Selfridges is using the public mobile wireless network for
internal communication with its managers. The Oxford Street
retailer has struck a deal with network provider O2 which it said
was cheaper than investing in a traditional cordless telecoms
system.
O2 offered the retailer a competitive call-rate and handset cost
and boosted coverage in Selfridges' central London store to 95% to
win the contract.
As part of the deal, the phone numbers were connected to the
Selfridges voice network and shortened to five-digit extensions.
These are used to speed-dial the phones, with voice traffic
travelling via the external O2 network. The service also includes
trunk-to-trunk transfer, allowing incoming calls to be transferred
to the relevant manager.
Selfridges' senior and duty managers previously used pagers and
departmental telephones, with the designated store duty manager
using a mobile handset.
Nick Vowles, project manager at Selfridges, said, "Sales managers
can now spend more time on the sales floor, managing staff and
interacting with customers. It also makes the lives of our
switchboard team a lot easier, as they previously had to rely on
paging duty managers or locating them within departments. Our
customers can now be connected to a senior manager immediately."
Nicholas McQuire, senior analyst at Yankee Group, said the main
pitfalls of swapping leased lines for mobile phones were that
indoor coverage tends to be poor and costs can be prohibitive.
"There has always been a premium for mobile voice, which can be 30%
of an overall communications budget in some cases," he said.