B2B Commerce UnCut Podcast: The Unvarnished Truth About B2B eCommerce

Oro Inc
  • 5.0 (4)
  • TECHNOLOGY

Hear what really matters in B2B. If you’re just dipping your toes in the waters of B2B eCommerce or if you’ve jumped into the deep end, we’re here to help. No BS, just honest, open talk about B2B eCommerce. Hear from thought leaders, disrupters, innovators, survivors, and winners.

  1. The Data Behind the Deal: B2B Distribution Through an FP&A Lens with Ryan Cosby

    3D AGO

    The Data Behind the Deal: B2B Distribution Through an FP&A Lens with Ryan Cosby

    Ryan Cosby, FP&A Manager at Salon Service Group, joins Aaron Sheehan for a ground-level look at B2B beauty distribution. Ryan shares how SSG manages cost-to-serve across multiple channels, wrestles with pricing complexity and margin leakage, and navigates the messy realities of month-end close. He also breaks down what vendors need to bring to the table to earn a yes from finance. Episode Highlights: 00:35 – Introduction: Meet Ryan Cosby & Salon Service Group 01:50 – How SSG's Distribution Model Works: Salons, Licenses & the Back Bar 03:25 – Cost-to-Serve: Is the Digital Channel Cheaper? 06:00 – Giving Reps Visibility Into eCommerce Behavior 07:34 – Commissioning Reps on eComm Sales and Why It Matters 08:50 – Pricing Complexity: Custom Agreements and Margin Leakage 12:40 – Sales Tax Complexity and Why SSG Uses Vertex 15:00 – The Tech Stack: System 2000, Qlik, and Excel 18:58 – Month-End Close: Reconciling Two Different Data Structures 22:07 – AI in FP&A: What SSG Is Piloting With Qlik 26:00 – What a Vendor Business Case Needs to Survive an FP&A Review 30:35 – Advice for Digital Champions Making the Case Up the Chain 34:45 – Payments Across Channels: Cards on File, Chargebacks & Debit Card Risk 39:16 – Ryan’s media recommendations Resources Mentioned: Qlik — BI and analytics tool used by SSGVertex — Sales tax automation platformImbibe Magazine — Ryan's go-to for drinks culture, recommending it as a great example of a media brand quietly and successfully reinventing itself.

    41 min
  2. AI Hype Detox for Manufacturers and Distributors with Heather Hershey

    FEB 12

    AI Hype Detox for Manufacturers and Distributors with Heather Hershey

    What happens when you drop an LLM on top of five ERPs and a decade of M&A? Aaron Sheehan and analyst Heather Hershey map the practical path: B2B use cases that work, risks that don’t, and why chunk-by-chunk modernization beats “robot, take the wheel.” Highlights 01:06 – Welcome back and introducing Heather Hershey 03:35 – Defining AI, LLMs, and RAG  09:30 – Why probabilistic AI makes ops teams nervous  11:58 – Is LLM an overkill compared to ‘boring’ machine learning and rule-based systems? 15:19 – The real blocker: fragmented data across ERPs and other systems 19:40 – The strangler pattern: modernize in chunks instead of ripping everything out 21:13 – Why commerce platforms become the orchestration layer for AI/NLP 24:37 – If you had $100K for AI: where to spend it  27:27 – Prisoner’s dilemma: agentic shopping and the disintermediation trap 34:53 – Agentic commerce predictions for B2B  40:30 – Are people replacing Google with LLMs?

    47 min
  3. The Transformation Mindset and the Power of WIFM with Kyle Gustafson

    09/01/2025

    The Transformation Mindset and the Power of WIFM with Kyle Gustafson

    This week, we met Kyle Gustafson, civil engineer by training, digital commerce expert by career. From scaling office supply giants to building businesses at Amazon, Kyle reflects on what digital transformation really takes and why WIFM – “What’s in it for me?” – is the key to adoption and growth. Highlights00:00 – Introduction: Meet Kyle Gustafson & His Career Path 02:00 – Lessons from Office Depot, Staples, and OfficeMax 04:00 – Building Private Brands and Supply Chains at Amazon 06:35 – Transformation Mindset: Thinking 20 Years Ahead 11:35  – Why Companies Call for Help: Common Consulting Triggers 17:40 – Defining eCommerce: Where’s the line?  21:33 – Why Digital Transformation Never Really Ends 28:40 – Tech Adoption and the Power of WIFM 34:10 – The Alexa Microwave Story: When Customer Value Isn’t There 39:23 – Leadership Lessons from Mentor Ron Lala 45:10 – Book Recommendations & Closing Thoughts Resources Mentioned Viktor Frankl – Man’s Search for MeaningMalcolm Gladwell – The Revenge of the Tipping PointPaul Leonardi and Tsedal Neeley – The Digital Mindset: What It Really Takes to Thrive in the Age of Data, Algorithms, and AI

    49 min
  4. People, Process, Progress: Inside ADI’s Continuous Transformation with Allie Copeland

    08/06/2025

    People, Process, Progress: Inside ADI’s Continuous Transformation with Allie Copeland

    Allie Copeland, Chief Transformation Officer at ADI Global, joins Aaron Sheehan to break down what transformation looks like in wholesale distribution. From merging companies and overhauling tech to building a customer-first culture, Allie shares how ADI keeps progress moving, even when change never ends. Episode highlights: 00:00 – Introduction: Meet Allie Copeland & ADI 02:15 – What Does a Chief Transformation Officer Do? 04:50 – Why Transformation Never Really Ends 09:15 – Turning Strategy into Action 12:54 – Upgrading Tech: From Mainframe to Microservices 18:25 – Planning for Agility, Not Just Stability 21:45 – “Even Better Together”: Customer-First M&A 25:15 – Decision-Making: When Changes Help (or Hurt) Customers 27:24 – Real Feedback: NPS, Surveys, and Store Pilots 29:30 – How Distribution is Evolving Beyond Inventory 34:32 – Culture Change: Project Avengers & Rebel Alliance 40:13 – Radical Transparency & Leading Through Uncertainty 42:35 – Leadership Lessons & Advice for Transformation 46:25 – Book Recs & Closing Thoughts Resources mentioned: • The Singularity Is Nearer by Ray Kurzweil • Apple in China by Patrick McGee

    49 min
  5. Not Just Sales: The True Value of eCommerce for B2B Brands with Jason Greenwood

    07/08/2025

    Not Just Sales: The True Value of eCommerce for B2B Brands with Jason Greenwood

    This episode tackles the real reasons manufacturers and distributors stay stuck: old systems, patchwork processes, and business habits that don’t change overnight. Jason Greenwood and Aaron Sheehan dig into what goes wrong in B2B projects, how leaders can spot roadblocks early, and why honest internal conversations matter more than buying the latest software. Key Highlights 5:00 Why B2B companies still run on spreadsheets and ancient ERPs 9:00 Shadow IT in B2B operations 11:03 Field reps aging out, digital-native buyers moving in – how it’s reshaping expectations 13:05 The real question companies ask: Should we replace the ERP or launch eCommerce first? 15:23 Customers force the issue: “We’ll switch suppliers if you don’t make it easier” 17:05 How Jason breaks the customer base into three digital adoption buckets 19:16 Manual ordering habits (screenshots, PDFs) 23:20 When eCommerce is dismissed as ‘just for small customers’ and why that’s wrong 32:00 How eCommerce automation solves pain points beyond the transactional workflow Resources Mentioned  Digital Services Layer (DSL): Jason’s concept for all the non-transactional digital capabilities customers expect.OroCommerce's AI SmartOrder: An AI-powered tool for processing unstructured purchase orders and enabling digital self-service.Upcoming Movie: A Big Bold Beautiful JourneyTop Gun: MaverickB2B eCommerce World 2025 in Scottsdale, AZ

    47 min
  6. Growth Tactics for B2B eCommerce Teams: What Most Get Wrong About Email

    06/24/2025

    Growth Tactics for B2B eCommerce Teams: What Most Get Wrong About Email

    Kyler Nixon, Co-Founder of Forward Studios, joins the show to unpack what most distributors and B2B eCommerce teams get wrong about email marketing and how to turn it into a growth channel. Drawing on first-hand lessons as a Chief Revenue Officer, Kyler breaks down how to capture more revenue, why most companies leave money on the table, and what practical steps move the needle in B2B email. Episode highlights: 00:30 – Intro: Kyler’s path from agency owner to B2B eCommerce 03:00 – What distributors get wrong about email marketing (and how Kyler found the gap) 05:42 – Planning and forecasting in distribution: What signals Kyler actually tracked 09:45 – Why the “endless aisle” is a trap for most distributors 11:40 – First growth levers: growing the sales team, fixing SEO, improving UX 16:33 – The lost revenue of not capturing email 22:40 – Personalization in B2B email: beyond “Hi, Bob” 23:50 – Simple segmentation that works: inside vs. outside the buying window 25:52 – Kyler’s 3-part B2B email marketing framework explained 32:10 – What the B2B Commerce Association adds for practitioners 37:23 – Kyler’s podcast and TV recommendations Resources Mentioned: How I Built This (podcast by Guy Raz) Wisdom from the Top (podcast by Guy Raz) Survivor (reality TV show) B2B Commerce Association The 2025 B2B Buyer Perspectives Report

    41 min
  7. Inside Schneider Electric’s Digital Transformation: AI, Marketplaces, and the Modern Customer

    06/11/2025

    Inside Schneider Electric’s Digital Transformation: AI, Marketplaces, and the Modern Customer

    In this episode, we sit down with Steven Javor, Head of Digital Customer Experience at Schneider Electric, for an inside look at how a global leader navigates the realities of digital transformation, AI, and the fast-changing world of B2B distribution. Steven shares Schneider Electric’s lessons learned from building marketplace strategies, upskilling employees in AI, and what it takes to keep up with the next generation of B2B buyers. Key Takeaways: (02:05) An intro into what Schneider Electric does (05:28) Schneider Electric’s global approach to customer experience and digital strategy (07:34) How regional differences shape digital transformation in B2B (09:08) How B2B companies can succeed with digital  (13:22) Steve’s takeaways from recent B2B Online events (15:21) The risks of not exploring and implementing digital solutions (20:33) The evolution from D2C to marketplace: supporting distributors instead of competing (24:25) Building AI competency at scale – Schneider’s internal mandate (29:10) The link between digitization, sustainability, and Schneider’s core business (31:06) Steven’s advice for digital leaders on aligning executive buy-in and driving change Thanks for listening to B2B Commerce UnCut: A Journey Through Change, powered by Oro. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review and subscribe for more real-world B2B insights.

    33 min
  8. Beyond Portals: Building B2B Brands with eCommerce Websites

    05/28/2025

    Beyond Portals: Building B2B Brands with eCommerce Websites

    Beyond Portals: Building B2B Brands with eCommerceIn this special episode, we bring you a live session from B2B Online Chicago 2025, featuring Aaron Sheehan, Head of Product Marketing at OroCommerce, and Taylor Simpson, eCommerce & Digital Marketing Strategist at Ciranda, a leading food ingredient distributor. Aaron and Taylor discuss why B2B eCommerce is about more than just portals – and how building a unified, customer-centric digital experience can transform both sales and brand value. Key Takeaways: (01:25) Why traditional portals fall short of building B2B brand trust (03:20) What's a B2B portal, and why it's not enough (04:05) Why branded websites don't drive growth either (05:38) What B2B buyers find frustrating with a current B2B commerce experience (06:50) The proposed solution: Integrating the portal and brand website into one experience (09:11) Ciranda’s journey from two sites to a single customer-first platform (12:14) Personalizing experiences for both major and long-tail food brand customers (13:50) Audience question: How are Ciranda's sales team's operations organized? (16:08) Ciranda's results one quarter after going live with OroCommerce Thanks for listening to B2B Commerce UnCut: A Journey Through Change, powered by Oro. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review and subscribe for more real-world B2B insights. #b2becommerce #distribution #digitalcommerce

    20 min
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Hear what really matters in B2B. If you’re just dipping your toes in the waters of B2B eCommerce or if you’ve jumped into the deep end, we’re here to help. No BS, just honest, open talk about B2B eCommerce. Hear from thought leaders, disrupters, innovators, survivors, and winners.

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