Seemantini
Godbole
Lowe's
Godbole has served Lowe’s since 2018, during which time she has overseen immense changes aimed at fulfilling the company’s mission to become a world-class omnichannel retailer. While the term “omnichannel” may seem ubiquitous in conversations today, Godbole tells us that, for Lowe’s, this truly means meeting customers where they are, whether that be through digital experiences – or in-person at any of their over 1,700 stores nationwide.
This year, we are thrilled to present this award to Seemantini Godbole, CIO of Lowe’s.
2023 Winner
2023
Judges Panel
Greg Zeh, Senior Vice President, Chief Information Officer, Weis Markets
Derek Gaskins, Chief Marketing Officer, Yesway
Deb Hannah, Former VP Marketing, Shoe Carnival
Joe Skorupa, Editor at Large, RIS News
Jamie Grill-Goodman, Editor in Chief, RIS News
Maia Jenkins, Editor, RIS News and Consumer Goods Technology
Liz Dominguez, Managing Editor, RIS News and Consumer Goods Technology
Seemantini Godbole
Executive Vice President, Chief Digital and Information Officer (CIO), Lowe’s
This year’s panel of esteemed judges included:
RIS has been bestowing its prestigious CIO of the Year Award for the retail industry’s most influential and innovative technologist for over a decade. Every year we ask our valued readers to nominate a deserving CIO. Our panel of judges then examines the entries and votes for the retail executives they believe have had the greatest impact on their organizations and the retail industry at large.
In a year of ongoing uncertainty, RIS received an impressive suite of nominations, each one emerging from the market’s volatility with badges of honor in the form of new innovations, leveled-up workforce strategies, composable tech stacks, and immense value creation within their respective organizations.
Technology is mission-critical at Lowe’s, enabling the elevation of experiences for both customers and associates. The fundamental objective is to keep moving forward in a state of what Godbole calls “constant transformation” – a future-facing process that has led to the development and deployment of intuitive mobile apps, contactless shopping options, digital twins, spatial commerce tools, and more.
Much of this transformation has, understandably, taken place in the tech space. As Lowe’s continues to modernize its digital infrastructure, Godbole and team are able to have real-time impact. Where the team used to put in around a dozen Lowes.com updates a year, they now make hundreds of improvements every month while also adding new features and functionalities in days rather than over months and years. The team has made more than 15,000 improvements to-date, as a result of moving Lowes.com to the cloud, Godbole notes.
“Technology helps Lowe’s create cohesion and a unified experience,” shares Godbole. “Everything must be integrated and consistent — from the way we connect with our customers, to ‘Better Together’ recommendations, and consumer tools like Measure Your Space.”
The results speak for themselves: since Godbole joined in 2018, Lowe’s has doubled its sales penetration — from 5% to 10% — and roughly tripled its online sales. The retailer has also been strategic in developing its Pro offering, supporting online sales by upgrading the Pro digital experience with new tools and personalization.
On the workforce front, associates throughout Lowe’s stores are equipped with "iPhone simple" mobile apps that provide a single source of truth in an easy-to-use, intuitive format. “One of my favorite parts of the job is getting out to visit stores and speak first-hand with our frontline associates. I am able to get direct feedback on how our technology is helping our associates perform their jobs and help our customers,” Godbole notes.
Over the last few years, Lowe’s has revamped its services for its DIY and Pro customers, with this project underpinned by a strong technology infrastructure.
Whether visiting online or in person, Lowe’s customers are treated to a more seamless, personalized experience — all of which is supported by a robust tech foundation. From contactless lockers and curbside pick-up, to frictionless payment and the Measure Your Space app — that allows customers to scan a room and generate a personalized floor plan and estimates — technology is there every step of the way.
While many of Lowe’s current omnichannel experiences were already in development pre-pandemic, Lowe’s Technology accelerated those plans during the global COVID-19 crisis, to ensure that Lowe’s stores were able to support its customers and communities as an essential retailer. Godbole’s team was instrumental in supporting the entire enterprise and helped bring to fruition experiences like the contactless lockers and curbside pick-up, among other integrations.
Dual Approaches
for Business Growth
Driving Sales Through the Endless Aisle
Part of Godbole’s success has come from thinking outside the four walls of the store. Lowe’s refers to this paradigm shift towards enhanced omni-capabilities as the “endless aisle,” way of operating.
Historically, stores only got credit for sales made on the premises, meaning they were disincentivized from directing customers to make purchases online. “Now, our stores get credit for 100% of the sales made online,” Godbole notes, “and we are expanding our associate training to lean into our website whenever we don’t have what a customer is looking for in-store.”
Omni-capabilities are enhanced alongside each of Lowe’s store transformations, enabling the customer to complete the online transaction upon checkout, along with the rest of their in-store purchases. As these changes continue, store associates will be able to close online sales directly from store systems.
“We’re always exploring emerging technologies — for example, AI, digital twins, and spatial computing — to better understand how they might help us empower our customers to visualize, estimate, and shop for home improvement projects, and our associates to better serve them.”
Home Truths:
Doing Away with Inefficient Systems
Steered by Godbole, Lowe’s technology infrastructure has come a long way just five years into the company’s multi-phased transformation. Store associates had long been limited to using complex, antiquated systems, some of which were over 30 years old. “The complexity of these systems truly created friction for customers and made our associates’ jobs more difficult. We are all about removing friction,” Godbole notes. These systems are now being replaced with a modern, omnichannel architecture that will enable a seamless customer experience while removing complexity for associates.
As Godbole shares, the home improvement industry remains tactile and complex. For this very reason, the retailer’s digital and tech teams have channeled efforts into tools that simplify measurement, visualization, quoting, and shopping from home. The team complements these efforts with explorations into emerging technologies, ranging from AI to LiDAR to spatial computing.
“Our vision is a future where you can get inspired, get an estimate, and complete a project in one end-to-end tool that knows you and knows your actual space,” Godbole shares. Indeed, these efforts have already begun to bear fruit: last year, Lowe’s introduced Measure Your Space, an end-to-end room scanning, measurement, and estimate experience, to customers via its iOS consumer app. This feature leverages the LiDAR scanner built into select iPhone and iPad Pros to create detailed room measurements.
For better or worse, navigating uncertainty is part and parcel of any tech leader's job, and Godbole had to hit the ground running in this respect when, a week after joining the company, Black Friday sales led to Lowes.com crashing. Thereafter, Lowe’s made it a point to migrate their decades-old web platform to the cloud, helping the retailer handle the increased volumes while continually improving the customer experience and preventing further crashes.
As the first home improvement retailer to pilot interactive store digital twins, Lowe’s is continuing its test-and-learn approach to this particular technology. Currently live in two stores, Lowe’s digital twins fuse spatial data with product location, historical information, and data from advanced in-store sensors to inform and fuel the tools’ functionalities. “We are always imagining and testing ways to improve store operations and remove friction for our customers,” Godbole says of the initiative.
The Evolving Role of the CIO
The role of the CIO itself is also in constant transformation, with responsibilities evolving over the last 5-10 years to encompass elements beyond legacy technology-driven skills, Godbole notes. Just last year, for example, Godbole’s role was expanded to include “online” as well as “technology,” meaning that while marketing is driving more traffic through digital, the CIO’s team is responsible for converting this traffic into sales.
Godbole’s Digital and Technology team has risen to the challenges that come with these extended responsibilities, partnering with Marketing and Merchandising to overhaul Lowe’s search experience, and linking up with suppliers to improve product content, reviews, and ratings.
Innovation is at the heart of these evolutions. At Lowe’s, there is a dedicated group called Lowe’s Innovation Labs who “imagines, explores, and accelerates the future of home improvement,” Godbole explains. “Labs uses emerging technology to create solutions that solve practical problems for customers and help bring the future home.”
Godbole’s Tips for Creating a World-Class Tech Team
Have a clear mission. For Lowe’s, that’s all about building the future of home improvement retail.
Go global. Lowe’s India is a crucial part of Lowe’s tech operation, with its Global Capability Center (GCC) in Bangalore supporting the whole enterprise and helping ensure Lowe’s Technology is at its best.
Keep the end in mind. Use advanced technology in practical ways to address real-world needs and offer customers more value.
Invest in empowering associates and partners to understand customers’ needs. Providing store technologies that help associates spend more time interacting with customers.
Make it fun. “Lowe’s Technology is staffed with associates who are bright, determined, and passionate to help advance our business – and who have fun in the process.”
Seek out the very best. “We are always looking for top tech talent and we showcase our innovative technology work at industry trade shows and other events.”
In the spirit of creating a world-class technology team, the retailer last year unveiled Lowe’s Tech Hub in Charlotte’s South End, which houses up to 2,000 Lowe’s technology associates. The vision, according to Godbole, was to create a magnetic and unrestrained destination, that uniquely elevates the Lowe’s culture and fosters collaboration. “When I joined in 2018, Marvin and I discussed the importance of technology in driving the future of retail, and specifically, home improvement retail,” says Godbole.
The Tech Hub helps the retailer maintain a strong presence in the city. This best-in-class technology center is also a point of distinction in the company’s recruitment efforts. “The Hub hosts an environment that promotes teamwork and I’m so energized to see our teams working together to develop solutions to complex problems,” notes Godbole.
“I am very proud as a technology practitioner to see the evolution of our field, especially in how it is represented in the C-Suite. We are no longer just delivering technology stability for the company. Now, we do that – and a whole lot more. Today’s CIO is a versatile business leader, often with a deep technology background, and is sought after for counsel on a variety of topics.”
Seemantini
Godbole
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