Sysco to transform Calif. DC into an EV hub | Will there be a recession this year? Economists weigh in | Research: Amazon's March-quarter retail sales exceed expectations
Sysco said it plans to transform its Riverside, Calif., distribution center into an electric-vehicle hub, with 40 charging stations, increased solar power, battery storage and 80 electric vehicles and refrigerated trailers. The food distributor said that by 2030, it plans to make 35% of its US tractor fleet electric and aims to meet all its energy needs through renewable sources.
The economic outlook appears to have brightened, with a recent poll finding that a majority of economists believe there is a 50% or lower chance of a recession during the next 12 months. The survey, taken earlier in April by the National Association of Business Economics, marks an improvement from a January poll.
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(4/20)
Social Commerce: Back to basics US consumers have shifted their buying habits, making social media a key part of the sales process. Join experts from SmartBrief and Square as they discuss how to take advantage of consumers' new shopping habits and tap into social media. Watch now.
Three years after the initial jolt of the coronavirus pandemic shook supply chain to its breaking point, companies are aiming less for quick fixes and instead continuing their focus on nimble capabilities and long-term resilience strategies, say experts such as Yossi Sheffi, director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Center for Transportation and Logistics. The added costs of broadening the supplier roster and relying less on Asia are justified by the stronger likelihood of surviving future disruptions, consultant Rick Gabrielson says.
Loss of transportation and warehousing jobs over the past six months is in relation to the pandemic-driven demand for those positions, and employers are now "rightsizing their workforce now that the pandemic's influence on consumer behavior has subsided," with the supply chain industry "ripe for a more normal [fourth-quarter] experience," writes Travis Turner of ProDrivers. However, Turner anticipates that demand for truck drivers will remain elevated despite Bureau of Labor Statistics figures showing that 9,000 fewer such jobs were added in February.
Online content that addresses customers' problems, together with using artificial intelligence tools to create it, are at the forefront of digital marketing for 2023, writes Andy Betts, global adviser and consultant. "Old content strategies must be updated for multiple new digital experiences across critical moments in the customer journey," Betts writes.
Sales leaders who are charismatic, terrific at making connections, welcoming and skilled at creating collaboration have what experts including Jaclynn Robinson, a senior Gallup learning and development consultant, call "woo." In this podcast, Robinson and colleague Jim Collison explain how to lead a sales team with woo and notes that not all those with woo need to be leaders, because some are better at bringing teams together or giving magnetic pitches while letting others handle closing a sale.
Whether it's MillerKnoll CEO Andi Owen telling employees to leave "pity city" for their concerns over bonuses or ClearLink CEO James Clarke praising a worker for rehoming the family dog to come back to the office, tone deaf leaders are nothing new, but for those who want to avoid backlash, a little empathy can go a long way, writes Chris McGugan, the CEO of Televerde. Empathetic leaders listen first to employee concerns and strive to communicate in ways that make their teams feel heard and valued, McGugan emphasizes.
Remote work involves trade-offs for staff, with younger workers receiving less feedback and potentially being more likely to quit, per research focusing on engineers by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Harvard University and the University of Iowa. The findings suggest that the office environment can play a key role in the career development of some white-collar knowledge workers, because some mentoring and training can't easily be done through video and chat interactions.
