There’s No Better Time to be a Change Agent Than Now, with Paul Acito, CEO at Lyftbridge Innovation

Digital transformation was once sold as a destination. Today, we know the reality: it is a permanent state of being. As AI and Agentic Commerce accelerate the pace of disruption, your teams aren't just facing new tools—they are facing "transformation fatigue." How do you keep your workforce engaged, agile, and optimistic when the finish line keeps moving? This episode is an audio rebroadcast of a Digital Shelf Summit 2026 session that tackles the human side of the Agentic revolution. Our guests, Chelsey Alexander CEO & Founder at Open Gate Consulting, Jennifer Angelus, Senior Director-Digital Shelf, Ecosystems & Capabilities at Danone, Malvika Jaggi, VP Partnerships & Platforms at One Tree Brands, and Jyoti Malik, Senior Director eCommerce at Belkin share practical strategies for managing resistance, communicating vision during chaotic times, and building an organization that doesn't just endure disruption, but thrives on it.

Jamie Clapper here, and welcome to another episode of Unpacking the Digital Shelf: B2B Edition. Today, we’re joined by a true pioneer in the digital space—Steven Javor, Head of Digital Customer Experience and Channel Digital Commerce (Canada) at Schneider Electric. Steven has been shaping the digital landscape for over 30 years. From the early days of webcasts in the '90s to pioneering B2B ecommerce across Europe, the US, and Canada, he has seen every major shift in tech firsthand. In this episode, Steven takes us to the absolute cutting edge of digital marketing: Generative Engine Optimization, or GEO. We dive into what it actually takes to make your products visible to AI models, why 90% of your AI citations are coming from sources outside your website, and why the biggest challenge in AI isn't the technology—it’s change management and human trust. Whether you’re trying to optimize for LLMs, lead an enterprise AI transformation, or understand how Gen Z and Millennial buying habits are reshaping B2B, this episode has it all … so lets get to unpacking!

As AI fundamentally changes how consumers discover and buy products, the digital shelf is evolving into the agentic shelf. In this episode, Todd Hassenfelt, Chief Decision Officer at firstmovr, breaks down why brands can no longer rely on traditional search rankings or buying their way to the top. Todd explores how Amazon’s Alexa for Shopping influences consumer choices on product detail pages and explains why brands must adapt fast.

Jeriad Zoghby has spent more than 20 years as the C-Suite whisperer for commerce with stints at leading firms like Accenture and IPG. He’s no longer whispering, he is shouting to the rooftops as the author of a new book “Competing at Machine Speed” and the co-founder of ACOS. In the book he and his co-authors lay out how the operating model most consumer goods brands built over the past fifty years was designed for a world that no longer exists. They describe the new operating system for commerce that you will need. One built to continuously sense what is changing in real time, decide how to respond across an entire portfolio simultaneously, and act at machine speed without requiring constant human intervention. It’s a bracing, detailed, and actionable read.

Social is continuing to evolve as a channel for discovery and commerce, with AI accelerating that evolution, bringing social content and product discovery closer together. And that creates an interesting new dynamic for brands, because the content created to inspire and influence shoppers is increasingly influencing what AI platforms and agentic experiences understand and recommend. Teresa is joined by Kate Musgrove, Managing Director - APAC at Bazaarvoice. Bazaarvoice works with brands and retailers around the world to harness the power of user-generated and creator content from ratings and reviews through to visual and social content to drive discovery, engagement, and conversion across the shopper journey.

Everyone knows this, but it still keeps happening - an expensive retail media campaign that leads to a neglected PDP, wasting time, money, and consumer loyalty. The madness must end! Our guests today, Amy Sillince, Global Head of Conversion and Carlota Mier, Global Performance Marketing Lead at Opella, have figured out the secret to maximizing return on retail media and growing conversions. Togetherness. They set the example through their close-knit personal rapport and respect, and content and retail media teams that ensure their plans are unified and outcomes well understood. It’s a model that every ecommerce and media leader should consider to drive the best results. 

Bonus Episode! Tune in to hear the themes and takeaways from this year's Grocery Shop 2026 in Las Vegas, live from the show floor.

Paul Acito has spent decades leading transformation at global giants like Medtronic and 3M, and now is running Lyftbridge Innovation, helping enterprises use AI to drive transformation and measurable business impact. Paul discusses how the merging of human leadership capabilities with transformational technology is the great unlock to generate sustainable, profitable growth in this next era.

Winning in the New Omnichannel - a shopping journey that careens across the physical, digital, and now agentic shelf - takes a massive cross-functional effort that is continuously measured and optimized. Especially when it comes to the beverage category. Ben Galvin, with career stops at ABInbev, Constellation Brands, and now as Sr. Director Omnichannel Retail Sales & Ecommerce at Monster Energy, has built an always-on flywheel playbook that he continues to refine in order to drive incremental growth and lifetime customer value.

Selling at Walmart? Then this podcast is for you, with two of the sharpest brains in the ecommerce business, Russ Dieringer, Founder and Claire McBride, VP of Research and Education from Stratably. All the latest data on their quarter and the trends, pressures, and opportunities that are coming your way out of Bentonville.