Intelligent CIO Europe Issue 09 | Page 103

/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// FINAL WORD Digital transformation lessons retailers can learn from the Tour de France Retail companies need to be more aware of how to handle their data in order to keep up with the pace of digital transformation. Raj Mistry, Group Director, Retail – Dimension Data, discusses the fundamental solutions to do so, and offers his five top tips. T he Tour de France is the biggest cycling race in the world, attracting 12 million TV viewers for each of its 21 stages and 6.5 million digital fans from across 190 countries. It is a testament to the benefits of digital transformation that a sporting event more than 100 years old can keep innovating and pushing the boundaries of the digital fan experience. This unwavering obsession to continually improve products and services is very relevant and timely for a hard-hit retail sector struggling to grow – especially for the bricks and mortar stores. 1. Data is the key to unlocking new audiences Data collection is an area many retailers overlook, especially when concerning bricks and mortar outlets. Pre-2015, data collection during the Tour de France was also an extremely manual and labour-intensive process – with time checks and cyclist position often communicated by radio during the race. The Tour de France technical solution places GPS trackers on each bicycle to collect the real-time positioning of every single rider, www.intelligentcio.com INTELLIGENTCIO 103