Amazon has ended its relationships with delivery companies Inpax Shipping Solutions, Sheard-Loman Transport and Letter Ride. The move may point to changes in Amazon's delivery practices and follows recent news reports that drivers for some of the shipping contractors were associated with fatalities.

Inventory management applications can help retailers better handle increased business from e-commerce, oversee multiple distribution centers and meet customer demands for fast delivery, Bridget McCrea writes. "Knowing where everything is at any point is really important for managing both the capacity of your building and the labor in your facility," says Norm Saenz of supply chain consulting firm St. Onge Co.

While logistics industry growth remained steady from August to September, activity has decreased substantially from 2018, according to the latest Logistics Manager's Index report. Research revealed a small amount of growth in transportation prices and the first increase in warehouse capacity since June, which could point to expansions for the upcoming holiday season.

Business-to-business marketers should create a video hub to house lead-generation content, which could include videos related to topics identified by keywords or ones that show how products solve particular challenges for target audiences, Ann Smarty writes. Use influencers for live webinars, entice leads with gated how-to videos and invite customers to co-create content, she recommends.

Gamification is often cited as a good way to incentivize learning and improve sales performance, but it can often lead to an emphasis on the game being played instead of the learning objectives identified by sales managers, writes Bryan Naas. To avoid this problem, make sure gamification is focused on performance outcomes instead of the training itself, Naas writes.

Women continue to feel pressure to be likable in their personalities and communication at work, according to a survey by Byte. Getting more goal-oriented feedback can help, but companies also need to set the tone in terms of training and diversity and inclusion, says Rosina Racioppi, president and CEO of WOMEN Unlimited.

Leaders are not making the most of one-on-one meetings if they are constantly rescheduling, unprepared or using them for status reports, writes Claire Lew. "You're not kicking off or delegating new projects, you're not defending decisions or espousing the team's vision -- you're there to figure out where your direct report is at, mentally and emotionally, and where they want to go," she writes.

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