Every retail CIO faces the same challenge: how to counter the economic downturn and high inflation without asking for significant new investment. The problem is that CEOs need to see evidence of the top-line or bottom-line benefits required to outpace a recession to justify ongoing investment.

But the challenges of high inflation are not going away in the short term, even as budgets shrink. In the UK, shop price annual inflation accelerated to 8.4% and grocery price inflation hit a record 17% in February. And a 2023 Gartner report found that the top enterprise priorities for the retail industry are growth (35%), customer / user experience (27%) and technology modernisation (20%).

So, how can retailers drive growth without making large investments?

According to Gartner, the answer is for retail CIOs to distinguish between digital optimisation and digital transformation. The current economic downturn is the ideal time for CIOs to identify the potential for efficiency gains and short-term returns within their existing operating models. Then, digital initiatives can be leveraged to manage economic uncertainty and deliver technology enabled business outcomes.