What Went Down at Our Virtual Fireside Chat with Square Canada Head of Product Marketing, Michelle Yee

Earlier this month, Maclean’s welcomed Michelle Yee, Head of Product Marketing at Square Canada as the inaugural guest in its First Person virtual fireside chat series. In conversation with Jason Maghanoy, publisher of Maclean’s, the two discussed how Square is evolving its product to meet the needs of its customers, particularly in the hospitality space.

As head of product marketing, Yee leads product marketing and commercialization strategy in Canada for Square, a fintech company known for its POS business technology platform that allows business owners to sell anywhere with ease. A proud Toronto native and Queen’s Commerce graduate, she has over a decade of experience in the technology and payments sectors, with a perspective shaped by her work across Canada, the UK, the US, and Asia.

Innovating with Canadian Businesses in Mind

Maghanoy kicked off the conversation by asking how her stints in various markets have impacted her approach; Yee stressed that while each market has nuances that must be taken into account, Canadians have a different relationship than their American counterparts with their money and financial institutions, with a focus on earned trust in the technology.

Square was founded on the ideas of economic empowerment and the democratization of commerce. Yee explains, though, that Square is evolving to provide full business services to help Canadian business thrive and innovate, with a relentless focus on solving customer pain points, especially for community-based businesses like restaurants and bars. Case in point: the recent launch of Square Handheld, a durable pocket-sized POS device which untethers sales from the counter and takes them tableside, to patios or even to customers waiting in line.

Embracing Change and Future Possibilities

Yee is excited about the possibilities of AI to help businesses unlock productivity. In the US, Square is already integrating AI into the onboarding journey to help businesses set up faster, as well as supporting them with AI-generated marketing assets. AI is also accelerating the scale-up of new SKUs for retailers or changing menus at restaurants.

What does Yee see for Square’s future? As businesses face an uncertain economic future, the focus is on product iteration and sophistication to create the new tools they hear their partners need to create resilient businesses.

Watch the Full Fireside Chat

For deeper insights and a full conversation with Michelle Yee and Jason Maghanoy, watch the complete fireside chat below.