Technology may have taken a leisurely pace in the retail industry during the initial days, when all that it could do was automate the manual number-crunching systems to digital ledgers. However, retail giants soon began realizing the elephant in the room—technology—and the multifarious ways, where it had the potential to change the face of the retail arena forever. It was a time, when the digital space was abounding with data that was being accumulated— acquired, both through planned and unpremeditated means. The palpable course of direction in the retail segment was data analytics, which gathered data from a myriad of channels and delivered carefully calculated information that helped retailers gain better recognition and customer retention rates.

Poised at the helm of the retail business, analytics is driving leaders of the management board to make informed decisions, disperse the outlets—both brick and mortar stores and online stores—with personalized consumer demands tagged with differential pricing. Smart and customized loyalty programs unravel the hidden value of retaining customers and earning newer customers. To stay ahead of competition, retail businesses are adopting technologies like augmented reality, anonymous analytical face detection, and sensory retailing, to enhance the overall shopping experience.

In an effort to help the retailers facilitate a shift towards automated retail paradigms, a panel of prominent CEOs, CIOs, VCs, analysts, along with Retail CIO Outlook's editorial board has assessed scores of retail analytics solution providers and picked out a list of prime choices.

We have considered the vendor’s ability in designing and building advanced analytics solutions that cater to the retail needs, at the same time adding to its functional and productive flair. We present to you Retail CIO Outlook’s Top 10 Analytics Solution Providers 2016.