and conferences.
During the pandemic, the retail sector has undergone massive adaptation. Digitalization of retail has happened at a fast pace and has had an impact on online and traditional retailers.
Speaking about the need for setting up the consortium, Professor Pankaj Setia, Chairperson of the recently established Centre for Digital Transformation at IIMA, said, “Through this collaboration, we aim to initiate cutting edge research on issues that the retail sector is facing. We identify this as an urgent need as retailers need to quickly react to the constantly changing preferences of customers and the advent of new technological innovations. Managing inventory, labor shortages, supply chain logistics, and adhering to sustainable practices are a few other challenges that most online sellers are facing. The Centre for Digital Transformation will create and share insights gathered through research that can enable the development of solutions by partners across the board.”
Sharing his thoughts on how this collaboration would benefit the sector, Jeyandran Venugopal, Chief Product and Technology Officer, Flipkart, said, “The modern retail ecosystem in India has accelerated at an unprecedented speed over the past several years driven by rapid digital adoption. With fast-changing consumer preferences and needs, the only way for brands to thrive in this dynamic market is to capitalize on the power of technology. Through our collaboration with IIMA and insights gathered from the consumer survey, we intend to identify opportunities and create fora for knowledge sharing, research and training that will help transform the retail ecosystem to drive greater value for retailers and customers.”
The Centre for Digital Transformation at IIMA was inaugurated last September and focuses on activities that enhance an understanding of the digital ecosystem and catalyze leadership.
