Thriving in a Globally-Connected Economy at PayPal C360

Contributed by Kelly Stickel, Remodista Founder and CEO, and Janet Beasley, Strategic Consultant for David’s Bridal and Remodista Woman2Watch Retail Committee Leader.

Overlooking the amazing Pacific Coastline in Laguna Niguel, we spent our time at the C360 customer event reflecting on the importance of having a trusted community, which we know well – the trust which allows us to collaborate freely is also the basis of transactional confidence. To underline that point, consider this: in a thriving and globally-connected economy, mobile payments are estimated to top $76B in 2018.  At that intersection of choice, security, relevant experiences, and innovation is TRUST.

Trust is the future of business. According to general definitions, trust is a firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something. Trust supports positive relationships; lack of trust breaks down those relationships. Trust is built over time through actions that show a consistent pattern of behavior. A community environment with meaningful and relevant content can support and enhance trusted relationships.

​Trust was the common thread that ran through the fabric of the event. Coming off the heels of this fantastic and nourishing gathering, we wanted to share some of the insights and ideas that left us inspired and focused.

Speaker Insights

​PayPal CEO, Dan Schulman noted that while we are successfully using data to remove friction, there is a trust crisis that needs to be solved. The trends and inflection points include: data exhaust, computational (quantum) power, and AI. Dan asserted the need to address the following attack vectors (in increasing order of severity): hacktivest, cyber criminals, state-sponsored, cyber warfare.

​Rana Foroohar, Associate Editor of the Financial Times, shared that the growth in quantum computing power will result in a 30% productivity gain and significant disruption to the labor market with 60% of jobs going to AI. “Data is the new oil.” In the face of this shift, she agrees there is a trust crisis. The “mass” trusts less and the “elites” trust more, a condition which negatively impacts democratic societies and favors state-run societies. Rana recommended tax reform which allows companies to make human (talent) capital investments, with tax code advantages like those of technology investments.

Author Malcolm Gladwell gave an anecdotal talk that left us with this take-away: security is a weak link problem, and therefore a hyper-connected network is a weak link environment.

Amadeus Stevenson of Decoded provided an impressive guided tour of personalization and artificial intelligence trends that are driving further disruption to traditional retail models. He shared the top trends fueling commerce: Consumer driven data, Merchandising, Personalization, Connected Environment, Retail Transformation, and Blockchain.

Amadeus then turned to the customer panel for their insights about the excitement and challenge of seizing on the breadth of data-based opportunities. The panelists were Janet Beasley, Consultant, David’s Bridal; Peter Cobb, Cofounder, eBags and DSW Board Member; Byron Colby, SVP, Digital Commerce, Cornerstone Brands; and Lisa Kueffel, VP Client Experience, Sephora.

Special Guest at the Fireside Chat

​We ended the two days with actor and investor, Ashton Kutcher, and Veronica Katz, VP/GM of PayPal, in a fireside chat, as they talked about innovation and the global economy. An investor in more than 120 companies, Kutcher looks for opportunities with businesses whose missions are bold and innovative – and perhaps don’t even seem plausible. He seeks visionaries who are building because they have empathy for their customer.

Kutcher also discussed his not for profit organization, THORN, a collaboration of forces in technology, non-profit, government, and law enforcement who are dedicated to ending child sex trafficking and the sexual exploitation of children. Follow this link to learn more about this organization and their important work. 

​On the final day, we woke early and took time to walk at the edge of the Pacific Ocean. It was the perfect way to let our minds absorb and synthesize all the information and ideas that PayPal C360 offered. We were grateful for the sweeping ocean views, and for the insights gained from pioneers who are already testing the future. 

What's Next?
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