60 seconds with ... Chris Fallon

Manager, MIS Supply Chain Group on how IT and operations work together

By Staff -- Modern Materials Handling, 7/1/2006

My time is spent supporting our supply chain activities extending from where the clothing is made to the DC and on to the retail stores.

In fact, I have four customers internally—the senior vice president of distribution and logistics as well as the vice presidents of logistics, production and corporate compliance.

We are all aligned very well, and I thought most companies work this way. But when I talk to IT people from other companies, it's obvious this approach is less common than I realized. We're fortunate to work together as business partners who take a disciplined approach that supports the business case.

For instance, right now I'm looking at RFID and where it might fit for Chico's $1.5 billion business. I'm looking at samples of RFID tags now and tracking technology developments. In the future, we'll consider a pilot.

To get there, I'll work with my business partners. We'll start with a concept, then go to a design phase, take a look at the software cycle and then move on to build and test. During that process, I'll work on the IT side with our database and server teams as well as others to work through the details of what it will take to be successful. Collaboratively, we'll work out the details before the project ever gets to our CIO or other top management. This approach has been very successful for us so far.