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By Erin Harris, Associate Editor

I recently returned from Oracle Retail CrossTalk 2010 where 124 retail executives from 63 companies converged in Chicago to weigh in on how retail has been redefined. Keynote sessions and panel discussions addressed how retailers can help to redesign the customer experience, reinvigorate strategies for operational excellence, and reimagine growth in their business. One of the panel discussions I attended tackled a challenging question that our readers face all the time — how will your store systems play a vital role in ensuring your that your company thrives? The answer: Customer centricity.

Executives from Pep Boys, Urban Outfitters, and industry analyst Greg Buzek started the discussion by defining customer centricity. Customer centricity refers to how the whole organization behaves towards customers — not just the touch points or the decision points — but how the whole business is organized and optimized around the needs of the customer. The customer centric strategy must be well communicated throughout the whole company, and senior managers should be setting examples by practicing what they preach. Everyone in the company must continuously learn about the customers and the market. It is also the responsibility of everyone in the company to respond appropriately to what's been learned. However, customer centricity should not be about doing everything the customer wants regardless of the impact on your business.

Retailers will survive and thrive by offering customers value and relevance while simultaneously capitalizing on creative strategies to enhance operating efficiencies. Indeed, it's about understanding what problems customers face in their lives and then providing mutually advantageous solutions, because your competition is global. "Customer centricity is all about wallet share and getting your customer to visit you one more time," states Buzek, president of IHL Consulting Group. Joe Agostino, store technology and implementation supervisor at Urban Outfitters corroborated Buzek's statement by adding, "To accomplish this, you must get personalization right."

Urban Outfitters is personalizing the customer experience by assigning personal shoppers to customers who need or want assistance during their in-store experience. Agostino demonstrated the prototype of Urban Outfitters' in-store mobile application designed to improve personalized customer service, increase floor efficiency, and reduce transaction time and costs. Starmount developed the in-store mobile POS application, which will be deployed on the iPod touch. The application will include a POS system, integration with in-store databases, and will serve to drive in-store efficiency.

The panelists agreed that retailers who know their customers well will make themselves more relevant to each customer. So, ask yourself: What are you doing to focus on customer centricity?