J. Sainsbury’s plc  CTO was wanting to review their technology strategy and 5 year roadmap in readiness for budgetary approval  expenditure. He needed specialist external & interim support to provide techniques, know-how and procedures leveraging from an experienced Enterprise Architect for Retail IS/IT Strategy & Roadmap Refresh

He undertook an assignment for the architecture boutique consultancy Glue Reply. This involved improving Enterprise Architecture at J. Sainsbury’s head office function to focus on technology planning with the internal architecture team with a focus on multi-channel customer journeys, supply chain planning & operations, ERP, distribution centre & logistics operations and supplier management.

He was responsible for conducting a technology planning assignment. This involved establishing a baseline of the ‘as-is’ architecture using IBM System Architect EA modelling tools, adhering to TOGAF principles and procedures.

He then collaborated with the head office business change group to develop strategic drivers and capabilities. These were used to plan and prioritise the IT response into work package mandates within the J. Sainsbury’s portfolio and to refresh the roadmap.

The assignment spanned the functional reference model areas of Plan – Buy – Move & Sell for this multi-channel retailing supply chain organisation.

The key actions that were undertaken to achieve these tasks included:

• As-Is Architecture Baselining: Created viewpoints for baselining the current architecture using IBM System Architect EA modelling tools, based on TOGAF principles.

• Strategic Driver and Capability Development: Collaborated with the business change group to define strategic drivers and capabilities.

• IT Response Planning and Prioritization: Planned and prioritised the IT response into actionable work package mandates for the J. Sainsbury’s portfolio.

• Roadmap Refresh: Updated and refreshed the 5-year IT roadmap.

• Functional Area Expertise: Provided expertise across the Plan – Buy – Move & Sell functional areas, covering Demand & Merchandise Planning, Inventory Management, Logistics & Warehouse Management, and Fulfilment.

His work resulted in:

• A baseline of the Established Architecture: A clear understanding of the ‘as-is’ architecture, providing a foundation for future planning.
• A definition of Strategic Drivers and Capabilities: Strategic drivers and capabilities were clearly articulated, aligning IT initiatives with business objectives.
• A prioritised IT Response to the business stakeholders: IT initiatives were structured into prioritised work packages, ensuring efficient resource allocation.
• An updated 5-Year Roadmap: A refreshed 5-year roadmap was created, providing a strategic vision for IT development.
• Informed Capital Planning: The contractor’s work, including the proposed roadmap refresh, was submitted to the J. Sainsbury’s board level for annual capital

• IT Strategic Planning
• Enterprise and Business Architecture
• digital strategy

• Digital Enablement
• Accelerated Solution Delivery

• Retail and Consumer