The pandemic has increased demand for HVAC materials and exacerbated shortages and a lack of workers, but Ferguson Enterprises is helping contractors manage, says executive Todd Young. "One of the many things we've learned from COVID-19 is the importance of adjusting to change, and so most everyone is willing to work together to find a solution," Young says.

Distributors planning growth strategy should review inventory management, pricing optimization and other areas recommended by Senthil Gunasekaran, co-founder of ActVantage. "When considering the different profitability levels between e-commerce channels and traditional channels, there's a clear need for distributors to assess their pricing strategies and optimize for changed processes," he writes.

Artificial intelligence-based solutions can help companies with their supply chain management by parsing through a large amount of data, offering deeper insights and operations visibility, and helping to improve decision-making, according to this McKinsey analysis. "However, implementation can require significant time and investments in both technology and people -- meaning the stakes are high to get it right," the authors write.

A website that offers a seamless user experience is essential to engage business-to-business buyers, and content should aim to educate, not sell, Ali Faagba writes. B2B marketers should communicate their company's differentiating value through thought leadership and other content that showcases authority, Faagba advises.

Skill building, which has grown as a priority during the pandemic, works best when businesses apply as many of nine support practices -- such as "assessing the demand and need for specific skills in the future" -- as possible, according to McKinsey analysts based on a survey about reskilling. "When companies follow all nine practices that support a skill transformation ... the odds for success are nearly guaranteed," they write.

Deloitte and the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University found in a survey of more than 250 chief strategy officers and executives that 90% of them think technology enables strategy, yet only 34% consider their companies "mature" in how they use artificial intelligence, data analytics and machine learning. "[E]xpectations for CSOs have expanded even further as they have become change agents and stewards for organizational transformation," says Deloitte Consulting's Bernardo Silva, discussing how the CSO role is evolving.

Please help NAW by participating in a 5-7-minute survey, "Post-Pandemic Leadership Strategies for Distributors," conducted by researchers at Distribution Strategy Group, to help us provide answers to support all distributors. By sharing your experiences in this completely confidential survey, you can join with hundreds of other executives in ensuring that the industry learns as much as possible from the unique experiences of 2020 and 2021. Please make sure your voice is heard in this important research project.

NAW Institute author Pradip Krishnadevarajan writes, "In our book for NAW, Sales and Marketing Optimization: Developing Competitive Value Propositions in Distribution, we provide comprehensive, research-based best practices and tactics for improving sales and marketing at your distribution company. One key tactic we explore is the "I7 Training Framework." With this framework, distribution leaders get a strategic approach to sales force training that considers individuals' experience levels and capabilities." Read his post.

Designed for C-suite executives, these NAW roundtables provide actionable strategies that will increase your company's competitive advantage. Companies belonging to this community are from distribution firms that exceed $1 billion in annual sales. You'll engage in thought-provoking conversations with your peers and hear from industry experts on topics that will ultimately increase your profits! Register today.