IKEA's Barbara Martin Coppola on COVID-19, the climate, and its tech and data transformation

When most of IKEA’s global retail locations closed temporarily during the pandemic, e-commerce became the cornerstone of the business. This near overnight shift was possible, in part, thanks to a digital transition that was already several years underway, one of the biggest in the company’s 78-year-history. Barbara Martin Coppola, an alum of Google and Samsung, was hired in 2018 as the company’s first-ever Chief Digital Officer to lead this transition, using data and technology to modernize everything from IKEA’s supply chains, to its stores to the way its staffers work. In this episode, Coppola shares the leadership lessons she’s learned and why she believes in resilience and “stubborn optimism.” She also shares and the experiences that have prepared her to tackle big challenges including early music studies. 

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