“Ecommerce Infrastructure Along the New Silk Road”

After 20+ years running software startups, Scott Rafer is creating innovation partnerships between a bunch of great startups in ecommerce, logistics, and content and the incumbents across the world who must learn to compete with Amazon, Alibaba, and Tencent/JD/Walmart. Those three internet giants are deploying Machine Learning systems across their consumer-facing infrastructures and Transpacific supply chains that will further accelerate their growth. Their own methods must be used to compete against them and soon.

Rafer is also co-founder, director, and/or board observer at Mashery (acquired by Intel), MyBlogLog (acquired by Yahoo!), Flow.space, Shiphawk, Shippabo, Nanigans, Newswhip, ShopPad, and Zemanta (acquired by Outbrain). Check out linkedin.com/in/rafer, @rafer of you are a founder, read the VC Idiot Tests on rafer.net/search/idiot.

The Talk Synopsis:

Rafer is going to speak about ecommerce within markets like North Macedonia and its proximity/participation in the supply chains between Asia and Europe. The ecommerce giants that are driving the larger markets care a lot about the stops along the way and must be faced with partners and local expertise.

How the New Silk Road is impacting the economies in the Balkans? How can local players thrive and compete?

Restoring Trust in a Digital World

Charlie is responsible for a major new global business within Mastercard focused upon digital identity services. This involves platform & service definition, go-to-market strategy, and associated partnership strategies within our target markets.

Prior to joining Mastercard, he was responsible for government-related digital identity services within Idemia which included the development of a company strategy along with initial country digital identity ecosystem establishment in bringing the UK Verify standard into the private sector. Prior, he was CEO of Toronto-based SecureKey and responsible for the launch and growth of the SecureKey Concierge Network, a federated authentication system based upon the bank, mobile network operator, and government collaboration in the Canadian market.

Most of Charlie’s career has been focused on innovation and product development in the information security industry. As COO for Aix-en-Provence based INSIDE Secure, he was responsible for business strategy, product strategy and development, and launch of new security-relevant semiconductor products for the bank card, physical access control, and NFC mobile device markets. His early career included the founding of Caradas, a security services company in the bankcard industry; COO at Certco which was the founding ground for the bank security consortium Identrus; founder of the GTE Cybertrust PKI business; and multiple roles in large-scale secure system development at GTE for Navy and NSA in the US.

Charlie holds a bachelor’s degree in Computer and Systems Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic in Troy New York. He currently lives near Boston, MA.

The Talk Synopsis:
This session will address the role that digital identity plays in transforming consumer relationships with digital service providers.

“Making women digital entrepreneurs a force for inclusive growth”

Candace is passionate about empowering people by improving their lives, businesses and career using innovation and digital technology. After working for L’Oréal in Marketing, she started her career as a consultant in the fields of innovation, telecommunications and digital economy in Africa, Europe, and Asia.  From 2014 to 2017 Candace was the country manager of the eCommerce website Jumia Market in Cameroon, helping local merchants to generate additional revenue, by teaching them how to use the internet to sell beyond their physical shop and beyond their city.  Candace also worked as a coaching facilitator for Stanford University, helping SMEs leaders across Africa to scale-up their business using innovation and contributed to various corporate or social initiatives as a coach, trainer, mentor or speaker.

Candace has a deep passion for Women Empowerment and spent a fair share of her time contributing to women career and personal development by sharing insights from her experience. She won the McKinsey Next Generation Women Leader Award in 2017 for her work in that field and her coaching activities. Her work has been acclaimed by several international media outlets such as Forbes.

Candace now works with the United Nations, leading an initiative called eTrade for Women, an which aims at making women digital entrepreneurs in developing countries a Force for Inclusive Wealth Creation and Development.

“How eCommerce Websites can and Should Gain from Organic (Free) Visitors to Their Websites”

Peter has more than 15 years of experience in online marketing with a specific focus in Search Engine Optimization. In all this time he worked on the client’s side, on the agency’s side and as the owner of a company, so he can understand all the different obstacles you might see. Right now he is a marketing consultant in the region. With that, he is helping companies and agencies to set up, manage and improve their internal marketing teams and expand their reach to new channels. Start-ups at the beginning of their journey and big companies with billions of income rely on his marketing advice.

He has been selected as the best conference speaker multiple times, is a member of the jury on several marketing awards and is the host of different podcasts.

The Talk Synopsis:

Do you know the old joke, what does a policeman say when he sees a banana peel? Well, nothing against policemen and women, but in marketing, we often see people do the same mistake over and over again. Every company that owns a website, makes them And it makes me sad seeing how you waste money in achieving great SEO rankings. This is why I’ve collected the top 5 things that I feel are the mistakes you are going to make and I’ll try to stop you from making them.

“The Proven 7-Stage Framework: Learn How to Build a Fast Growing International eCommerce Business from Scratch”

Rok is an international ecommerce growth leader with a rich history of developing ecommerce businesses in Europe. He previously built the ecommerce business for Studio Moderna across 22 CEE markets and is now an executive director at Sensilab, where he grew the ecommerce business from 1 market to 23 countries across the EU. Based on his experience in building the Studio Moderna ecommerce business across the CEE and now most recently the Sensilab ecommerce business across the EU, Rok Hrastnik will take you through the 7 crucial phases to international ecommerce leadership. Business models, growth engines, growing organizations and ultimately strategic sustainability.

The Talk Synopsis:

Learn how to build a fast growing international ecommerce business from scratch. Based on his experience in building the Studio Moderna ecommerce business across the CEE and now most recently the Sensilab ecommerce business across the EU, Rok Hrastnik will take you through the 7 crucial phases to international ecommerce leadership. Business models, growth engines, growing organizations and ultimately strategic sustainability.

Vanya Manova is accountable for the development and implementation of Mastercard’s local business strategy. In her role, Vanya drives innovation in both markets, related to Mastercard new tech solutions’ expansion and electronic payments’ growth, and further strengthen the collaboration and partnership with key customers, governmental bodies and the public sector.

After 20 years’ experience in banking sector Vanya Manova joined the Bulgarian team of Mastercard in 2008 as an Account Manager. Over the past few years, she has driven the local business operations and has helped to position Mastercard as a strategic partner for both end customers and non-traditional partners including local government institutions and regulatory bodies. She led the launch and growth of contactless payments in Bulgaria & Macedonia making Mastercard the ultimate leader in contactless field within these markets.

Marko Ilić is a pioneer in the e-commerce industry in Serbia and a professional who has worked on the development of the largest e-commerce stores in the country. Marko was part of the team that built the first “click and mortat” store in Serbia, e-Dućan, 15 years ago. After a brief outing in the online gambling industry (IGT), Marko went back to e-commerce as the CEO of one of the largest e-stores in the region, NonStopShop. After that, he worked on building the award-winning portal TakoLako on Magenta. Marko is currently working on the project Dijaspora.Shop, an e-commerce platform that was recognized as the best e-shop in Serbia by the renowned IT magazine PC Press.

Marko is the co-founder of the Serbian e-Commerce Association.

"Grow with Data through A/B testing"

Gorjan originally comes from the small country of Macedonia, but moved to The Netherlands in 2015 after getting his bachelors Computer Science and Engineering degree in Skopje. He graduated “cum-laude” as a Master of Software Engineering at the University of Amsterdam in 2016 and is now working as a developer & team leader in Booking.com. 

Being involved in the 3000 strong eco-movement in Macedonia since 2014, he actively looks for ways on how technology and data can contribute towards the battle against air pollution. Following this passion, he build the MojVozduh (The Air App) air-quality tracking app, which is being used by over 100.000 people in Macedonia. The desire to spread Macedonia’s story together with his love for public speaking, Gorjan has held both tech and motivational talks on numerous conferences, even being invited to hold his own TED talk in 2018 under the name “The Data I Breathe”.

The Talk Synopsis:

Do you think that you know what’s best for your users? What if I told you that 90% of your decisions could be wrong? Booking.com is a data-driven company, so any changes to our product are tested by our users with an A/B testing methodology, to either confirm or deny our presumptions. Find out how we employ this methodology on millions of users per day, what issues you can overcome using A/B testing, and things to watch out for when implementing it in your products.

“Grow with the Future of Commerce”

Amanda has worked in the retail sector in various guises for over a decade. She cut her strategic teeth working on a number of UK and European retailers including Matalan, Marks & Spencer, Smyths Toys Superstores; most notably overseeing the meteoric rise of Aldi in the UK.

Amanda has been Planning Director at McCann Manchester, the networks global retail centre of excellence, for a number of years; before taking up the Role of Chief Strategy Officer at McCann Bucharest our regional hub in CEE.

The Talk Synopsis:

Today, shoppers are thinking about everything from where their ingredients are sourced, through to the technology used in factories, all the way to the final mile of product delivery. But the fact is, despite all of the changes to the landscape, timeless fundamentals of good retail remain – from the joy of discovery, through to the satisfaction of great customer service…it’s just the way that we experience them has changed. My presentation – ‘Grow with the Future of Commerce’ – will explore just how much the retail environment has shifted and why we need to have a more expansive conversation about it in order to ensure our future growth.

Damjan Manchevski is the Minister of Information Society and Administration since June 1, 2017. Mr. Manchevski has more than ten years of professional working experience in ICT sector, as manager and executive director of several companies. Between 2005 and 2006 he has worked as Engineer for radio frequencies in the Agency for Electronic Communications (AEC).

His vision as Minister of Information Society and Administration is to work together with the ICT companies towards creating innovative solutions for strengthening the effectiveness of public policies and introducing new technological processes to increase productivity, making Macedonia an example for the region regarding the digital transformation. Together with his team, Mr. Manchevski will work on creating accountable and transparent public administration which will serve the citizens, through the re-establishment of the merit system and strengthening the training programs for the administrative servants. The public administration reform (PAR) will be conducted in an open, consultative process together with the civil society, trade unions, chambers and other relevant stakeholders.

Nina Angelovska is the Minister of Finance of the Republic of North Macedonia since August 2019. Her life journey testifies of commitment and passion for problem solving which ultimately got her to lead an instrumental Ministry in a fresh and thriving way. She believes that through digital innovation, fintech and strong commitment to developing human potential, she can manage the money of citizens to much better serve sustainable economic development.
Angelovska holds a Ph.D. in Management, sits on the Board of the European Ecommerce Association (EMOTA) and founded the Macedonian E-commerce Association. In her early twenties, Minister Nina Angelovska co-founded the first deal platform and leading e-commerce company in North Macedonia, Grouper.mk, that transformed the e-commerce market in the country. She worked as a business development and e-commerce consultant, and her work has been recognized as “Forbes 30 Under 30” in Retail and E-commerce in Europe in 2018. Angelovska frequently speaks at conferences and events on entrepreneurship, business development, marketing, gamification and e-commerce around the globe.
As a person who has actively contributed in the public-private dialogue and has advocated for evidence-based policy reforms in the fiscal sector, Nina embarked on a journey to make some of those reforms happen. While serving as a role model, particularly for women and digital entrepreneurs, Nina wants to inspire young people to step out of their comfort zone and make North Macedonia a great place to be.

MSc Gjoko Тanasoski is a Director General of the Customs Administrations of the Republic of Macedonia. He is a graduate Mechanical Engineer of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at the University “St. Cyril and Methodius” Skopje. He continued his formal education after graduation and specialized in two specific domains: – Master In Mechanical Engineering (postgraduate in Industrial Engineering and Management at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at the University “St. Cyril and Methodius” Skopje) – Study programme for Business Administration – MBA Executive (CITY Liberal Studies–Affiliated Institution of the University of Sheffield, Thessaloníki, Greece).

He has extensive working experience of over 20 years in international companies specialized in industrial purchasing, on top-level management positions (Fulda DOOEL, CIMOS DOOEL, LTH Castings DOOEL). Also, he has experience in the field of international Insurance companies (EUROLINK Insurance AD Skopje and Croatia Insurance AD Skopje). As a director general, his vision is to make Customs Administrations of the Republic of Macedonia the most advanced Customs Administration in the region which strongly supports the legal economy, fully in line with Europian Union standards.