First Friday deliver coaching at fashion retailer to support new system implementation

First Friday deliver coaching at fashion retailer to support new system implementation

International online fashion retailer ASOS recently took on bespoke training services for its buying, merchandising, online production and support teams.

Retail training firm First Friday said it had recently completed a 12-month training programme for ASOS that saw around 250 members of staff get to grips with a new core system, Merret.

The retailer is implementing the supply chain software to support the company’s growth that has seen sales increase by 60% in the first half of 2011.

Essential supply chain preparations

The training sessions were delivered on site at ASOS HQ and covered three main areas; phase 1: product set-up, purchase order and supplier set-up, phase 2: production and MDA and phase 3: stock and price management.

The three phases of the programme covered theory, systems demonstrations and hands-on training. This was supported by practical exercises, quizzes and business-focused scenarios to illustrate use of the system in a real environment.

ASOS staff were connected to live systems during practice sessions, allowing them to set up real products and purchase orders within a supported classroom environment. With step-by-step support from First Friday and ASOS business experts these products and purchase orders could be entered onto the live system in a measured and supported way. First Friday also produced workbooks for each course attendee, which included key explanations, step-by-step flowcharts, exercises, data sheets, terminology and glossary of terms.

Speeding business-critical implementation

First Friday also reported that it was able to help inform business processes and provide user assessment testing (UAT) support.

Phil Lawrence, ASOS menswear merchandise director, commented: “Our teams need to be confident and competent in the use of the new system and First Friday were selected not only for their expertise in business and systems change training, but for their retail and merchandising pedigree, which enabled our teams to engage in the process of change and the new system more comfortably.”

He added: “The new system will allow ASOS to maintain its competitive edge as well as support further growth in the UK and expansion overseas.”

The AIM-listed retailer also reported in May a near-doubling of pre-tax profits to over £30 million for its 2011/12 financial year and international retail sales growth of 103%.