CPO Rising Series: Sam’s Club CPO on Innovating Retail Through Member-Centric Technology and AI

Ever wondered how a retail giant uses AI to let customers walk out of the store without checking a receipt? In this episode of the CPO Rising Series hosted by Products That Count Resident CPO Renee Niemi, Sam’s Club Chief Product Officer Todd Garner will be speaking on innovating retail through member-centric technology and AI. Garner shares insights into how Sam’s Club is leveraging technology like computer vision, generative AI, and member-focused design to reimagine retail from the ground up.

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Show Notes:

1. Sam’s Club uses computer vision to enable receipt-free store exits, improving customer experience by 23%
2. Bottoms-up innovation is critical – many great ideas come directly from associates and members
3. AI is transforming product management by accelerating requirement development and problem-solving
4. The future of retail merges timeless customer needs with emerging technologies
5. Product leaders must balance data-driven decisions with room for creative, surprise-and-delight experiences
6. Scan-and-go technology allows customers to checkout entirely through their mobile phones
7. Generative AI can help product teams draft user stories, PRDs, and improve overall efficiency
8. Successful product development starts with deep empathy for user experiences
9. Testing and iterating quickly is more important than having a perfect initial hypothesis
10. Product managers should be curious, data-driven, and have genuine grit around solving problems
11. Sam’s Club prioritizes a “people-powered, tech-enabled” approach to innovation
12. Hiring great product managers requires looking beyond technical skills to assess cultural fit
13. The lines between product management, UX, and engineering are increasingly blurring
14. Continuous learning and sharing emerging technology insights is crucial for innovation
15. Personalization and friction reduction are key strategies in modern retail
16. Product teams should leave approximately 20% of personalization efforts to artistic exploration
17. Collecting member and associate feedback is a structured, intentional process at Sam’s Club
18. AI can potentially help with tasks like assessing product quality (e.g., fruit ripeness)
19. Platform leverage across Walmart Inc. allows for more efficient product development
20. The best product innovations solve real, pressing problems while anticipating future needs