CSP Migration

A portal used by the ESW customer service teams and retailers to review and manage shopper orders.

Migrate the following order management feature from Customer Service Portal (CSP) to ESW Service Portal (ESP)

  • Search for and view order details.

  • Cancel an order / line item.

  • View invoices and return labels.

  • Update shipping addresses.

  • Design an extensible customer service platform within ESP.

  • Develop a roadmap for gradual retailer migration from CSP to ESP, ensuring no loss of service quality or functionality.

Overview

The existing CSP (Customer Service Portal) provides web-based access to order-related data and task flows for both internal ESW teams and partner retailers. It enables customer service agents to handle order-related issues like cancellations, refunds, and address updates.

However, with ESP (ESW Service Portal) evolving into the unified entry point for all ESW solutions (onboarding, configuration, reporting, CSP, it is critical to hollow out core customer service functionality from the CSP and transition it into the ESP. This will align with the future state architecture strategy, ensuring a scalable, domain-driven, and event-based platform that can support long-term organizational growth and flexibility.

Pain points

Retailers

  • Limited self-service capabilities

    Retailers are frustrated by the lack of tools to independently manage common operational tasks, increasing reliance on support teams and slowing resolution times.

  • Inability to resend customer emails

    Retailers (particularly those onboarded before 2023) cannot re-send transactional or notification emails, making it difficult to correct communication issues or provide customers with timely updates.

  • Restricted access to return flexibility controls

    Retailers cannot use the “Always allow return” option, which is currently limited to Nike and internal users. This prevents retailers from applying a common appeasement strategy, allowing returns after the return window has closed without escalating to a CSM, creating delays and customer dissatisfaction.

  • No ability to refund return shipping fees during pending returns

    When a return is in a pending status, retailers cannot refund return shipping fees, even in cases where the retailer is at fault. This blocks timely resolution and forces retailers to wait until the return status changes, increasing friction and customer frustration.

  • Delayed customer email updates

    Retailers cannot update customer email addresses directly and must escalate the request, resulting in a 5–7 day wait. This delay disrupts customer communication and often compounds issues related to order updates, returns, and refunds.

Internal users

  • Limited data accessibility for analysis

    Order results and refund data tables cannot be easily downloaded, restricting offline analysis, reporting, and ad-hoc investigations.

  • Insufficient refund and transaction context

    Refunds teams lack critical data points (return reason, country, brand name, PSP, and payment type) directly within refunds and transaction tables, leading to increased manual investigation time and higher risk of errors.

  • Lack of visibility into customer communications

    Inability to view or download sent customer emails makes it difficult to understand historical context during issue resolution and dispute handling.

  • Disconnected external systems

    No direct links to PSP dashboards or carrier tracking pages, forcing agents to manually search across multiple systems to track orders, returns, and refunds.

  • Operational friction for simple customer updates

    Updating customer email addresses requires escalation to production teams, creating unnecessary delays and operational overhead.

  • Uneven availability of critical functionality

    Powerful operational tools currently available only for Nike (bulk refunds, re-enable returns, force refunds, always-allow returns) are not accessible across other brands, causing inconsistent processes and inefficiencies.

  • Manual creation of commercial documentation

    Sales and commercial invoices are created through manual processes, increasing processing time and the likelihood of inconsistencies or compliance issues.

  • Manual retrieval of proof for audits and disputes

    Proof of refund must be manually obtained from PSPs, and proof of delivery from carriers, resulting in slow turnaround times for disputes, audits, and customer escalations.

Discovery

CSP comparison: Nike v/s core retailers

Heuristic evaluation

Persona

Use case 1: John, an internal user logging in, searching an order, creating a user and group.

Use case 2: Mary, an external user logging in, searching an order and creating a user and group.

User flow

Scenario 1 : Integrated

Scenario 2 : Stand-alone

Benefits

  • Unified User Experience

    Seamless transition and interaction through a single portal (ESP) for all operational needs.

  • Scalability

    Establish a foundation that supports future growth and additional feature expansion without technical debt.

  • Faster & smoother

    Easily onboard and scale retailers by using consistent APIs and UI for order management.

Real life impact

Reduced support time by 15–25% for order management queries due to more responsive and unified user interface and user experience.

AI Integration

Customer support teams are utilizing Zendesk’s AI tools to handle routine queries like ‘Where’s my order” and minimize the need for support agent involvement​​

  • AI email support: has been implemented and is handling an estimated 14 to 20% of incoming queries​

  • Chatbot exploration: Currently in development. A new offering that will become available for level 1 retailers​

  • Types of queries currently being handled: ("Where's my order", Password reset requests, Spam tickets, Return policy queries)

Return Requests (Automate 70%)​

  • Shopper initiates return via portal or chatbot​

  • AI checks return eligibility​

  • If eligible: generates return label and instructions​

  • OMS is updated automatically​

  • If not eligible, AI explains policy and offers contact option

Address/email changes (Automate 69%)​

  • Shopper requests address change​

  • AI checks if order is editable​

  • If editable: confirms new address and updates OMS​

  • If not editable: explains options (e.g., return to sender)

Cancelation Requests (Automate 68%)​

  • Shopper asks: “Can I cancel my order?”​

  • AI checks order status in OMS​

  • If not shipped: cancels order and initiates refund​

  • If shipped: explains return process after delivery​

  • OMS and carrier systems are updated accordingly

Proof of Delivery (Automate 64%)​

  • Shopper or retailer asks: “Was this delivered?”​

  • AI queries carrier API​

  • AI responds with delivery date and recipient​

  • Option to download proof (photo or signature) if available

Return status (Automate 90%)​

  • Shopper asks: “What’s the status of my return?”​

  • AI checks OMS for return tracking and refund status​

  • AI replies with receipt date and refund timeline​

  • No agent involvement unless return is delayed

Address confirmation (Automate 85%)​

  • After order is placed, AI sends confirmation prompt​

  • Shopper confirms or updates address​

  • OMS is updated automatically before fulfilment begins

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