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Tag: Deloitte

  • Mobile POS Deployments Accelerate Across Asian Retailers as Mobile Traffic Hits 59%

    Mobile POS Deployments Accelerate Across Asian Retailers as Mobile Traffic Hits 59%

    Singapore-based retail software vendor ETP Group rolled out its unified mobile point-of-sale platform across Asia-Pacific as mobile channels captured 59 percent of regional retail web traffic. That traffic share climbed from 46 percent in early 2024, forcing physical store operators to equip floor staff with connected billing and stock-checking tools.

    The system connects handheld devices directly to the enterprise core through ETP Unify, giving sales associates real-time visibility across retail locations and distribution warehouses. Rather than routing shoppers to fixed cash counters, staff can process billing, register loyalty accounts, and trigger ship-from-store or click-and-collect fulfillment directly beside the merchandise.

    Connecting Store Floors to Live Inventories

    Operating requirements vary sharply across individual markets. High-density retail centers in Singapore use mobile clienteling to retrieve shopper purchase histories and targeted promotions, while chains in Indonesia and the Philippines deploy handhelds to run endless-aisle transactions when shelf stock runs out. In India, where research from Meta and the Retailers Association of India found social media influences 77 percent of retail purchase decisions, mobile terminals allow associates to cross-reference products discovered on WhatsApp and third-party marketplaces.

    RetailNews Asia notes that fashion and specialty chains across Southeast Asia spent years treating mobile checkout hardware merely as auxiliary registers to ease holiday queues. Integrating those devices into enterprise inventory records marks a permanent move away from siloed store databases, bridging the operational gap between e-commerce catalogs and physical shops.

    Managing AI-Assisted Shoppers

    Store associates must also respond to consumers who arrive with machine-generated comparison data. Deloitte research across the region indicates that nearly three-quarters of consumers use artificial intelligence tools to research or compare products before buying, while 29 percent of consumer-facing enterprises have begun deploying agentic AI tools.

    Retail operators now face the task of unifying pricing logic, promotional rules, and local fiscal compliance across portable devices, with enterprise integration rollouts continuing across Southeast Asian store fleets through late 2026.

  • Deloitte Under Scrutiny: Ai-generated Inaccuracies Found In Aud 440,000 Australian Welfare Report

    Deloitte Under Scrutiny: Ai-generated Inaccuracies Found In Aud 440,000 Australian Welfare Report

    A report commissioned by Australia’s Department of Employment and Workplace Relations, which was paid AUD 440,000 (around 231,200 Swiss francs), looked into an IT system intended to automate sanctions in the country’s welfare framework. The original report was published in July and was quietly updated on the ministry’s website last week. The updated version featured over a dozen deletions of non-existent references and footnotes, a refreshed reference list, and various typographical corrections.

    Report Inaccuracies

    Christopher Rudge, a researcher at the University of Sydney, discovered several inaccuracies in the report. He hypothesized that these inaccuracies could be due to instances of AI hallucinations, which occur when generative models fabricate information that appears to be factual.

    Findings Deemed Unreliable

    While the report now includes a disclaimer that generative AI was utilized to address “gaps in traceability and documentation”, the trust in the report’s findings has been undermined as a result of the reported inaccuracies. “The firm acknowledged the use of generative AI for a significant analytical task but did not initially disclose it,” said Rudge. He expressed concern that the recommendations made in the report could not be fully trusted.

    Nonetheless, the ministry maintained that “the essence of the independent review remains unchanged and there will be no alterations to the recommendations”. There are also reports that Deloitte forfeited the final payment for the report, although the amount was not specified.

    Impact on Deloitte

    This incident does more than just create a financial dent; it also represents a significant blow to Deloitte’s reputation. The firm, which advises corporations, governments, and institutions worldwide on the proper utilization of AI, is now facing scrutiny for the responsible use of these technologies.

    Questions & Answers

    What inaccuracies were found in the report?
    Christopher Rudge from the University of Sydney found several inaccuracies in the report, suggesting they could be the result of AI hallucinations – when generative models create information that appears factual.

    What was the initial reaction to these inaccuracies?
    While Deloitte admitted to using generative AI and added a disclaimer in the updated version of the report, there has been a decline in trust regarding the report’s findings. The ministry, however, maintained that the core of the review and its recommendations remain unaltered.

    What impact has this had on Deloitte?
    Beyond the financial implications, this incident represents a significant reputational setback for Deloitte, a firm that advises on the responsible use of AI worldwide.

  • Deloitte Switzerland Expands Management Team

    Deloitte Switzerland Expands Management Team

    The Swiss accountancy firm is adding two specialists to its management team.

    Deloitte Switzerland is appointing Liza Engel to chief sustainability officer and Yousif Al-Adhami to technology advisory leader and adding both to its management board, effective immediately, it said in its results report last week.

    Engel, who has been with Deloite Switzerland for four years, was previously 15 years at Swisscom.

    Yousif Al-Adhami, heads Enterprise Technology & Performance and will make sure that Deloitte offers its clients innovative solutions encompassing strategies, technology and implementation, the report said.

    The firm is also making Veronica Melian People & Purpose Part

  • Deloitte Hands Over 1MDB Settlement to Malaysia

    Deloitte Hands Over 1MDB Settlement to Malaysia

    The latest chapter of the Malaysian government’s asset recovery efforts follows effective settlements recently achieved.

    The Malaysian government has received a remittance from Deloitte totaling RM336 million ($80 million) in relation to 1Malaysia Development (1MDB) matters, the country’s finance ministry said on Thursday.

    The auditor, the first to face penalties related to the scandal-ridden fund, was fined in 2019 for breaches related to a bond issuance by 1MDB.

    To date, the country has received RM16.386 billion of seized and repatriated 1MDB funds into its Trust Account, which is used primarily to repay and service 1MDB and subsidiary SRC’s remaining debts, the statement said.

    It is currently awaiting RM2.83 billion from local lender Ambank, and is currently in settlement negotiations with another auditor, KPMG.

    Last month, the Malaysian government filed civil suits against multiple domestic and global entities including J.P. Morgan, Deutsche Bank and Coutts, with the aim of recovering about RM96.6 billion ($23 billion) that the government says are linked to the fund.

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  • Deloitte Ex-Partner Wants Appeal Heard

    Deloitte Ex-Partner Wants Appeal Heard

    A former star consultant of Deloitte in Switzerland is seeking to revive an appeal of his dismissal. He was let go last year amid accusations of bullying and expense irregularities.

    David Joseph, a Dutch-born forensics expert who was let go by Deloitte last year, wants a court to revive his challenge to his forced retirement, according to legal blog Law 360. A spokesman for Joseph couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

    The case is noteworthy because it revealed the inner workings of a highly secretive, lucrative industry which has become indispensable to Swiss banks. Joseph reportedly earned Deloitte more than $200 million in fees as the point person for Credit Suisse’s efforts to cleanse itself of U.S. tax cheats from 2012 until relatively recently last year.

    Joseph was reportedly first cautioned back in 2015 for taking a belligerent attitude towards colleagues and acted entitled to expense reimbursements for top performers of his team. The consultant denied all of the accusations, arguing Deloitte had treated him unfairly and unjustly.

    He is now haggling in a British court over whether he asked Deloitte for a review of his dismissal too late. Joseph previously argued he couldn’t be physically present at the time due to illness, but had lodged a written memorandum listing his objections.

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  • Deloitte forecasts forgettable year in Retail

    Deloitte forecasts forgettable year in Retail

    2019 is shaping up to be a ‘gap year’ for Australian retail, according to Deloitte’s latest Retail Forecast for the year ahead. Retail turnover is expected to slip from 2.2 per cent during 2018 to a more modest 1.6 per cent, before lifting back up to 2.2 per cent in 2020, according to Deloitte Access Economics partner David Rumbens.

    “It’s fair to say retailers have only survived the last few years because consumers have lived beyond their means. But that ship has now sailed,” Rumbens said.

    “Labour income growth is good, but not good enough yet to avoid some damage to retail growth in the absence of an excuse to run down savings further. And when overall net wealth is heading downwards, it provides a fairly strong incentive for people to be more prudent with their cash.”

    This isn’t likely to affect every facet of the retail sector equally, with businesses that offer more essential items, such as supermarkets, unlikely to feel the downturn in the same way as those that offer bigger ticket items such as furniture. Retailers that have some flexibility in the stock that they carry, such as department stores, may wish to re-evaluate and refocus on more essential items, as discretionary spend continues to tighten. However, it doesn’t have to be all doom and gloom for retailers, as such a year affords the opportunity to make calculated changes to prepare for a predicted upturn in sales in 2020. One of the key things retailers can do over this ‘gap year’ is to analyse and improve the link they have with their customers, as well as the relationship they have with their employees and supply chains.

    “There has been… an increase in focus on payments to staff and suppliers, are there issues there that retailers need to investigate to put themselves on a more sound footing going forward?” Rumbens said.

    “Retailers should investigate activities which will support the business so that it’s better able to react when sales growth does move back up to a faster pace.”

    One way retailers can offset some of the strain of operating in the Australian retail environment is to utilise a digital international expansion into other markets.

    “With digital commerce, we’ve clearly seen a lot of great overseas presence in Australia, and I think there’s a lot that Australian retailers can explore there,” Rumbens said.

    “You’ve got quite strong economic and consumer spending growth through China, and a significant market in India. These are not activities to be undertaken lightly, but if you consider the 700 million internet users in China… is it time to start considering that market?”

    Rumbens also believes the Federal Government could offer a stimulus to the Australian public, which could provide support for retailers at a time when growth is slow.

    “There is a strong prospect of some government stimulus coming through and supporting the sector mid-year,” he said.

    “It’s likely to happen, but we’ll have a fair idea in the next couple of weeks when the Federal Budget is handed down.”

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  • Apple, Deloitte enter mobile business tie-up

    Apple, Deloitte enter mobile business tie-up

    Apple and Deloitte has entered into a partnership to help companies transform the way they work by taking advantage of the iOS platform.

    As part of the joint effort, Deloitte is creating a first-of-its-kind Apple practice with over 5,000 strategic advisors who are solely focused on helping businesses change the way they work across their entire enterprise.

    Apple and Deloitte will also collaborate on the development of a new service offering from Deloitte Consulting called EnterpriseNext, designed to help clients fully take advantage of the iOS ecosystem of hardware, software, and services in the workplace.

    The new offering will help customers discover the highest impact possibilities within their industries and quickly develop custom solutions through rapid prototyping.

    “We know that iOS is the best mobile platform for business because we’ve experienced the benefit ourselves with over 100,000 iOS devices in use by Deloitte’s workforce, running 75 custom apps,” said Punit Renjen, CEO of Deloitte Global.

    “Our dedicated Apple practice will give global businesses the expertise and resources they need to empower their mobile workforce to take advantage of the powerful ecosystem iOS, iPhone, and iPad offer, and help them achieve their ambitions, while driving efficiency and productivity.”