Women like to play games.

So says Mindy Grossman, chief executive officer of HSN, who in a move to encourage consumers to visit the shopping site—without feeling pressured to buy something—introduced the HSN Arcade, a gaming portal for women that offers crossword, backgammon and solitaire among its dozens of game options.

“There is a real shift in consumer behavior that is driven by technology, social networks and mobility,” announced Mindy, speaking at the National Retail Federation’s Annual Convention & Expo, on a panel addressing customer happiness.

At HSN that has meant sharing educational stories of its products, delivering social content and, of course, offering games. “We stream live video [from the shopping channel] so if they see something they really like while playing a game they can interrupt the game, buy it and come back,” acknowledged Mindy. “But it really is about trust and generosity so they choose to transact with you.” “It just logged its 100 millionth game play.”

Corporate values are also becoming more important to consumers when deciding whom to do business with. Joseph Magnacca, president of Daily Living Products and Solutions for Walgreens, said during crises like Hurricane Sandy, “We want to be the last retailer to close and the first one to open” in order to provide what the community needs, whether it is water or a power station for residents to recharge their phones.

“Our business focuses on health, beauty and convenience. We touch 6 million customers a day. We try to be responsive to the particular community with both products and services,” said Joe. “Gone are the days when you build a 14,000 or 18,000 square foot store that is the same across the marketplace.”

A cultural change at Walgreens has reenergized the employee experience. There have been improvements to the discount program and more of a team approach to store sales and product news. “We share with [employees] key metrics on our private label brands. It is something that drives profitability and customer loyalty. We encourage them to experience and sample the products so they can become ambassadors for the brand in-store and outside the store, which is equally important.”

In the past, he added, retail turnover was seen as a good thing because it could bring down the average wage rate. “We look at it in complete reverse today.”

Mindy said HSN hires people who fit in its culture of “energy givers, collaborators and communicators.” Staff retention is high priority. “We have an incredibly complex business. We plan by the minute, so it takes awhile for somebody to get the rhythm. If you lose someone you have to retrain all over again.”

And with an emphasis on women’s and children’s causes, HSN has made philanthropy and service a corporate theme. Although not mandatory, each employee is offered two paid days off each year to do charity work.