PolyOne is among resin distributors offering products that can be called sustainable, with over 30 such materials available. While suppliers are now asking about sustainability, "it's only translated into inquiries at this point" for M. Holland, says President and CEO Ed Holland.

Wilbur-Ellis provides customers with access to lawn care, forestry, turf and other products under its pro markets umbrella to serve buyers in one place, says employee Mike Parks.

Most small distributors lack a digital presence, as well as the requisite talent and product data to succeed in that area, writes Remi Ducrocq. Distributors can overcome some of these challenges through a subscription to an outside service provider with relevant industry experience, Ducrocq writes.

Business-to-business marketers must arm development teams, sales colleagues and other stakeholders with the data they need to play their part in improving customer experience, Kris Goldhair writes. Adopt tools to integrate and share information across departments to ensure buyers are served with relevant experiences across all touch points in their journey, he advises.

It's important to calculate and document sales employee turnover rates on a regular basis to make sure your company is doing a good job of retaining talent, writes AJ Beltis. Provide fair compensation, improvement plans and transparency regarding sales plans and career opportunities to keep top employees around.

The field of neuroplasticity could shed light on how our brains are negatively affected by toxic work cultures, says S. Chris Edmonds in this blog post and video. Conversely, he argues, we know that healthy workplaces help employees "invest their heads, hearts and hands in the organization's success and sustainability every day."

When learning new skills, pick only a couple and try to select goals that force you beyond your comfort zone, Henna Inam writes. She offers four questions to uncover the values and skills you desire, including your most important value and a behavior that inspires you.

Two things are clear: major portions of the sales process will be digitized, and the sales force isn't going anywhere. What portions will be digitized and what new value-add will be created? What will remain in the hands of the sales force? Find out the answers to these questions and more by joining this cutting-edge consortium, and you'll be ahead of the rest of the industry. Get details and sign up by Aug. 31.

The NAW Certificate in Distribution Professional Management Program is ideal for high-potential managers who seek to complement their professional development with a strong emphasis on practical application within the distribution field. There are three separate, one-week sessions held at Texas A&M University, and they focus on Optimizing Distributor Profitability, Generating and Managing Growth, and Distributor Capability Development. These sessions are designed to help companies retain and further develop their key employees. Get all details.

NAW's groundbreaking research study, "Optimizing Channel Profitability: A Playbook to Align Manufacturer-Distributor-Customer Relationships," is distributors' key to implementing channel management best practices. Purchase copies for not only your internal team, but for your manufacturer partners, too. You'll find 24 best practices on channel design and management from actual distributors and manufacturers, 44 ready-to-implement action steps, and 38 real-world distributor and manufacturer examples to benchmark against. Act by Aug. 31 and you'll save 10% on every copy.