WASHINGTON, D.C. — At the 2006 NCR Self-Service Universe summit, CEO Bill Nuti addressed attendees as someone new to the job and charged with a mission to the iconic company into new territory as the leading supplier of self-service technology.
Now, with more than a year behind him and the company's stock soaring, he took advantage of the 2007 summit to hammer the message home.
"Any business, any government, any healthcare provider that does not have self-service as one of its primary delivery channels will not be competitive in the future," Nuti said.
 |
| NCR's new Retail Store WayFinder can display animated maps for the store as well as vend gift cards. |
He also said a new "customer-driven self-service movement" is taking shape, driven by three converging technology developments: self-service automation, the Internet and mobility. Integration of the three will be key to reaching customers.
Consumers have fueled the growth of self-service, as evidenced by 2006 data. Last year, individuals booked 560 million plane tickets, rented 600 million DVDs, printed 8.8 billion digital prints and purchased $300 billion in goods and services, all using self-service technologies. In North America alone, consumers purchased $178 billion in goods through retail self-checkout systems.
Self-service will also account for 58 percent of all customer service interactions by 2010, up from 35 percent in 2005, according to recent research.
"The self-service trend is very real, and becoming more important to those of you here today," Nuti said.
New technology and kiosks were on display at the event's Technology Forum. NCR has patented simultaneous two-sided thermal printing technology and plans to license it to other companies.
With two-sided printing, users can be more effective and efficient, said Peter Dorsman, vice president and general manager of NCR's Systemedia division. The idea behind two-sided printing is to allow businesses to take advantage of extra space, such as for promotions or couponing, with black, red or blue printing available.
Environmental sustainability is another byproduct of this printing system, Dorsman said. Relying on less paper will save trees, electricity and shipping costs. In the eco-friendly United Kingdom, two-sided printing has already hit grocery stores and is produced at three of the largest thermal paper mills.
NCR also introduced its Retail Store Wayfinder. The Wayfinder, a kiosk originally deployed in hospitals, has been repurposed for retail locations. Customers can search for a product by category or barcode, and then the kiosk shows them a map from their current location to that product. Customers can also animate the map, showing them the easiest route to the product, or print it. Cashiers, restrooms and services desks can be found using Wayfinder, which also has the ability to vend gift cards.
Wayfinder wasn't the only gift card kiosk. The company also showed its Xpress Gift Card kiosk—similar to Wayfinder, but without mapping functionality.
NCR also showed updated FastLane self-checkout units. With more than 80 retailers carrying the kiosks in 16 countries, the FastLane now includes a multi-language option, a bi-optic scanner and an audio volume-control button. A mobile handheld device is also included, which allows an attendant to monitor the units from anywhere in the store.
