HM6032 Leveraging IT Advantage for Managers Case Study 2 Sample
Assignment Brief
This assessment item relates to the unit learning outcomes as in the Unit of Study Guide. This assessment is designed to enhance students’ skills on critically analysing and evaluating key issues and challenges in recent IS technologies and how they can be acquired and contribute to business core processes. The assessment helps develop presentation and problem-solving skills.
Select a Research Topic
For this assignment students will be divided into small groups (the size will depend on class size), and each group will select a specific technology/ topic to research. The research topic you select must be directly relevant to IT in Business. A list of possible topics is provided in the BB assessment folder (for reference purposes only).
Each group will then be required to research a real-life company and write a case study report. The case study must be directly relevant to the selected research topic.
From a broad perspective, a case study is an in-depth analysis of a particular subject. Generally, the study covers a problem-solution-results format. When applied to this unit, a case study examines how a real-life company had a problem, found a solution using a particular information technology, and shares the results of the solution.
The following eight elements must be included in your case study report:
1. Executive Summary/Synopsis
2. Introduction
o introduce the selected company, including the background and any previous studies of the issue (literature review); briefly describe the key problem and its significance
3. Challenges
o explain the challenge the selected company faced before using the presented technology;
4. Discussion
o discuss how the selected company found the presented technology; discuss the selected company’s decision process and the steps they went through before discovering the solution
5. Implementation
o explain how the solution was implemented; discuss if the implementation meets the expectations, and who was involved in the implementation process
6. Conclusion
o conclude your case study with the end results; sum up the main points from the challenges, discussion and recommendations
7. Recommendations
o provide proposals for future action to solve the problem or improve the situation
8. References
Solution
Introduction
In this competitive business environment, organisational leaders often find it difficult to thrive Hence, they are leveraging digital strategies and utilising relevant opportunities to meet customer needs and requirements. Similarly, the strategic leaders of H&M are also trying to stay relevant in the fashion and retail industry. H&M is an international fashion and design company. It started its operation in 1947 and decided to make fashion accessible to people across the globe. The organisation has gained popularity across the world because it has scaled innovation, promoted transparency, and collaborated with diverse partners. Moreover, along with meeting customer needs it also emphasises promoting inclusion and diversity (H&M, 2025a). The organisation has also operated with consistency and focused on building trust among customers. However, in recent times strategic leaders often find it difficult to build trust among customers. As stated by Setiawan and Sukresna (2023, p.2(1)), H&M is expanding their stores across the globe. However, the financial performance has declined in recent years due to limited sales. Lack of customer trust and loyalty can be identified as a major problem behind ineffective financial performance. Moreover, customers are disappointed with H&M's product and service offerings. The organisation is not considering the rapid shift in tastes and preferences of customers. They are focusing on promoting their products, instead of giving importance to the voice of their customers (Danziger, 2018). Thus, it is the key responsibility of the organisational leaders of H&M to focus on establishing effective communication. This can be done by using upgraded AI-powered chatbots. In this regard, the report aims to provide a broad perspective on challenges faced by H&M and how an advanced technological tool can solve this problem.
Challenges
The outbreak of the pandemic disrupted the fashion retail industry, including H&M. The organisation was finding it difficult to source raw materials from diverse suppliers. This further decreased their ability to launch products as per the change in tastes and preferences of their customers. The organisation also started to increase the price of its product and therefore, it was losing its customers to other competitors like Uniqlo and Forever 2021 (Qu, 2024, p.4(4)). In this regard, due to the disrupted supply chain, stock availability was decreasing and the customer care team started to receive a high volume of queries. Customers were becoming dissatisfied due to delayed delivery and ineffective communication on behalf of the customer support team. Moreover, the supply chain management team was also finding it difficult to track parcels within the network. According to the study by Bozzi, Neves and Mont’Alvão (2022, p.3(4)), H&M was encountering difficulty in communicating with customers due to a lack of technology. This also refrained them from understanding the reason behind immense product returns. The findings of the author also suggests that H&M failed to manage these returned products and burnt down almost 15 tons of products. This not only affected their financial performance but also affected the ecological harmony. Thus, ineffective handling of products decreases the business scalability and the organisation starts to lose its competitive advantage. Hence, it is the key responsibility of organisational leaders to provide immediate support to customers, give quick responses and ask for their opinions and feedback to gain competitive advantage. The findings also clearly suggest that customer service quality decreased massively due to major technological gaps.
Discussion
The strategic leaders of H&M encountered significant challenges and decided to develop a problem-solving team to solve emerging issues and increase business scalability. The team has participated in various brainstorming sessions and decided to introduce AI-powered chatbots. In the following part, a step-by-step analysis is done to demonstrate the decision process of H&M.
Need Identification
The key responsibility of the strategic team is to identify the need for implementing advanced technology in the core operation of a firm. As stated by Jiang et al. (2022, p.2(8)), the dialogic loop is the key principle of AI-powered chatbots. The primary objective of this chatbot is to establish digital communication between the customer support team and customers. Moreover, one of the key functions of AI-powered chatbots is to quickly respond to customer queries and increase their satisfaction level. In this regard, while analysing challenges faced by H&M in recent times it has been found that ineffective communication with customers has resulted in increased dissatisfaction. Thus, the strategic team of H&M have identified significant opportunities for AI-powered chatbots and decided to implement for university assignment help them in improving their customer service activities and enhance business scalability.
Evaluating the Technology
The technical and strategic team of H&M has made sure to evaluate the efficiency of AI-powered chatbots, before implementing it in core business activities. As stated by Soni and Dubey (2024, p.15(5)), AI-powered chatbots are gathering customer views, opinions and feedback and are providing personalised shopping experiences. In this regard, H&M’s chatbot on Kik has become a digital stylist. They are not only collecting feedback from customers but also suggesting outfits according to their tastes and preferences. This strategic implementation of AI-powered chatbots has helped H&M to increase the conversion rate by 30%. However, there is a negative side to AI-powered chatbots. According to the study by Hasal et al. (2021, p.2(3)), chatbots often store sensitive, confidential, and personal information of customers while communicating with them. They are also shared with other parties to improve customer experiences. This can increase the chances of data theft which can further increase data security and privacy issues. Moreover, vulnerabilities in the system and company network are also identified as a weakness and cyber attackers can use this opportunity to manipulate data (Hasal et al. 2021, p.4(5)). Such information leakage may have a significant impact on the goodwill of the company. Thus, Linda Leopold, the head of Responsible AI & Data (H&M), is focusing on the responsible use of AI and Data within the workplace. According to her AI-powered tools are necessary for the growth and expansion of business. However, a proper parenting is required. Therefore, she and her team are working collectively to use AI, ethically and sustainably (H&M, 2021). In this regard, they are emphasising on protecting consumer data and refraining unnecessary share of confidential information to any third party.
Selecting Chatbot Platform
According to the study conducted by Landim et al. (2022, p. 200(5)), retail players have two options. They either design chatbot platforms or use already designed platforms to establish communication with their customers. Fashion retail firms are more intrigued towards using chatbot platforms because they allow their customers to provide personalised shopping experiences. Similarly, H&M is using Kik App to connect with customers, gather their opinion, answer their queries, and provide personalised shopping experiences. This chatbot platform is, therefore, helping H&M to value customer’s choices and preferences. Thus, a well-designed chatbot platform can help firms improve customer experiences that further have a positive impact on the financial performance of firms.
Testing
In the final stage, the technical team of H&M made sure to test the efficiency of the chatbot before final implementation. The testing was done based on usability. The query response time has been checked and the rate of escalation to the customer support team has also been monitored before launching the chatbot. Proper testing of AI-powered chatbots has helped H&M to draw customers’ attention, improve their experiences and increase financial performance.
Implementation
This is the last stage where tech leaders and other strategic managers integrate the tool into the core business activities. As stated by Zhang, Følstad and Bjørkli (2023, p. 123(4)), a well-performing chatbot might fail to provide effective results, if tech leaders fail to implement it, properly. The findings of the author also highlight how poor management of projects leads to failure in the implementation of chatbots. Therefore, the tech team of H&M have focused on the effective implementation of chatbots. The chatbot has been integrated into the company’s website. When a customer clicks on the “digital assistant” symbol a chat appears with an automated message. The objective of this chatbot is to provide rapid answers to questions that are quickly asked (H&M, 2025b). It also helps customers to track their order or refund.
.png)
Figure 1: Screenshot of H&M chatbot in the company's website
Source: H&M, 2025b
The above image demonstrates how automated messages appear in the H&M chatbot. Secondly, customers of H&M have also integrated its chatbot into the Kik Platform. When a customer visits the Kik Platform, the chatbot asks them to choose a few style options. The chosen options are saved and shared. Finally, the customer is redirected to H&M’s website from the Kik platform (Chatbot Guide, 2025). Thus, the successful implementation of the chatbot in Kik’s platform has not only helped H&M to establish effective communication with their customers but has also enhanced traffic on the website of the company. Additionally, the in-depth analysis of automated chatbot messages clearly reveals that marketing practitioners and customer support teams are working collectively to develop engaging messages. These messages are not only providing solid assistance to customers but, are also trying to engage them in the core activities of the firm. Customers are getting an overview of the current stock via chatbot communication. Thus, the effective implementation of chatbots has helped H&M in the proactive engagement of customers. The organisation is also witnessing a significant rise in the sales and financial performance of the firm. However, it is the utmost responsibility of strategic leaders and the AI team to concentrate on chatbot development. This can further ensure seamless communication with the customer and can also enhance the level of their interests.
Conclusion
This report emphasises identifying a significant issue of a real-life company and how the issue has been solved using advanced technological tools. The real-life company that has been selected is H&M. H&M is one of the leading players in the fashion retail company. The vision and mission of the company have helped it to successfully operate in the global market over decades. However, in recent times, it has faced significant challenges. The outbreak of the pandemic has disrupted its supply chain network. This has slowed down the process of production and is delaying delivery. Moreover, the organisation was also witnessing increased returns. Customers were also dissatisfied with H&M’s services because their queries were not answered appropriately. Hence, they decided to avoid H&M and started to shop from other companies like ZARA, Uniqlo and Forever 21. The strategic team of H&M have identified this problem and has decided to implement AI-powered chatbots. In this advanced technological era, the effective implementation of chatbots helps in improving communication with customers. Hence, the technical team of H&M collaborated with the customer relationship management team and decided to implement the Kik chatbot in their website. When customers visit the website of the firm, this chatbot provides digital assistance by handling their queries and providing new information. Engaging messages also helps the chatbot to record the needs, tastes, and interests of consumers. This further helps H&M to provide personalised experiences to customers. Thus, the findings conclude that AI-powered chatbot used by H&M has helped the firm to reduce delays in delivery, provide customised shopping experiences to customers and gather their views and opinions.
Recommendations
The findings of the report clearly highlight the positive impact of AI-powered chatbots in improving customer experiences of H&M. However, there are few other actions that the organisation can undertake to improve organisational activities. The recommended actions are discussed below.
Humanising AI chatbot
According to the study by Martín Lucas et al. (2025, p.225(2)), AI-powered chatbots are responsible for handling queries and guiding customers through the company’s website. However, research scholars are focused on a humanistic approach. The findings suggest that it is the key responsibility of AI to become empathetic and promote the well-being of users or customers. It is believed that humanistic models provide culturally diverse and inclusive experiences to customers. Thus, the technological team of H&M should humanise their AI chatbot. A humanised chatbot can leverage emotional intelligence to understand the purchase attitudes and behaviour of customers. Moreover, it can also engage customers in authentic conversation, create emotional connections and build strong relationships with them.
User-interface improvement
The key responsibility of strategic leaders is to improve the overall experience of users. As opined by Aslam (2023, p. 66(2)), natural user interfaces in AI-powered chatbots help in initiating human-like conversations. Thus, improving the user interface in chatbots can customers to engage in human-like and meaningful conversations. Such well-designed chatbots can ensure rapid response to customers’ queries. It can also recommend fashion tips and styles to customers. Such emotional responses from chatbots will help in increasing customer engagement.
Integration of NLP
Integration of Natural Language Processing (NLP) in AI-powered chatbots helps in the fragmentation of complex human languages. The collocation of words is generally interpreted using NLP (Abdulla et al. 2022). Thus, H&M technical leaders should also make sure to integrate NLP to understand customer demands and improve their shopping experiences. Additionally, it can also help in understanding the emotions and sentiments of customers. Such understanding can improve the accuracy of product recommendations which can further have a positive impact on conversion rates.
Protecting customer data in chatbots
In this era of advanced technology, data theft security breach and loss of customers’ information are major challenges that technical leaders face. Therefore, it is the key responsibility of the organisation to protect customer information. Primarily, end-to-end encryption of conversations between chatbot and customer should be maintained. The intervention of any third party in the conversation must be avoided. Before starting the chat, the website must ask for customers’ consent. This will ensure transparency. Additionally, the chatbot must only be controlled by authorised organisational members. Members should be restricted from sharing any form of information with third parties without prior consent from higher authorities. Chatbots tend to collect customer information to improve their experiences. It is recommended to erase customer data after 3-months of conversation. Strong data clear policies must be integrated to avoid unnecessary leakage of customer information. These steps will not only avoid data leakage but H&M employees can also strengthen their relationship with customers.
Reference List
Abdulla, H., Eltahir, A.M., Alwahaishi, S., Saghair, K., Platos, J. and Snasel, V., 2022, July. Chatbots development using natural language processing: a review. In 2022 26th International conference on circuits, systems, communications and computers (CSCC) (pp. 122-128). IEEE. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1109/CSCC55931.2022.00030
Aslam, F., 2023. ‘The impact of artificial intelligence on chatbot technology: A study on the current advancements and leading innovations’, European Journal of Technology, 7(3), pp.62-72.
Bozzi, C., Neves, M. and Mont’Alvão, C., 2022 ‘Fashion E-tail and the impact of returns: mapping processes and the consumer journey towards more sustainable practices’, Sustainability, 14(9), p.5328. Doi: https://doi.org/10.3390/su14095328
Chatbot Guide, 2025. H&M Kik Bot, viewed 28 April 2025. https://www.chatbotguide.org/h-m-bot
Danziger, P.N. 2018. Why Fast-Fashion H&M Is Losing Favor With American Fashionistas: It's A Mess, viewed 28 April 2025. https://www.forbes.com/sites/pamdanziger/2018/02/04/why-fast-fashion-hm-is-losing-favor-with-american-fashionistas-its-a-mess/
H&M, 2021. Responsible AI, is better AI, viewed 28 April 2025. https://hmgroup.com/our-stories/responsible-ai-is-better-ai/
H&M, 2025a. Vision and Strategy, viewed 28 April 2025. https://hmgroup.com/sustainability/leading-the-change/vision-and-strategy/
Hasal, M., Nowaková, J., Ahmed Saghair, K., Abdulla, H., Snášel, V. and Ogiela, L., 2021 ‘Chatbots: Security, privacy, data protection, and social aspects’, Concurrency and Computation: Practice and Experience, 33(19), p.e6426. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/cpe.6426
Jiang, H., Cheng, Y., Yang, J. and Gao, S. 2022 ‘AI-powered chatbot communication with customers: Dialogic interactions, satisfaction, engagement, and customer behavior’, Computers in Human Behavior, 134, p.107329. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2022.107329
Landim, A.R.D.B., Pereira, A.M., Vieira, T., de B. Costa, E., Moura, J.A.B., Wanick, V. and Bazaki, E., 2022 ‘Chatbot design approaches for fashion E-commerce: an interdisciplinary review’, International Journal of Fashion Design, Technology and Education, 15(2), pp.200-210. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/17543266.2021.1990417
Martín Lucas, M., Roets, A.O., Medina-Merodio, J.A. and Robina-Ramírez, R., 2025 ‘What role does the humanisation of AI play in improving tourist performance’, SOCIOLOGÍA Y TECNOCIENCIA, 15(1), pp. 223-248
Qu, Y., 2024. Analysis of the Causes of H&M Depression. In SHS Web of Conferences (Vol. 207, p. 02021). EDP Sciences. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1051/shsconf/202420702021
Setiawan, A.N. and Sukresna, I.M. 2023 ‘The Influence of Brand Identification and Brand Image toward Loyalty through Brand Trust and Customer Satisfaction of H&M’, Diponegoro Journal of Management, 12(5).
Soni, A. and Dubey, S., 2024 ‘The impact of ai-powered chatbots on customer satisfaction in e-commerce marketing (tam approach)’, Journal of Public Relations and Advertising, 3(1), pp.12-18.
Zhang, J.J., Følstad, A. and Bjørkli, C.A. 2023 ‘Organizational factors affecting successful implementation of chatbots for customer service’, Journal of internet commerce, 22(1), pp.122-156. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/15332861.2021.1966723
Fill the form to continue reading
Would you like to schedule a callback?
Send us a message and we will get back to you
Highlights
Earn While You Learn With Us
Confidentiality Agreement
Money Back Guarantee
Live Expert Sessions
550+ Ph.D Experts
21 Step Quality Check
100% Quality
24*7 Live Help
On Time Delivery
Plagiarism-Free
81 Isla Avenue Glenroy, Mel, VIC, 3046 AU
