Tesco 2015 Annual Report Download - page 6

Over the last six months we have
taken action to deliver on each of
these priorities – sharpening our focus
on availability, service and selectively
on price; undertaking a significant
programme of restructuring and
financial discipline; and launching
a programme of renewal to restore
trust in every aspect of the brand.
A key part of our early work has been
to simplify our organisation in all
our markets and to make sure that
customers are the absolute focus
of all parts of the Group.
In many cases this has involved very
difficult decisions. The consequence
on our business and importantly
on our colleagues has been significant.
In the face of these changes they have
been brilliant at all times, putting
the needs of the customer and the
business first, and I would like to thank
them for that. Through these difficult
changes we are confident that we give
ourselves the chance to be great again.
The changes we are making are
significant and are likely to result
in an increased level of volatility
in our performance over the short
term. We are still in an extremely
challenging market and face tough
trading conditions in the UK and
overseas. The benefit of at least
some of the changes we are making
will only be seen over time. Crucially,
however, the approach we are taking
now is based on a clear commitment
to reinvest any savings or
outperformance in the shopping
trip. The better our offer is for
customers, the more customers will
shop with us, and the stronger our
business will be over the long term.
As we continue the work of transforming
Tesco, my overriding message to the
business is this: work as one team
and keep it simple. Too often in the
past we have added in layers of
complexity where simplicity was
needed. The result is that we have
sometimes lost focus on what our
customers think and feel. This needs
to change.
A crucial part of that is about giving
more power to colleagues – empowering
them to do the right thing for customers.
We firmly believe that if we give
colleagues more power to choose
the right actions, we’ll do a better job
for customers and achieve greater
success for our business. And one
of the reasons I believe this, are the
stories I receive each day of colleagues
going out of their way and doing
exceptional things for our customers.
A few months after I arrived at Tesco,
I was asked what had most surprised
me since joining the business. My
answer was how big its heart is. I have
never met a business with so many
colleagues doing so many things to help
customers and communities on a daily
basis. Whether it’s raising millions for
charity, taking hundreds of thousands
of children on food education tours, or
leading the charge against food poverty,
the work colleagues do is simply
awe-inspiring. This kindness and spirit
is also in the DNA of Tesco and I’d like
us to show it just a little more.
As we embark on this journey of
renewal and change, we recognise
the responsibility and opportunity
that comes with the choices we make.
Doing the right thing for customers
in a way that supports communities
and the environment will be crucial
to our future success.
Tesco is a great British success story.
We grew into a successful business
by focusing on the customer and helping
him and her with both the big and
the little things. These are challenging
times, and we must be prepared for
further volatility in the coming months,
but we are emerging stronger and we
believe our destiny is in our own hands.
If we keep focusing on our customers,
and challenging ourselves to make
every single customer experience better
every day, we know we can succeed.
Dave Lewis
Group Chief Executive
“ We firmly believe that if we give colleagues more
power to choose the right actions, we’ll do a better
job for customers”
4 Tesco PLC Annual Report and Financial Statements 2015