Dave Uselton

At commercetools and now at Pipe17 we've had hours of discussions to answer one question - do we want to be the kid at the adult table, or the biggest kid at the kids table? A "category" in vendor speak is a big deal - it's the label for a whole bunch of products that roughly do the same thing...basically line items on an enterprise buyer's shopping list, with supporting analyst reports, incumbent vendors, conferences, and systems integrators that know the space well. Commerce platforms and order management systems are both well established categories going back decades. People know they need one of these things, and they go out looking for them like you'd go shopping for a turkey on Thanksgiving - an item on a shopping list. Up-and-coming vendors with disruptive technology all have to decide whether they want to usurp an existing category or create an entirely new category. At commercetools, we invented and pioneered headless commerce. As we started to see clones pop up, I distinctly remember long debates about whether we wanted to be the best in the headless category (an entirely new category which we would lead and build out) or whether we wanted to be in the commerce platform category and start out at the bottom and work our way up. Now at Pipe17, we invented and are now pioneering Order Operations category, which is a categorically new and different approach to order management. In both cases, we've taken the decision to compete within the existing category because of the sheer amount of work to build a new category from scratch. You have to train a whole market full of buyers, train analysts, recruit competitors (you can't have a category of one), recruit systems integrators, etc etc. Takes a decade of work, but if you can build your own category which you lead, the benefits to the category marker are off the charts. Category makers are generational companies - think OpenAI, AWS, Twilio, etc. One day I would like to build a truly new category, not just a sub-category within an established category. (The book "Play Bigger" is focused on category building and I'd highly recommend it)

87

8 Comments

Every business has systems that function as the foundational source of truth for their business. For Product companies, this can be Inventory Management. Inventory is life, inventory is a huge expense. Some thoughts from Bellwood on how to get these systems "right". https://lnkd.in/e2Dd82F5

9

Bryan Jenkins -- good points. While Dollar General seeks to serve customers who are looking for particularly good prices, what Kelly Ma is doing at Dollar General is not far from the direction of many other companies today looking for increased efficiency in spending. RFPs are a great way to not only evaluate vendor capabilities, but also to ensure competitive pricing.

13

2 Comments

“But an LLM does not understand your elasticity. It does not estimate churn probability from transactional patterns. It does not quantify how a 3% discount changes volume for Segment A versus Segment B. It predicts text, not behaviour.”

2

Still waiting to start that WMS project? It’s costing you—big time. Sticking with outdated systems might feel safe, but it’s holding your business back. In today’s high-pressure environment, inaction is the real risk. This Infios guide shows you how to move forward with confidence: ✅ Build buy-in across teams ✅ Manage change the smart way ✅ Turn your WMS into a competitive advantage Ready to lead the shift and not chase it? Download the eBook here: 👉 https://okt.to/GHe8hO #WeAreInfios #WMS #SupplyChainExcellence

25

Like evolution, change happens slowly, sometimes "glacially", and it is usually for the better. Recently I have noticed more people dropping the "e" from their eCommerce Thought Leadership pieces and speaking more about commerce in general...understanding that eCommerce is but a single channel in a greater world of commerce. "Commerce, not just eCommerce" has been my mantra for years and I am excited to see this change. Other evolving phrases, I hope to see change or gain adoption in the world of commerce are: - Commerce, not just eCommerce - from "Order to Cash" to "Inventory to Cash" - "After the Purchase Customer Experience" and / or "Post-Purchase Customer Experience" - "Supply Chain is "The Blind Side" of eCommerce / Commerce...you must protect your blind side" - "EDI is the original eCommerce Channel" - There are no SLAs in Retail only your promise to the customer and the customers expectation. It is time for Retail to adopt an SLA mentality. - Do not ask built for purpose applications to perform unnatural acts. - Anything can be done in software with time and money...how much time and money do you have?? - Know the difference between MISinformation and DISinformation. What nomenclature would you like to see change?? Tackle some of these ideas on this Infios on demand webinar: https://lnkd.in/e97aGfhZ #ThoughtLeadership #B2B #B2C #D2C #EDI #SupplyChain #marketplaces #CustomerExperience #Transformation #Commerce #eCommerce #Inventory

13

1 Comment

Same part. Different name. Different vendor. When every plant uses its own naming conventions and suppliers, it becomes impossible to optimize spend or inventory. 📦 No standard part descriptions 🏭 Duplicate vendors across sites 💸 Missed volume discounts Verusen brings order to the chaos with unified materials data and AI-driven insights—so you can consolidate suppliers, reduce waste, and scale smarter. Standardization = savings.

13

1 Comment