At CommerceNext today, three women leaders - Jeannie Yoo (CEO, Draper James), Sunny Jiang (CEO, EyeBuyDirect), and Stacie Henderson (CMO Americas, Tod’s Group) joined moderator Melissa Campanelli to tackle one of retail’s most urgent questions: How do you lead in the age of AI without losing the human core that makes brands resilient?
The consensus was clear: While AI is redefining what’s possible across marketing, creative, operations, and customer service, the winning retailers are those who put people, employees, and customers at the heart of every transformation.
From Experimentation to Empowerment
All three brands are early but intentional in their AI journeys. Draper James is integrating AI into marketing, creative, and finance, while EyeBuyDirect launched an AI committee that now influences over half the company’s projects. Tod’s Group has a global AI task force that tests use cases from marketing to HR.
For these leaders, success is less about speed of adoption and more about transparency and inclusion. Henderson described how her approach to introducing AI has shifted: Rather than keeping new tools behind closed doors, her team now brings employees into the process early, showing concrete examples and opening up time for human connection and creative problem-solving.
Jiang echoed this, noting that “everyone has a powerful personal assistant” with AI but leadership must move from top-down control to enablement and trust. The message: Humility, collaboration, and continuous dialogue are essential for teams to embrace new technologies with confidence, not fear.
Rethinking Structures and Mindsets
AI isn’t just about efficiency; it’s changing how organizations are structured. As Yoo observed, “Most companies are being asked to do more with less.” At Draper James, AI-powered tools are freeing up time so teams can iterate faster, test ideas, and serve customers in new ways like using generative tech to render products on multiple body types, improving both inclusivity and conversion.
The panel agreed that while technology shifts quickly, the fundamentals of retail leadership remain the same: set a clear vision, involve your team, and make customer impact the North Star.
Building Trust, Reducing Fear
Job-security anxiety around AI is real, but the panel’s advice was practical:
Lead by example, show your team how to use the tools, rather than just mandating adoption.
Provide clear “why” behind every initiative, tying AI projects to business mission and customer value.
Communicate openly and often, inviting feedback and being honest about what’s known and what isn’t.
Henderson shared how AI dramatically sped up a once-manual customer recommendation process, winning over even initially skeptical team members by demonstrating personal and business benefit. Jiang emphasized that co-creation is critical: Involve everyone, from designers to customer service, in workflow redesign and feedback loops.
Upskilling for the Future
What skills matter most now? Analytical thinking, adaptability, and a knack for asking the right questions of AI tools. The leaders encouraged teams to experiment with solutions like ChatGPT, using them for everything from first drafts to process improvements. The message was pragmatic: It’s not about replacing jobs, but removing roadblocks so employees can focus on what humans do best - creativity, judgment, and problem solving.
Yoo pointed out that, often, employees are already using AI tools informally. Her leadership lesson? “Be aware of what’s out there, listen to your team, and coach them on how to apply new capabilities strategically.”
Human-Centric Leadership: The AI Era Advantage
As the session closed, each leader shared a final lesson. Henderson urges teams to treat AI as an opportunity generator empowering everyone, regardless of title, to find one way each year to add value or cut cost, using new technology as a catalyst. Jiang distilled it further: “People are the key to transformation, not technology.”
At a time when retail is under pressure to automate, the most successful brands are those that lead with humanity, using AI not as a shortcut, but as a springboard for new ideas, deeper trust, and a more inclusive future.
🍷 Join Us for Drinks, Today!
ClickZ is hosting an exclusive drinks gathering today evening (Wednesday, June 25) and we’d love to see you there.
We’re bringing together some of the smartest minds in commerce for one evening of sharp conversation and good wine in Midtown Manhattan.
⏱ 5 PM onwards
📍 Midtwon Manhattan (exact location shared after RSVP)
🍸 Drinks on us. You in?
If you're serious about what’s coming next in commerce, this is where you’ll want to be.
Spots are limited, grab yours below.
💬 On the ground and want to connect?
The ClickZ team will be at CommmerceNext, speaking with brands about AI, measurement, and brand performance. We’re collecting insights for post-event coverage and we’d like yours in it.
📲 Like what you’re seeing?
Make sure you don’t miss us.
To keep these insights in your main inbox, follow these quick steps:
Gmail:
Mobile: Tap the 3 dots top right → ‘Move to’ → ‘Primary’
Desktop: Drag this email to your ‘Primary’ tab
Apple Mail:
Tap our email at the top → ‘Add to VIPs’Other apps:
Add [email protected] to your address book
PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
ClickZ is a ClickZ Media publication