๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ฌ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐๐ซ๐๐ ๐จ๐ซ๐ ๐๐ง๐ข๐ฌ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐จ๐ ๐ญ
By Declank ยท October 22, 2026 ยท Curated by George's Blog
๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ฌ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐๐ซ๐๐ ๐จ๐ซ๐ ๐๐ง๐ข๐ฌ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐จ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ ๐ฅ๐จ๐จ๐ค ๐ฅ๐ข๐ค๐?
Another excellent session at The Digital Shelf Institute's London summit - hosted by Kavita Cariapa (dentsu), with Charlotte B. (ADM), Jason Simpson (Lactalis Group) and Guy Keeling (Barilla Group).
This is a question that we are frequently asked. There is no single answer. These decisions need to be taken by leadership teams based on the structure and dynamics of their organisation and routes to market.
Key themes:
There is no perfect organisational model. eCommerce can sit in Sales/Commercial, Marketing, Shopper, Category or somewhere in between. What mattered more to the panel was clarity on the outcome, a strong North Star, and the ability to influence across functions.
๐๐ฎ๐๐ ๐๐ญ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฐ๐๐ฒ. Jason's example: in an omnichannel world, traditional 'trade budget' versus 'marketing budget' structures increasingly make little sense. If the same activity is supporting shopper conversion, media and customer activation, internal accounting silos can actively slow better decisions.
๐๐จ๐๐๐ฅ ๐ซ๐๐ฅ๐๐ฏ๐๐ง๐๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ฌ. Lactalisโs model is highly decentralised, built around strong local businesses. Jasonโs point was that the answer is not to force every market into one global model, but to understand the customer and shopper context in each market while recognising where there is much more commonality than people sometimes admit.
๐๐ฐ๐ง ๐ฐ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐ญ๐๐ ๐ข๐๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฉ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ๐๐ง๐ญ. Charlotte made the case that brands need to retain ownership of the things that define them: brand strategy, first-party data and key internal capabilities. Agencies and partners can fill execution gaps, but you cannot outsource understanding of your own brand.
One of Guy's (hands-down the most entertaining and experienced panelist of the day!) strongest points was around people and partnerships. After nearly three decades in ecommerce, his view was that the best partnership decisions come down to ๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฉ๐๐จ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐, not just buying the logo or the technology.
The future may require better technology, better data and more AI, but ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ๐ ๐๐๐ฏ๐๐ง๐ญ๐๐ ๐ still depends on judgement, culture, distinctiveness and people who understand what makes their organisation different.
My takeaway from the panel:
The organisation of the future wonโt be defined by where ecommerce sits on an org chart. It will be defined by whether the organisation is customer-led, clear on ownership, flexible with investment, ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐ง๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐ข๐ญ๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ง๐๐ฅ ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐๐ฌ and confident enough not to outsource its own point of view.
Credit again to Kavita, the panelists, and to Lauren Livak Gilbert and Jamie Clapper - really engaging session full of practical advice.
#ecommerce #digitalcommerce #benchmarking #innovation #cpg #fmcg