Asda veteran Ian Barraclough ends his time at the green machine and announces entry into retirement

Asda Senior Governance Manager Ian Barraclough has left the grocery retailer and entered into retirement.

In a 25+ year career at Asda, he also served as Senior Commercial and Development Manager - Technology.

In a LinkedIn post, Barraclough said: "So after nearly 30 years my time at the green machine is coming to an end and on 9th May I will officially retire - OMG scary I know!! I will post again when I leave but have had the privilege to work with some of the most amazing and talented people, many of whom I now called friends."

"Such a wonderful company and despite losing its way in recent years, watch out we are back with more passion than ever and I truly believe with ‘the pocket tap’, rollback, etc our colleagues will make this company great again."

Walmart

Asda has been granted an extension to the timescale for an £80 million IT upgrade by its former owner Walmart, after it missed a crucial deadline target. The project is required to fully separate Asda’s IT system from that of Walmart.

Project Future was set to be complete by February. Earlier this year, industry sources told The Telegraph that Asda could be fined millions if it missed the deadline. It was claimed that the American retail giant and Asda have now ditched the February deadline.

2025 RTIH INNOVATION AWARDS

Grocery retail will be a key focus area at the 2025 RTIH Innovation Awards.

The awards. which will open for entries in March, celebrate global tech innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Our 2024 hall of fame entrants were revealed during an event which took place at RIBA’s 66 Portland Place HQ in Central London on 21st November, and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by comedian Lucy Porter.

In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “The event is now into its sixth year and what a journey it has been. The awards started life as an online only affair during the Covid outbreak, before launching as a small scale in real life event and growing year on year to the point where we’re now selling out this fine, historic venue.”

He added: “Congratulations to all of our finalists. Many submissions did not make it through to the final stage, and getting to this point is no mean feat. Checkout-free stores, automated supply chains, immersive experiences, on-demand delivery, next generation loyalty offerings, inclusive retail, green technology. We’ve got all the cool stuff covered this evening.”

“But just importantly we’ve got lots of great examples of companies taking innovative tech and making it usable in everyday operations - resulting in more efficiency and profitability in all areas.”

Congratulations to our 2024 winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Lucy Porter, and all those who attended November's gathering. 

For further information on the 2025 RTIH Innovation Awards, please fill in the below form and we will get back to you asap.