This blog series from the Citrix Customer Success Management team highlights the business continuity stories of organizations in major industry sectors. While sharing a common goal — continuing operations during the coronavirus outbreak — each vertical faces specific challenges. In our final installment, you’ll see how Citrix solutions enabled two apparel retailers to continue filling customer orders after shifting their employees to remote work. Check out our previous posts on healthcare, education, and government.
Whether their business model is based on brick-and-mortar locations, e-commerce, or a combination, most retailers have confronted common challenges during the COVID-19 outbreak. To continue generating sales, providing customer support, and maintaining business operations, they had to pivot quickly when stores, offices, and customer call centers were forced to close. The two apparel retailers described below urgently needed a remote work solution that could help them retain customers and support their brand presence.
Citrix Cloud solutions are allowing retailers to perform business-critical functions, such as handling orders, refunds, and exchanges during the pandemic while keeping staff employed. As consumers rely more heavily on online ordering, retailers are depending on cloud technologies to take advantage of emerging e-commerce opportunities. The flexibility and scale of Citrix Cloud services can help sellers of essential and non-essential goods alike to survive and thrive.
Jumping into Cloud with Both Feet
One of the retailers we’re spotlighting is a global player in footwear and sports apparel, sold primarily in malls. Prior to COVID-19, the company was using the Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops cloud service to deliver apps to employees at its New York City headquarters, who were primarily involved with customer service. Suddenly, as malls and other retail locations shut down, the organization needed to support these and other employees from home on their personal devices.
The disruption also changed the company’s marketing approach. Not only were online sales now critical to compensate for the loss of in-store revenue, the product mix changed, as well. Consumers confined at home were no longer purchasing athletic shoes; instead, they wanted comfortable clothes. The company had to expand Citrix application and desktop delivery to its marketing team, customer call center staff, and other workers to meet these new requirements.
In less than a week, the Citrix Customer Success team helped the footwear company increase its cloud users from fewer than 300 to more than 500 with no major issues. The retailer was grateful to have a robust, scalable cloud solution that could meet its expanded needs. Users enjoyed a smooth transition with very few complaints and no spike in help desk volume.
Standing up Citrix Cloud before the Weekend Rush
The other retailer is a UK-based company that focuses on fashion-forward apparel and cosmetics that are sold only online. However, its call center employees — crucial to e-commerce operations — were working in a physical space.
Before COVID-19 hit, the company had purchased Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops licenses for its development team in India, with the goal of limiting developer access to specific resources on the corporate network. This Citrix Cloud implementation replaced a VMware Horizon environment with high latency and a poor user experience. Based on the successful Citrix project, the company was considering moving its call center staff from traditional Windows 10 desktops to the cloud.
The pandemic accelerated this plan — and then some. The company needed Citrix Customer Success to stand up the Citrix Cloud licenses immediately — before the weekend — so its call center employees could work from home during their busiest period. Weekends are typically the time when customers call in regarding issues with their orders, replacements, refunds, and more. Without remote access by these workers to business-critical applications, particularly the ERP solution, the company faced potential loss of revenue and customers and diminished brand reputation.
Working nonstop, the Citrix team stood up 500 additional Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops licenses over a Thursday and Friday. The Citrix Customer Success Manager was available the entire weekend to expedite requests and answer questions. This extremely fast rollout stood in contrast to the previous VMware Horizon deployment, which required a full month.
BCP Begins with Citrix
Business interruptions can prevent retailers from conducting their normal sales and customer support operations, whether in physical locations like stores or virtually from call centers and offices. Especially in retail, an industry with strong global competition and thin profit margins, companies must be able to quickly adapt to changes. Citrix Cloud services enable fast adoption of remote working with high performance and a satisfying user experience.
Contact your Customer Success Manager (CSM) or email CSM@citrix.com to learn more about use cases for your Citrix solution or assistance building your BCP strategy to ensure your employees can remain productive from anywhere, even if you’re beginning to transition back to the workplace.
