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Rack Room Shoes automates mobile-enabled task management

Rack Room Shoes
Rack Room Shoes is automating management of store tasks.

A specialty footwear retailer is upgrading communication with store employees using integrated automation software and mobile hardware.

Charlotte, N.C.-based Rack Room Shoes, which operates more than 520 stores across 36 states, had previously distributed communications to stores via email. However, the retailer found that it was challenging to convey any corrections or edits if a corporate directive changed. 

In addition, stores lacked a way to structure or organize communications to forecast daily work. To address these issues, Rack Room Shoes implemented Zebra task management software, then integrated mobile hardware with the solution. 

“Zebra Workcloud Task Management lets you introduce communications in a calendar view or a view similar to email,” said Hannah Simpson, store technology and communications manager, Rack Room Shoes. “It helped us organize information being delivered to stores, so they didn’t have to sort through what they needed to know three weeks from now and what we communicated to them for the current day.”

The solution also enabled automated task management for store operations. This means Rack Room Shoes can automate the processes for standardized store workflows, such as promotional changes, cycle counts, or delivery notifications.

Backend procedures of the Zebra technology automatically load these tasks to specific store locations. To utilize the solution, store associates can attach small mobile computers to their belts or tuck them into their pockets while working on the sales floor. 

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Associates can also leverage wireless mobile printers to print shelf labels and packing slips wherever they are needed, instead of having to go to the back office.

Rack Room Shoes says it has realized benefits from implementing Zebra solutions including:

  • Streamlining communications for clearer, more organized task management.
  • 95% task execution completion rate with a 4x increase in tasks.
  • Facilitating better customer service by keeping associates on the sales floor.
  • Enhancing promotional execution with automated task distribution and verification.
  • Enhancing associate knowledge of promotions and offerings for customers.

Stores can also document compliance with promotional setups, security checks and merchandising standards using the mobile devices’ camera feature. 

Other tasks that Rack Room Shoes has been able to streamline include associate handling of ship-to-home orders and buy online, pick up in store (BOPIS) notifications when customers arrive while staying on the sales floor with customers.

“We use Workcloud Walk, Forms and Task Management to collect feedback from our stores,” said Simpson. “We can take pictures to show stores being in or out of compliance in certain areas, help troubleshoot technical issues or verify product issues for merchandising and buying groups.”

[READ MORE: Study: Retailers fall short in giving employees dedicated mobile devices]

Rack Room Shoes is currently implementing Workcloud Scheduling and Timekeeping to optimize labor management to ensure compliance with local and state labor laws and Zebra’s Device Tracker tool. 

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