Ace Hardware reported $60.3 million in third-quarter earnings on $1.53 billion in revenue. Sales on the company's website increased 81% year over year, while overall revenue was up by 7.2%.

Amazon has announced the Dash Smart Shelf, which will allow businesses to automatically reorder supplies or receive low-inventory notifications. The shelves, which have not been released, will allow Amazon to compete with Staples' auto-restocking service and Office Depot's supply subscription offering.

Supply chain managers must be prepared to deal with the effects of an economic slowdown -- namely excess inventory, pricing pressures and empty warehouse space, Craig Guillot writes. That means paying attention to suppliers' financial health and to what other departments are noticing, he writes.

Cyberattacks in the third quarter were frequently directed at transportation, delivery and storage businesses, according to a report by cybersecurity company Mimecast. Josh Douglas, Mimecast's vice president of threat intelligence, said companies need to focus on email security and educate employees, which he called "the last line of defense."

A new report from Medallia and Accenture provides insights into how business-to-business marketers are performing with customer experience, including that leading companies collect multiple types of digital feedback to improve the customer experience across websites, purchasing and more. The study also reveals that leaders in the space are more likely to operate a model where accountability for customer experience is shared between a dedicated unit and other business teams.

Leaders can inspire loyalty when they listen, provide chances for small wins, make others feel valued and have a forward-moving vision, writes Lolly Daskal. "It is the leader who constantly challenges the status quo, who is not happy with keeping things the same, that people love working with," Daskal writes.

A study suggests that algorithms are better at predicting which jokes people will find funny, yet people's perceived trust in AI for recommendations is lagging. Trust increased after people understood what the algorithm was and how it works, researchers said.

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