The well-known Office Depot brand is undergoing a transformation into an omni-channel product and services provider by utilizing technology to its best advantage.
By Betty Armstrong
Office Depot is one of the most recognized and successful brands in the United States. Success in today's marketplace demands companies leverage technology to provide an efficient end-to-end user experience, no matter what channel the customer is accessing.
Office Depot's leadership has embarked on a remarkable transformation from a company viewed in the past as primarily a supplier of pens and paper to consumers into a full-service company offering small-to-medium-businesses (SMBs) technology-based products and services, as well as legacy products. The transformation process has included acquisition of CompuCom and developing a fluid omni-channel customer experience.
The journey is a return to the original mission of providing support for businesses and Carrie Jacobson, VP of Tech Services and Software, is proud to be a member of the team driving the pivot.
Strength in its Mission
Office Depot acquired CompuCom in 2017, one step in a strategy to makeover the company as primarily a provider of business services and technology. It was a major pivot back to the original mission of the company that focused on serving the business market.
The targeted market of SMBs is one of the underserved markets in terms of technology. Office Depot has identified a market need and is laser-focused on revamping its business model to provide critical solutions. Unlike the mega corporations, SMBs have difficulty accessing end-to-end technology services because of the cost. This is a gap that Office Depot is already filling across the country by taking a number of steps that include adding tech services kiosks to its brick-and-mortar retail stores, in-store pack and ship capabilities, access to certified technicians who assist with home and business installations, and a seamless omni-channel user experience for legacy and new products and services. All of these changes are enabled by the expansion of the company's branded Workonomy platform, which integrates comprehensive business services and access to technical support.
Jacobson is guiding the company down the technology-based transformation road.
"We have three strategy pillars. They are: transform the business, disrupt the future, and strengthen our core," she explained. “The acquisition of CompuCom enables us to move ahead on all three pillars, but especially the transformation and disruption pillars by bringing us innovative ideas and services at enterprise grade level, along with a new set of customers and the ability to strengthen our technology services offered in the retail stores managed by Office Depot and CompuCom."
Jacobson works with the sales channels to develop the road map into the future and to keep the omni-channel strategy on target. The omni-channel strategy means the customer experience is fluid regardless of what channel a business decides to purchase through. Support is offered in the home, in office, at retail locations and online.
Office Depot is quickly becoming an industry change agent, adding excitement to its three major brands of Office Depot, Office Max and Grand & Toy (in Canada). To initiate change, top leadership brought in new managers to run the e-commerce business and to oversee the shift into offering SMB support. At the same time, Office Depot has maintained its dedication to selling products but folding the legacy sales process into the omni-channel strategy.
Office as a Service
"We are not just your office supplier any longer. We are the office supplier of the future," Jacobson says. "We now sell pen and paper, hardware, and the technology services customers need. The addition of CompuCom is disrupting the future by enabling us to offer products and services that strengthen our core, the third pillar."
Businesses must address the best way to compete with Amazon. The difference for Office Depot, compared to many other Amazon competitors, is that Office Depot already has 1,400 retail locations in place with trained employees. Amazon is trying to reverse engineer into their own retail locations. Office Depot has 6 million SMBs within 5 miles of its retail locations, and they are underserved. They need assistance with things like startup, networking, choosing the best software and security.
"The customer experience is enhanced because each customer does not have to go to multiple places to get needed technology products and services. We are creating 'office as a service,'” Jacobson explained.
Office Depot has been a leader in providing supplier diversity, and diverse suppliers are considered key participants in the transformation process. The company produced its 10th annual "Diversity Supplier Catalog" in 2018. More than 1,800 items are listed, including technology, and 600 of the products have eco-attributes or eco-labels.
"We have one of the fastest supply chains in the marketplace, and our relationship with suppliers is mutually beneficial. They offer innovation and premium services, and we help them build capacity. Eventually, Office Depot will help suppliers with addressing their technology needs, especially in the security arena," Jacobson said.
Diverse suppliers are encouraged to continually find ways to increase efficiency. To assist in this process, CompuCom offers assistance with design thinking. Thinking outside the box is of enormous importance to any change process.
Cloudy with a Chance of Success
What does the future hold? The cloud is where everything is going in the technology world, and CompuCom will play an important role in enabling Office Depot to offer cloud services to SMBs that cannot afford customized cloud or information technology.
Workonomy is a branded name that includes a variety of tactical maneuvers in support of the change strategy.
One step was the addition of 141 tech services kiosks that offer direct, on-demand access to Office Depot's technology experts. Many more installations are planned. A pilot Workonomy hub was recently opened within a California retail site. The hub is coworking space that small business owners, entrepreneurs and remote workers can access while also utilizing Office Depot's products and services.
Another tactical move is the addition of pack and ship capabilities in which customers can print a label and drop the package at any Office Depot or Office Max location, or at a carrier's location. Yet another tactical move is the addition of self-service print and copy kiosks in more than 1,000 stores.
Office Depot is the office of the future, but the future is here now.
"We have just started our journey," Jacobson says. "We firmly believe that small and medium business enterprises are the future of the country's continued economy success. We will be there giving customers what they want and need to start and grow their businesses."
It is not "good-by pen and paper." It is "welcome hardware and software and technology support services."