Zebra Study With Oxford Economics: Automation Of Workflows Drives 20% Increase In Productivity

Zebra Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ: ZBRA), a global leader in digitising and automating workflows to deliver intelligent operations, today announced new research in collaboration with Oxford Economics. The study showcases how improving frontline workflows with modern technologies like AI, automation and data improves profitability and enhances the customer experience.

The research also highlights the transformative impact that improved workflows can have within the retail, manufacturing, and transportation & logistics (T&L) industries. For example, retailers reported a 21% improvement in customer satisfaction, manufacturers cited a 19% increase in employee productivity, and T&L leaders reported a 21% increase in productivity with better workflows. In addition, the study indicates AI investments help organisations achieve real-time visibility, generate actionable insights and improve efficiency.

Frontline Workflow Optimisation Drives Financial Growth

If the top 20 organisations from the Forbes Global 2000 list in each of these industries – retail, manufacturing, and T&L – achieved meaningful improvements in their frontline workflows, Oxford Economics estimates that each company could potentially earn an average of US$3 billion in higher revenue, and an average of US$120 million in added profit.

Organisations which embrace intelligent operations – integrating advanced technologies like AI, automation and data with human expertise to optimise business processes – report significant gains. The study titled, “Impact of Intelligent Operations” indicates:

• Retailers achieved up to 1.8-percentage-point increases in revenue growth and profitability through improvements in their prioritised workflow of inventory management.
• Manufacturers optimising their top workflow of quality control and assurance saw revenue growth uplift by 2.4 percentage points and profitability improvements of 1.4 percentage points.

• T&L firms optimising key delivery and inventory workflows experienced a revenue growth increase of up to 3.4 percentage points with a similar increase in profitability.

“Retail, manufacturing, and logistics are being redefined at the workflow level – where speed, visibility, and precision drive growth and elevate frontline productivity and improve customer experiences,” said Joe White, Chief Product & Solutions Officer, Zebra Technologies. “Intelligent operations simplify complexity by combining the best of advanced technologies with the people on the frontline, enabling organisations to adapt to rapid change and thrive in competitive markets.”

Tech Investments, including AI, Deliver Tangible Benefits

According to the study:

• Retailers are piloting AI to address critical areas like loss prevention, risk detection, and inventory optimisation.
• Over two-thirds of T&L organisations and nearly half of manufacturers are deploying AI for inventory management, demand forecasting, and predictive analytics.
• Advanced tools, such as RFID and machine vision, are central to enhancing operational visibility and efficiency across industries.

From the warehouse floor, production line, and retail aisle to the patient bedside, Zebra provides solutions that help organisations navigate persistent challenges such as labour shortages and shifting consumer expectations. Zebra’s new brand platform, “Better Every Day,” reinforces the company’s commitment to deliver intelligent, connected solutions and services that continuously enhance frontline performance, agility, and responsiveness across critical workflows.

“Zebra Technologies empowers organisations of all sizes globally to continuously drive better processes and adapt to changing conditions,” said Bill Burns, Chief Executive Officer, Zebra Technologies. “”Our powerful portfolio of connected frontline, asset visibility and intelligent automation solutions is purpose-built to support modern workflows and improve the way work gets done every day.”

Through deep industry expertise and a global ecosystem of partners, Zebra harnesses the power of these advanced technologies in a portfolio of products and solutions that enable organisations to:

• Capture and act on real-time data to inform faster, smarter decisions.
• Streamline repetitive tasks, reduce manual errors and improve consistency.
• Redesign workflows for simplicity, speed and increased productivity.
• Leverage AI for the frontline to continuously drive innovation at the point of work.

Building on this foundation, Zebra’s investment in strategic acquisitions and research and development means it now offers an expansive AI portfolio across hardware and software solutions, to meet the needs of industries ranging including retail, logistics, and manufacturing:

• Zebra Companion is a comprehensive suite of AI agents specifically designed to empower retail frontline workers relating to standard operating procedures, sales, device management, and merchandising using augmented reality and computer vision to elevate the customer experience and improve frontline worker productivity as they prioritise and execute routine and issue-prompted tasks.
• Zebra Aurora Deep Learning is a set of industrial-quality deep learning-based tools to address more complex visual inspection use cases in manufacturing and logistics.
• Zebra’s expanding Workcloud Software solutions suite including Workcloud Lifecycle Pricing which uses the power of AI to optimise pricing decisions for fashion and softline retailers.
• VisibilityIQ Foresight applies machine learning techniques to process data points from millions of frontline devices to generate predictive intelligence and actionable insights to run business operations more efficiently.
• Zebra Mobile Dimensioning enables dimensioning of most cuboidal and non-cuboidal parcels, leveraging the camera and time of flight sensor in select Zebra mobile computers together with AI and Zebra’s proprietary algorithms to virtually reconstruct and measure irregularly shaped items.

 KEY TAKEAWAYS

• According to research from Zebra Technologies and Oxford Economics, retailers, manufacturers, and T&L firms reported significant revenue and profitability increases by optimising frontline workflows.
• Industries are increasingly leveraging AI for predictive analytics, inventory management, and risk detection, while advanced tools like RFID and machine vision enhance operational efficiency.
• Zebra’s new brand narrative, “Better Every Day” affirms the company’s commitment to empower organisations with automation and AI to create new ways of working that make everyday life better.
• To learn more, visit this page on sebra.com.

METHODOLOGY

Zebra Technologies commissioned global research with Oxford Economics conducted through a combination of surveys and econometric analysis. The participants included 1,000 senior leaders across retail (400), manufacturing (400), and T&L sectors (200) from the U.S., Mexico, United Kingdom, Germany, India, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. Their focus areas included inventory management, quality control, delivery operations, material handling, and loss prevention workflows. A regression analysis was applied to correlate workflow improvements with financial performance metrics.

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