Hundreds of online shoppers have not received their Christmas food deliveries from Waitrose after the supermarket experienced an ‘IT glitch’ leading to the cancellation of some of its delivery services.
Industry experts have spoken out about the failing, highlighting that this is not acceptable "especially in the competitive Christmas market."
In the week before Christmas, a peak time for the supermarket, an IT failure meant that nearly 400 customers did not receive their shopping ordered online through Waitrose.
Reportedly, 200 deliveries were cancelled on 15th December with a further 200 being cancelled the following morning. Waitrose have since insisted that orders are now being processed "as normal" following the "IT glitch".
Neil Kinson, vice president EMEA, Redwood Software said: "Blaming its recent online delivery cancellations on an "IT glitch" raises questions about just how seamless Waitrose’s IT processes really are. With retailers under pressure to make online shopping easier and more convenient, such failures simply don’t cut it, especially in the competitive Christmas market."
As an IT process and automation expert, Redwood works to move and control process automation to help businesses operate more efficiently. Kinson said that Waitrose needs to address its automated processes in order to prevent further failings from occurring.
Kinson explained: "If Waitrose wants to avoid further delivery mishaps and meet customer expectations, the company will need to use tightly automated processes to keep everything running smoothly at both the front and back end. Collaboration across both sides of the business will be essential in order to reduce technical error and keep the supply chain working efficiently."
