Artificial intelligence tools enable distributors to "compete favorably in the arenas of strategic pricing, logistics and customer service" by optimizing data for decision-making, according to Dan Schuberth, chief revenue officer at the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors. Will Quinn of Infor writes that AI can help distributors optimize inventory, increase sales and find suppliers and customer discount opportunities.

Winsupply is unique among distributors in that its 640-plus businesses each have a local owner who is actively involved with day-to-day operations, according to Winsupply Acquisitions Group President Monte Salsman. That model works well with the company's focus on purpose and creating opportunity, Salsman says.

Amazon's Dash Carts will be introduced at a Boston-area Whole Foods store in the next few months, allowing customers to shop without checking out, as the smart carts track items that are placed inside them. Amazon is also introducing a larger Dash Cart at the Massachusetts store, building on the company's "Just Walk Out" cashier-less technology.

The latest generation of industrial robots can be taught new tasks on the job by their human counterparts, raising the question of whether it would simply be more efficient for the human worker to continue doing the task instead. A team led by Shivam Vats, a graduate student at Carnegie Mellon University's Robotics Institute, has developed an algorithm that helps determine when the teaching time required is worthwhile.

Activity over the past 18 months in the manufacturing supply chain has reinforced the need for strategies such as dual sourcing and contingency planning for needed parts and materials, as well as shifting some shipping costs to end users, especially for expedited shipments, write attorneys Vanessa Miller and Nicholas Ellis. "More volatility in the supply chain requires that contracts be more flexible in order to allow for a bend-but-don't-break approach to resolving challenges as they arise," they write.

Business-to-business salespeople may not pay much attention to a customer's procurement department, but they should because "[p]rocurement holds the purse strings, and it pays to gain their trust," writes Michelle Richardson, vice president for sales performance research at The Brooks Group. Richardson explains what procurement managers expect from sellers, what questions they may ask and why "it pays to make them part of the sales process as soon as possible."

Creating content that resonates with audiences and partnering with industry thought leaders on message delivery are among the strategies that could help brands connect with their target audiences, SEMRush reports in an infographic. Investing in niche publications to deploy the messages also can give the content strategy a boost.

Leaders with stinky attitudes come off as negative, pessimistic and resentful, and like any strong odor, they drive people away, writes Dan Rockwell. "Confidence, optimism, openness, interested, and curious make you fragrant like roses," Rockwell writes.

The volatility ushered in by the pandemic means the best CEOs must possess CQ, or crisis quotient, to be able to navigate disruptive environments, prioritize appropriately and translate complex issues into simpler forms, writes Adam Bryant. "A high CQ also includes the ability to lead with compassion and understanding for what people need and want, and to [be] able to balance a greater focus on listening with knowing how and when to make tough decisions," Bryant writes.

The NAW Large Company Roundtables are an exclusive community of thought leaders from Large Company distribution enterprises who congregate to network with noncompeting peers in multiple lines of trade on key issues. The companies invited into this community are from distribution firms with annual sales between $100 million and $999 million. Register today!

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