WHY IT MATTERS: Digital Transformation

WHY IT MATTERS: not rocket science but nevertheless a useful framework to help identify and manage AI risks.

WHY IT MATTERS: seems you can get away asking for very personal info if it is perceived as useful in the shopping process.

WHY IT MATTERS: membership programs are popular and this report provides a number of good reference numbers.

WHY IT MATTERS: everything in this article rings true, from the high cost of omnichannel and especially returns, to the opportunities that remain of having a physical store. The conclusion: you have to change processes, resource allocation and technology to make omnichannel work.

WHY IT MATTERS: integrating different systems, especially in the context of cloud-based SaaS solutions, has become the biggest requirement of large system developments in recent digital transformation. For example, it is now common to connect eCommerce systems with CRM, ERP, web and marketing automation solutions. Some come already pre-integrated via extensive marketplaces like that of Shopify. Other solutions and platforms merely expose their API and let others do the connexion. This is where API management becomes essential. Other use case exist.

As with most Gartner MQ, skip the reviews and jump to the market overview and criterias to find out what should be considered in your API tool selection.

WHY IT MATTERS: as marketplaces become popular, finding a specific product in a catalog of millions of products will become harder and harder. The holy grail is visual search: snap a picture of something and get some AI to help you find something similar, or that matches well with that. eBay has made tests, Google lens has returned amazing results in my recent experience. Not sure what Amazon is doing but I assume it is top of their list.

Facebook is a major player in this game as it wants to make marketplace the shopping destination (don't forget it owns instagram as well). So the investment in grokNet is critical and recent results appear promising, though not yet perfect. 

So if you build a marketplace, as we are for panier bleu, then this is an area of innovation we cannot afford to bypass.

WHY IT MATTERS: interesting to read the report associated with this infoQ talk to understand the level of complexity that large software solution have and the methods and tools devised to reduce technology debt that creeps over time.

WHY IT MATTERS: the future of ecommerce lies in marketplaces it seems - I know as we are knee deep in this for Le Panier Bleu. Retailers face the challenging task of creating their eCommerce presence by being present where customers are. This means your product catalog has to be visible on *multiple* marketplaces, from your ecom store to Panier bleu, to Amazon to Google shopping, etc. Thus you need to manage your product information - descriptions, prices, inventory, etc. - in a central location. This is what a PIM is all about.

WHY IT MATTERS: great comparative study of 6 of the biggest tools with all kinds of great insight. Beware this is marketing material from sharpSpring with obvious biais!

WHY IT MATTERS: headless solutions are all the rage in web development, including eCommerce. This ebook pulls it all together with good insights and analysis followed by overview of 14 tools. Useful.

WHY IT MATTERS: CDPs are maturing fast and should be considered first in organizations that look at centralizing the customer data.

WHY IT MATTERS: digital marketing has become more complex, with 8000+ solution in the most recent marTech solutions map. Fortunately processes and tools are starting to appear to help manage this complexity.

WHY IT MATTERS: I find EA to be useful as a practice and approach. However it deployment in organizations often fails because EA architect tend to boil the ocean without bringing value. Agile EA is an interesting concept but again, I fear it may not deliver value. But the approach should inspire and guide solution architects, analysts, managers and other software specialists in organizations.

WHY IT MATTERS: this article explores the cost of cloud computing for large SaaS companies that rely on cloud computing to run and operate their business. The basic argument is that cloud computing is amputating Billions from the market value of those large organizations. It should be read by every software engineer in every corporation and the proposed solutions implemented rapidly.

This statement summarizes the post best: "For a new startup or a new project, the cloud is the obvious choice. And it is certainly worth paying even a moderate “flexibility tax” for the nimbleness the cloud provides. The problem is, for large companies — including startups as they reach scale — that tax equates to hundreds of billions of dollars of equity value in many cases… and is levied well after the companies have already, deeply committed themselves to the cloud (and are often too entrenched to extricate themselves)."

WHY IT MATTERS: yes, technology and digital transformation affects all industries. Here a detailed look at beautyTech solutions.

WHY IT MATTERS: I like this model because it is simple to understand makes sense. Not all MM are like that. That being said this document skims the surface so don't expect much more than generalities - and plugs of contentful and its Canadian(!) customers.

WHY IT MATTERS: in reality it really doesn't matter I guess but I find this annual report a good reminder that creativity takes many forms... including in the naming of logo types (electric tape?). Fun to read when you are waiting for the bus.

WHY IT MATTERS: innovation in the team collaboration front has been slow at times. Covid has made it a critical tool for many, thus pushing innovation to the top of the priority list. And it is a good thing.

WHY IT MATTERS: always good to understand how hacking was done 10 years ago. And remember that today Internet usage is at least 10x what it was in 2011.

https://www.inphi.com/the-rise-of-internet-3-0/

WHY IT MATTERS: the end of 3rd party cookies will impact advertising the most. This chart highlights the 50% of revenues that go to different players (including 15% unknown!). What irritates me most is the 7% to agencies that, unfortunately, seem to do very little to earn that amount in my experience...

WHY IT MATTERS: very useful reference of different technologies that power smart stores

WHY IT MATTERS: stores are changing and this guide reviews the different technologies, and solutions out there.

WHY IT MATTERS: very interesting DOs and DONTs about dynamic pricing. I see few retailers yet doing this at scale but with the growth of eCommerce one can expect this to become table stakes in few years. The operational requirements may be daunting if not done properly, so beware. A few good links in there but especially this one: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/retail/our-insights/how-retailers-can-drive-profitable-growth-through-dynamic-pricing

WHY IT MATTERS: customer data platforms are starting to become more integrated into the web platforms. This book is a good summary of what's possible with a CDP. Just beware that there is an obvious bias towards the bloomreach solution - so do not discard the standalone version as they suggest!

WHY IT MATTERS: a nice overview of event driven architecture. Take special note of PROs, CONs and when to use at the end - very important, EDA is not a silver bullet for all problems.