Client Overview:
Walmart, one of Canada’s largest retailers, was facing a familiar problem for big retailers: too much data from too many sources and not enough clarity. With many different strategic business units, each pulling in data from their own sources, the company struggled to create a clear, consistent picture of their performance. The Insights and Analytics teams were simply overwhelmed by conflicting or incomplete data, making it difficult to make the confident, data-driven recommendations the organization needed.
The Challenge:
The Insights team at Walmart Canada serves as the hub for all research, with the objective of guiding the company toward high-ROI, high-impact strategic initiatives that are backed by solid data and thorough analysis. However, instead of having a clear path forward, the team was drowning in data. From food and grocery to e-commerce and healthcare, every business unit was collecting insights—each in its own way. There was simply too much information and no clear way to bring it all together. Johan Landmark, Walmart’s previous Head of Research and Analytics, summed it up perfectly: “We had a ton of data, but we were missing ‘one version of the truth’ that everyone could rely on.”
Johan’s team spent an exhausting amount of time sifting through mountains of data, trying to find patterns and deliver insights to executives. But with so many sources and no streamlined approach, they were constantly chasing down loose ends instead of focusing on the bigger picture. As Johan put it, “We found ourselves lost in the data instead of solving the real business challenges.”
The Solution:
That’s when Walmart partnered with Fusion Analytics to bring order to the chaos. Using Fusion’s proprietary FUSE methodology—Filtering, Unifying, Synchronizing, and Equalizing the data—they helped Walmart cut through the noise and get to the insights that mattered most.
The first step was to take stock of the existing data Walmart was already subscribed to, including Nielsen and NPD market share reports across various business units. Fusion took these sources, and together with its own comprehensive and triangulated retail industry data, created a unified set of “FUSED” market share and industry size figures. This process wasn’t just about generating numbers—it involved explaining the differences in methodologies and market coverage between the various data sources, helping Walmart’s team understand why they were previously seeing conflicting information.
Once all stakeholders were aligned on the foundation of performance measurement, Fusion then synchronized tracking across all business functions so that a 1-point change in sales could be directly linked to changes in the wider industry conditions and the specific business activities that drove them—whether it was the expansion of Walmart’s real estate network, fluctuations in brand awareness, shifts in consumer sentiment, increased website visits, or changes in in-store activities. By aligning all these data points, reports, and trackers, Walmart could now see how each piece of the puzzle fit together and trace sales performance to the underlying drivers.
Key Results:
- Clarity and Consistency: Fusion brought Walmart’s data into one cohesive system, creating a single source of truth that everyone could trust. Now, when the teams looked at the impact of a marketing campaign, a new store opening, or external factors like weather, they had a clear and consistent way to measure it. Johan emphasized, “Before, we couldn’t do this on our own. Now, we have a consistent way of understanding our business.”
- Improved Efficiency: By automating the process of filtering out irrelevant data, Fusion helped Walmart save valuable time. “Before Fusion, figuring things out was a massive project. After Fusion, it was all automated—important insights just popped out and were tracked continuously,” said Johan. This freed up the team to focus on strategy rather than data hunting.
- Informed Decision-Making: With Fusion’s objective insights, Walmart could confidently track the success of its initiatives. Gone was the guesswork—now, Johan’s team had the data they needed to back up their decisions. “Fusion gave us an objective way to measure success, which was something we couldn’t do before,” said Johan. This empowered Walmart’s leadership to make faster, smarter decisions.
- Market Intelligence: Fusion not only clarified Walmart’s internal data but also provided a window into broader market trends. “Being able to see how we stacked up against the competition was invaluable,” Johan said. This comprehensive view helped Walmart stay ahead in a highly competitive retail market.
Conclusion:
Partnering with Fusion Analytics allowed Walmart to transform its approach to data, bringing clarity where there had been chaos. The FUSE method helped Walmart’s insights teams focus on what really mattered, turning a data overload into a strategic asset that drove growth and kept them competitive.
Interested in turning your chaos into a clear path forward? Talk to us today to learn more.