{"id":17482,"date":"2018-10-02T05:00:52","date_gmt":"2018-10-02T12:00:52","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2023-07-17T12:11:33","modified_gmt":"2023-07-17T19:11:33","slug":"takeaways-for-retail-from-microsoft-envision","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cm-edgetun.pages.dev\/en-us\/industry\/blog\/retail\/2018\/10\/02\/takeaways-for-retail-from-microsoft-envision\/","title":{"rendered":"Takeaways for retail from Microsoft Envision"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Retailers around the world are transforming their businesses by pairing digital and physical operations into one seamless, connected experience. The result is a retail renaissance, driven by data and artificial intelligence (AI) solutions that empower employees with deep insights and delight today\u2019s digital-savvy customers with more personalized and relevant experiences.<\/p>\n

Each year, Microsoft Envision<\/a> brings business leaders together from around the globe to focus on the latest challenges, trends, and technologies in service of growing and transforming their organizations. The 2018 summit ran from September 24\u201326 in Orlando, Florida, and featured a top-notch list of speakers including Alexis Ohanian, Trevor Noah, and Satya Nadella. Together, they shared insights and lessons from their own investments in AI and digital transformation.<\/p>\n

Here are a few of our favorite takeaways for the retail industry.<\/p>\n

Key retail takeaways from Envision 2018<\/h2>\n

We hosted multiple retail-focused sessions during Envision, such as \u201cEmpowering intelligent brands and retail\u201d and \u201cIntelligent retail: Delight your customers with an intelligent customer journey.\u201d<\/p>\n

During our session titled \u201cMaking AI in retail real: Lessons learned to achieving value with AI,\u201d Richard Wingfield, CEO of Maijid Al Futtam – Ventures, offered insights into his organization’s adoption of advanced analytics technologies.<\/p>\n

Wingfield shared five key takaways when working with AI to empower employees, optimize operations, and deliver more personalized experiences for customers.<\/p>\n

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  1. Begin with clean data: a focused and intentional process makes data management easier.<\/li>\n
  2. Avoid data swamps: know what data you are collecting and why.<\/li>\n
  3. Don\u2019t expect a silver bullet: AI is an iterative process, not an instant fix.<\/li>\n
  4. Have patience: models will fail, and that\u2019s OK.<\/li>\n
  5. Celebrate people: business and technology teams must collaborate and educate employees by putting the right tools in the right hands.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    In \u201cExploiting Amazon\u2019s weak spots: Enabling great customer experiences,\u201d Doug Stephens\u2014perhaps better known as The Retail Prophet\u2014shared his prediction that in 10 years, the retail space will look completely different than it does today. How do retailers brace themselves for such an evolving environment? Experiential and engaging retail is key, and the means to give a reason to shop with you.<\/p>\n

    Stephens says that great customer shopping experiences must be SUPER:<\/p>\n