NRF 2025 Highlights: How Retail Is Evolving This Year and Beyond
Discover the top takeaways from NRF25 —including enhanced consumer experiences, AI innovation, frontline worker efficiency, and compliance regulations
Retail
News, trends, and insights about the retail industry.
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4 Key Trends for Retail and Hospitality Leaders in 2025
The retail and hospitality sectors are going through a period of major growth. Learn how key industry leaders are enhancing consumer experiences, bolstering workforce development, and harnessing the full potential of AI.
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Workday Retail and Hospitality Innovation Award Winners 2024
We’re delighted to celebrate retail and hospitality customers who move their business forward by innovating on the Workday platform to create great experiences for their employees and customers. Read on to learn this year’s category winners for the Workday Industry Innovation Awards.
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Workday Podcast: How Werner Enterprises Keeps America Moving With Workday
The transportation industry keeps shelves stocked and homes filled with the goods necessary for everyday life. In this episode, Daragh Mahon, EVP and CIO at Werner Enterprises, sits down with Kalan Comba, Workday CTO of Americas, to talk trends in the transportation industry and how Workday helps Werner move confidently into the future while keeping its employees at the forefront.
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How to Manage High-Volume Recruiting With Your Vendor Management System
Utilizing a vendor management system (VMS) to help your business during periods of high-volume hiring is key to an efficient recruiting strategy.
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Retail Report: Why Digital Transformation Is Non-Negotiable
In a new survey from Coresight and Workday, 45% of retail leaders said they believe AI and machine learning (ML) will help them make better business decisions. Read the new report for a deep-dive into why digital transformation is essential for retail growth and sustainability.
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Workday Podcast: What Finance Leaders Need to Start Exploring With Generative AI
Michael Schrage, a research fellow with the MIT Sloan School of Management’s Center for Digital Business, and Stacy Hilgendorf, chief accounting officer and corporate controller at Sprouts Farmers Market, talk about their approaches to artificial intelligence and generative AI, as well as the technologies’ potential benefits for the future of the finance function.
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Retail Survey: Efficient Growth Requires Finance Transformation
In a new survey, 46% of retail leaders said improving finance through transformation projects is a top priority. Read the Workday and KPMG report to learn what this means for retail CFOs.
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What’s Trending in the Grocery Industry
The next generation of grocers are constantly adapting to their customers’ needs. Value pricing, smart planning, and leveraging technologies such as AI are all key to an incredible consumer experience.
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RaceTrac Champions Data-Driven Innovation and Cost Management with Workday
Kieron Allen, analyst at Acceleration Economy, discusses the impact that Workday is having on cost control and data-driven innovation at RaceTrac.
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Retail Industry Outlook: 3 Ways Retailers Are Accelerating Their Operations
Retailers are using AI to meet evolving employee and customer expectations, and building out data capabilities to weather unexpected challenges and support future growth.
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Workday Podcast: Retail and Hospitality’s Path to Success
What’s the positive path forward for the retail and hospitality industries? Keith Pickens, managing director of retail and hospitality at Workday, shares his perspective in this installment of our Industrious podcast series.
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NRF 2024 Recap: The Future Is Today
Explore the standout insights, trends, and technological innovations from NRF 2024: Retail’s Big Show. Hear stories from Workday customers on how they’re reimagining the future of retail and delivering extraordinary customer experiences.
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Workday Podcast: NRF 2024 Recap
Hear what we learned at NRF 2024: Retail’s Big Show in this special edition of the Workday Podcast, including an interview with Workday retail expert Jen Johnson.
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Workday Retail and Hospitality Innovation Awards Winners 2023
We’re delighted to celebrate retail and hospitality customers who consistently find solutions to problems and create great experiences for their employees and customers. Read on to learn this year’s category winners for the Workday Industry Innovation Awards.
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Workday Podcast: The New Consumer Industry
Consumer expectations continue to rise in retail. How are retail leaders innovating to meet those expectations? Derrick Jenkins, a partner at Deloitte, shares his insights based on recent research on the consumer industry.
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AI and ML for Retail and Hospitality: 3 Key Opportunities
How can retail and hospitality industry leaders see past the hype and harness the power of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML)? Read on to learn the potential for AI and ML in these industries—and how human resources and finance teams are already leveraging them.
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The Future of Retail: 4 Ways to Design for What’s Next
Disruption still impacts every corner of the retail space. Business leaders and industry experts weigh in on the most compelling trends in retail, including leveraging AI for financial planning and multichannel experiences, new approaches to talent retention, and doubling down on data analytics.
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Creating Employee-First Digital Experiences at PVH Corp.
A senior HR leader at PVH Corp. (owners of the Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger brands) shares practical advice on building digital-first associate experiences for retail with Workday in a session from NRF 2023: Retail’s Big Show.
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Workday Podcast: Redesigning the Employee Experience for Frontline Workers
In this episode of the Workday Podcast, Ben Eubanks, chief research officer at Lighthouse Research and Advisory, discusses what frontline workers need for an employee experience that fosters belonging and retention. His insights are part of a Workday-sponsored report, “Frontline Workers: How to Connect, Enable, and Support Them in the Modern Workplace.”
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Frontline Workplaces: Experiencing High Turnover? The Cause May Be Your Manager
Feeling supported by their managers is the strongest indicator of a frontline employee’s sense of belonging and desire to stay, according to findings from a Workday-sponsored report. Here’s how companies can enable their frontline managers to foster an engaging employee experience.
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Retail and Hospitality: Adapting to Today, Preparing for Tomorrow
The retail and hospitality industries are constantly changing. But even with the lingering impacts of past disruption and the effects of new macroeconomic pressures, they’re still paving a way to success with innovation and flexibility.
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Spreading the Shopping Spirit Year-Round
As Christmas Tree Shops (CTS) undertakes a major expansion and rebranding effort, the retailer’s human resources director shares how the chain is driving employee engagement to boost customer service.
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Workday Study: Building the New Retail Front-Line Experience
The “Great Resignation” has slowed down, but employee burnout persists as retailers continue to try filling essential roles. In a recent study, “Empathy and Empowerment: The New Front-Line Experience” findings show, some leaders are blazing a hopeful path amid turnover woes.
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Workday Podcast: The Keys to Successful Retail Transformation
Insights, analytics, and data—three key ingredients for real retail transformation. On this podcast episode, KPMG retail expert Sam Ganga talks about what matters for retailers as they look to effectively adapt to a rapidly changing retail landscape.
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Why Future-Focused Retailers Must Ready Their Tech Foundations
To thrive in the fast-paced retail landscape, businesses must ensure their technological foundations are in good order. A great place to start? An enterprise management cloud solution.
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To Boost Agility (Even More), Retailers Must Double Down on Data
To survive (and thrive) in a fast-paced world, retailers must invest more than ever in the power of data and insights.
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From Zero to Sixty: Team Car Care Accelerates Digital Finance With Workday
At the recent IMA Accounting & Finance Conference, a finance executive at Team Car Care described his team’s journey to the Workday Enterprise Management Cloud, including financial planning, financials, and human capital management all in one system.
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Connecting Retail’s Front and Back Office
Learn why the connection between retail’s front and back office is essential for solid decision-making.
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The Power of Continuous Planning for Retail CFOs
The age of continuous planning for retail CFOs is here, and it is the key to unlocking increased efficiency, lowering costs, and forging a positive path forward, even through disruption.
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CIO View: Balancing Continuity and Innovation at Saks
CIOs walk a tightrope of continuity and innovation, especially in a fast-paced space such as retail. At NRF 2022: Retail’s Big Show, Saks CIO Mike Hite shared how he navigates this balancing act in a fireside chat with Joe Wilson, Workday’s CTO of North America.
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3 Industries Driving Customer-Centered Innovation With Cloud Technology
Learn how three industries are driving the “last mile of industry innovation” with the right cloud partner.
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How Flexibility Can Drive the Great Retention of Frontline Workers
Workplaces that employ hourly workers aren’t always known for flexibility. But technology, powered with artificial intelligence and machine learning, can help workplaces be more attractive to frontline talent. Enter flexible scheduling for frontline workers.
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3 Ways Ralph Lauren Accelerates Procurement
The global sourcing leader at Ralph Lauren shared insights and best practices for driving high-performing procurement at our Conversations for a Changing World digital event.
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Global Study: Retailers Excel at Organizational Agility
According to our latest global study, retail organizations are ahead of other sectors in understanding the importance of digital revenue and, more importantly, having the agility to act quickly on opportunities.
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Retail Workforce Management and the Great Resignation
The Great Resignation is hitting home in the retail industry. Here’s why a renewed focus on workforce management (with worker-first scheduling leading the way) could help stem the tide.
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Growing With Workday: Retail and Hospitality Leaders Share Their Stories
At a Workday digital event, Conversations for a Changing World, leaders from Sprouts and Shake Shack shared how Workday supported them through pandemic disruption—and is helping them move forward with a positive outlook.
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Workday Podcast: A Positive Look Forward for Retail CIOs
Retail CIOs have plenty on their minds, but they’re seizing the moment to help guide their organizations toward a positive future with creativity and innovation.
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Workday Industry Insights EMEA: Accelerating the Journey to Becoming a Digital Enterprise
Businesses must continue to accelerate their journey to become agile, digital enterprises that are primed to respond to unseen challenges. On 18 November, Workday Industry Insights EMEA will bring together a cross-section of industry experts who will share valuable insights on thriving in such uncertain times.
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Workday Podcast: Avon’s Secrets for a Beautiful Global Deployment
What does it mean for a beauty company to scale new systems worldwide, and how can an organization strategically plan for the challenges that arise once the deployment dust has settled? Tina Hutchinson, director of Workday operational excellence at Avon, shares her experience.
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Retail & Hospitality Industry Summit: Moving Ahead With Agility and Analytics
Business leaders in the retail and hospitality industries at a recent Workday summit talk about how they’re finding a path forward that looks less like surviving and more like thriving.
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Primark: Fashioning the Future of HR in the Retail Workplace
At our Workday Elevate Digital Experience 2021 in the UK, fashion retailer Primark shared how it brought together effective HR approaches and technology to move with agility, engage with employees, and prepare for the future.
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Workday Podcast: What Matters to Retail Frontline Workers
So much has changed in retail since the pandemic began, but not everything. Chris Cameron, managing director at Deloitte Consulting, joined us to talk about the always-important role of retail frontline workers.
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Announcing the Winners of the Workday Partner Industry Innovation Awards
The Workday Partner Industry Innovation Awards honor industry-specific solutions from our services partners built on top of Workday Prism Analytics and Workday Adaptive Planning.
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Workday Podcast: How Retail CFOs Are Innovating in Disruptive Times
The retail industry has gone through decades worth of changes since the start of the global pandemic, and retail CFOs are moving fast to ensure their companies are adapting and thriving. Experts from KPMG and Workday talk about this and more on the Workday Podcast.
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Workday Industry Insights Europe: Building a Firm Foundation for Retail Human Capital Management
At our recent digital event, Harrods and Fielmann AG talked about how having a single system with Workday helps them achieve greater business insights, stay connected with their employees, and streamline business processes.
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How 7-Eleven Is Driving Digital Innovation
As the world’s first convenience store, 7‑Eleven continues to find innovative ways to cater to a new generation of digitally-savvy shoppers. As technology evolves, the company has a vested interest in ensuring it stays two steps ahead of its customer’s needs.
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Workday to Acquire Platfora
Workday has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Platfora, a leading provider of operational analytics and data discovery tools that enable companies to visually interact with and analyze petabyte-scale data in seconds. Read more from EVP Mike Frandsen.
