Tesco pilots new home IT support service

Retail Week and the Daily Telegraph report that Tesco has bought PC Guys, the tech support company built from the ground last year by Lance Batchelor before he joined Tesco this summer as Marketing Director.

With PC Guys, Tesco is now running a pilot out of a store in Bar Hill, near Cambridge, including in-store, in-home and telephone support, and an enlarged computer, electricals and telecommunications area in the store, with PC Guys available to help.

Tesco said: “We want to help consumers keep up with the latest electronic trends and technologies, as well as provide support and maintenance to those who need a helping hand.

“PC Guys will help our customers at the Bar Hill store not only make better-informed purchasing decisions for electronic equipment, but deliver the very best levels of ongoing support – either at the store, over the phone or in their home.”

Presumably the success of the pilot will determine whether Tesco decides to tackle DSGi’s The Tech Guys, Carphone Warehouse’s Geek Squad and Comet’s Comet on Call services head on and roll out the concept across the UK.

Tesco CIO steps down

Tesco group IT director Colin Cobain will leave at the end of November after six years with the retailer.

A high profile CIO (recently voted CIO of the year at the fifth annual CNET Networks UK Business Technology awards), Cobain is known as the man behind the “Tesco in a box” systems and operating model that enabled Tesco’s ambitious global expansion successes, notably the opening of their first US stores earlier this month.

According to a Tesco spokesman: “Colin is seeking a new challenge outside Tesco and we’re thankful for his significant contribution to the IT infrastructure at Tesco and wish him well for the future.”

More at silicon.com.

Tesco pilots online degree in retailing

This month, with the start of the academic year, a small number of Tesco workers identified as potential store managers are beginning, indeed piloting, Tesco’s new two year Foundation Degree in Retail.

Developed in conjunction with two universities (University of the Arts London and Manchester Metropolitan University), within the Retail Academy’s foundation degree framework, and with the guidance of Foundation Degree Forward (FDF), the program makes heavy use of online support and computer-based training technology, delivered by MyKnowledgeMap (MKM) and their e-learning software product Compendle.

Student assessment is carried out by the universities involved, and there are two on-campus sessions each term, but mainly the programme is run online at the workplace, where students can study in their own time without having to take time off work.

The pilot, planned for approximately 40 students drawn from 40 UK stores and split equally between the two universities, was well oversubscribed with over 170 Tesco employees showing interest. In a recent speech to a CBI summit on skills, Tesco chief executive Terry Leahy said “we are offering 46 of our people the opportunity to study for an online foundation degree which has on the job learning – from management to customer service – at its heart.”

The Council for Industry and Higher Education has more on the Foundation Degree in Retail in its June report Workforce Development – What works and why (pdf).

Spoof Tesco ad promotes local shops

Environmental campaigning organisation Friends of the Earth launched yesterday a YouTube ad attacking supermarket use for contributing to local shop closures. Tesco in particular is targetted, the spoof ad being based on their “Every Little Helps” campaign.

Kinda cute I guess. Certainly more subdued than most FotE material.