Changing times as Co-op Digital becomes Co-op Experience

The group of teams previously known as Co-op Digital is now called Co-op Experience.

Co-op has brought the following team members together under the new umbrella: Design, Content and Customer Experience (CX); Product; Delivery; Search Engine Optimisation (SEO); Conversion Rate Optimisation (CRO).

Onwards! https://t.co/gFp3TWRhNA
— Adam Hopwood (@AHopwood) February 4, 2022

“The reorganisation will give us more opportunities to work more closely,” says Adam Warburton, Chief Product Officer”

“For example, it will be easier to embed experimentation and measurement from our CRO experts deeper into our product teams; and our content design community and SEO specialists have many complementary skills we can explore.”

“Ultimately, our goal is to strengthen the team so we can improve customer, colleague and community experiences. We sit within the Digital Technology area of the Co-op and continue to work alongside our engineers in multi-disciplinary teams.”

He adds: “Co-op Digital was set up back in 2016. Since then, we’ve grown exponentially and it’s been essential to reconsider our structure so that we can continue to grow and maximise the value we deliver in our products and services. As with all organisations, what worked to get us here won’t necessarily take us to where we want to be.”

Ultimately, the multiple possible interpretations of digital make the term unhelpful, Warburton observes.

“Our focus is on outcomes (the overarching aim) rather than outputs (for example, a straightforward delivery checklist of features). An outcome can be achieved in many ways, and the solution is not always digital.“

“An output is an instruction, such as: add Apple Pay to the Co-op Membership registration flow. It doesn’t give us much opportunity to explore how much value it may add. Its success can only be judged whether it was delivered. (It was? OK, check).”

“However, we focused on an outcome. We wanted to: increase conversion by 10% in our Membership registration flow for new, in-store customers.”

“The team wasn’t dictated to and instead, it was free to explore different solutions that may have been quicker, cheaper and more impactful than simply adding Apple Pay.”

“In this particular case, we delivered the outcome by iterating paper leaflets in-store. The solution did not involve ‘digital’ at all.”

Warburton concludes: “Our work is not bound by screens and apps. Crafting valuable services and positive experiences for our customers, colleagues and communities is the highest priority for this group of teams.”

“This is why ‘Experience’ now better reflects what we’re striving for.”

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