Builders FirstSource announced Thursday that it is purchasing BMC Stock Holdings, creating a combined company with about $5.5 billion in market value. BMC CEO Dave Flitman will run the business after the all-stock deal closes.

Employees of Crescent Electric Supply quickly responded with supplies and cleanup assistance after a derecho struck eastern Iowa. "Every team member has had a role to play in the relief effort," CEO Scott Teerlinck said.

The rate of positive drug urine tests among US workers reached 4.5% last year, a 16-year high, according to Quest Diagnostics. Positive tests for marijuana have increased almost 30% over the past five years as many states legalized recreational use.

Distributors can get the most out of their warehouses by reevaluating how they use spaces, places and people, consultant Keith Johnson writes. Getting rid of old or slow-moving products and having regular inventory assessments are two ways to minimize clutter, he writes.

Research indicates that the majority of people believe product or service explainer videos play a role in making a buying decision, writes Osama Khabab. He offers tips for creating a compelling explainer video and urges executives to focus first "on building a personal connection with the audience."

Feedback conversations can take many forms, but ideally focus on "one specific and observable behavior and then the consequence," at least to start, writes David Grossman. Tell employees "that you expect them to feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and other ideas with you in the spirit of continuous improvement," he adds.

Resilience is a quality best demonstrated by how you move forward, whether through new possibilities, getting rid of clutter or connecting with people around you, writes Eileen McDargh. "Remind yourself of a time some event struck, and you didn't think you could get through it: a death, divorce, job loss, diagnosis, you name it, and identify what brought you through the event," she writes.

Register now for NAW's September 24 live webinar, "How Distributor Customers Will Use Technologies From Their Suppliers and Who Is Winning." Leading technology companies are offering customers new ways of ordering. Retailers and distributors are using AI-enabled business intelligence to understand customer needs better and are applying autonomous vehicles, including drones, for deliveries. Ian Heller and Jonathan Bein will delve into how important all of this is to customers and whether distributors need to build technological capabilities to remain competitive.

NAW Institute for Distribution Excellence Fellow Mark Dancer says he's learned from many distributor leaders that a company's culture is determined not only by its values, but by the particular employee behaviors that are most aligned with achieving its ideals. A positive, well-managed culture will drive productivity, reinforce customer experiences and enable innovations. A negative culture, however, can kill strategic initiatives and demolish returns on investment. Read his blog post.

Are you well-informed about different best practices and knowledge in our industry? If not, NAW's Top 10 E-book List can help get you up-to-speed quickly so you and your business can stay competitive in these challenging times.