Lowe’s CIO Seemantini Godbole talks tech

In an interview with Retail Information Systems, Lowe’s CIO Seemantini Godbole shared what she thought was the “secret sauce” of success in retail technology during a pandemic. The recipe includes the attitudes of Lowe’s associates who actually use the tools, she said.

“I give them a lot of credit because we have been deploying a lot of technology at a pace that is amazing, she said. “However, as much as it is a push, it’s also a pull,” with associates eager to keep pace and provide valuable feedback along the way.

The wide ranging interview touched on a variety of topics, including:

• Mobile technology:
“We really want [associates] on the floor – not hunched up over a terminal – talking to customers, explaining, selling, helping. And that’s really the focus of the technology in our stores.”

• Checkout terminal simplicity:
“We never print instructions. We never bring the user manual. We have no training on how to use this, because the whole point is for it to be simple and intuitive to use.” 

• The move to rapidly replatform a decades-old Lowes.com site:
“We did it, and it worked beautifully. We had no critical incidents to speak of — and I think that speak volumes.”

The complete article is available here.  (RIS is a sister publication of HBSDealer.)