Engage Direct Returns to Newport Beach – Now Even Better!
After incredible feedback from last year’s event, we’re excited to bring Engage Direct back to Newport Beach. This year, we’ve added even more value with Product Advisory Council (PAC) sessions for Merchandising, WMS & CRM on the afternoon of Day 1, giving you the opportunity to shape the future of Aptos products. Join us for a day and a half of accessible, interactive learning, networking and thought leadership—all in your backyard.
Aptos Engage Direct
Newport Beach
- 2:00pm – 3:00pm CRM PAC meeting*
- 3:15pm – 5:00pm Merchandising & WMS PAC Meeting*
- 5:30pm – 7:00pm Cocktail Reception
By attending an in-person Engage Direct meeting, you will gain access to virtual participation at any relevant PAC meetings hosted in another city.
- 9:00am – Engage Direct
- 5:00pm – Reception & Dinner
*Must own solution to attend PAC meetings
Newport Beach Agenda
Tuesday, May 6
1:30pm
Arrival & Check-in
2:00pm – 3:00pm
CRM Product Advisory Council Meeting*
3:15pm – 5:00pm
Merchandising & WMS Product Advisory Council Meeting*
5:30pm – 7:00pm
Cocktail Reception
*Must own product to attend PAC session.
By attending an in-person Engage Direct meeting, you will gain access to virtual participation at any relevant PAC meetings hosted in another city.
Wednesday, May 7
9:00am – 9:15am
Registration & Settle in
9:15am – 10:00am
Welcome to Aptos Engage Direct! Take this opportunity to get to know your fellow attendees and share what you hope to learn at the event.
10:00am – 10:20am
Aptos General Manager Jeremy Grunzweig will review Aptos’ overall progress to date and where the company is headed for 2025 and beyond.
10:20am – 10:50am
Catch up with Aptos CTO, Tushar Sachdev, on a range of transformative initiatives that are geared to speed delivery, reduce testing burdens and modernize integration for Aptos customers.
10:50am – 11:10am
Morning Break
11:10am – 11:30am
Key to delivering our technology transformation is Aptos’ architecture and data strategy. Hear from John Carney, our lead architect, on key architecture initiatives like event-driven architecture, data sharing and more.
11:30am – 12:00pm
While Aptos has been focused on POS as the lead solution for Aptos ONE, our Unified Commerce Platform is now much more than POS. Catch up on the latest in Aptos ONE capabilities and where the platform is headed next.
12:00pm – 1:00pm
Lunch
1:00pm – 1:20pm
Retail is always a top-tier target for hackers and bad actors, and with the rapid adoption of GenAI, everything from technical attacks to social engineering have become easier and more sophisticated. Get Aptos’ take on this evolving landscape from CIO Jason James.
1:20pm – 1:40pm
Payments innovation has accelerated in recent years and does not look to slow down soon. Mike Hughes will review the Aptos approach to Payment Connector, and recent developments that make it easier than ever for retailers to add innovative payment options going forward.
1:40pm – 2:00pm
Accepting preorders, pre-authorization, order modification, even order cancellation – these are all capabilities that we’ve heard from retailers as priorities. Helen Fourtounis will lead a discussion on the opportunities and the barriers as we look to more sharply define how we support early-stage order activities.
2:00pm – 2:20pm
Case Study
2:20pm – 2:40pm
As retailers look to increase the leverage and performance of stores, one topic of interest is how to use store associates as an extension of call center customer service. Mike and Helen will lead a discussion of considerations needed to bring in-store customer service to life, including Pay By Link, customer data access, appeasement, returns and more.
2:40pm – 3:00pm
John Carney will walk through our new standardized integration patterns, where and how they will be applied going forward, and what that means for your speed of deployment, ease of upgrades and options for integration self-service.
3:00pm – 3:30pm
Afternoon Break
3:30pm – 3:50pm
Carl Nemec, Aptos North American Professional Services Lead, will provide an update on several PS initiatives that are driving faster, higher quality delivery engagements.
3:50pm – 4:10pm
Case Study
4:10pm – 4:30pm
An overview of the AI platforms that Aptos can leverage, and where we are bringing AI elements into the Aptos suite.
4:30pm – 5:00pm
Aptos leadership team members come together to answer any questions you want to ask.
5:00pm
Jeremy Grunzweig will offer closing comments on the day before directing you to our reception and dinner plans.
5:15pm
Reception & Dinner
Agenda subject to change
Speakers
Jeremy Grunzweig
General Manager
Tushar Sachdev
CTO
Ian Auerbach
VP, Product Management
Nikki Baird
VP, Strategy
John Carney
VP, Architecture
Helen Fourtounis
VP, Merch & Omnichannel Strategy
Mike Hughes
VP, Customer Engagement
Jason James
CIO
Meeting Location
Hyatt Regency Newport Beach, a resort-style hotel adjacent to the Upper Newport Bay Ecological Reserve, is nestled among 26 acres featuring hundreds of palms and succulents. Renowned locally as “The Newporter,” as Hyatt Regency Newport Beach was previously named, the hotel’s team has been creating memories for over five decades for guests and locals alike. Access our three unique pools, an executive golf course and a rich history as a live music venue for the acclaimed Newport Beach Jazz Festival and Summer Concert Series.
Hotel & Accommodations
Aptos has a block of rooms at Hyatt Regency Newport Beach for a rate of US $239 plus applicable taxes/fees per night. The room block will close on Monday, April 14, so be sure to book your reservation today.