United Natural Foods' acquisition of SUPERVALU has improved operational and services components and will extend its reach to most US population centers, says CEO Steve Spinner. UNFI correctly saw the consumer and supplier trends that made SUPERVALU a worthy acquisition, although it's faced unexpected challenges in the integration process, Spinner says.

A hybrid integrated supply model can help distributors provide the integrated supply solutions customers are looking for while providing automated management for non-core materials, writes Jane Liu. Choose software that offers features such as automated replenishment and reporting, digital catalog visibility, support for multiple sites and customer data privacy.

Micah Solomon advises that a customer-centric culture begins with crafting a simple statement of purpose that then forms the basis for recruitment, onboarding, internal interactions and customer service. Once this foundation is in place, "positive peer pressure will take over," he writes.

The value of leadership is simple, Jacob Morgan argues: Great leaders inspire people and attract talent, and bad leaders drive employees away and demoralize those who stay. "It's impossible to only hire superstar leaders; organizations also need to learn how to develop people internally to create great leaders," he writes.

Keep teams on task and productive by focusing on five areas: fostering a common purpose, improving connection, communicating, collaborating and celebrating success, writes Adam Hickman. "No matter the team's size, when those workers are engaged, developing, and using their strengths every day, their performance is easier to manage," he writes.

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The time has come to address your concerns about shrinking margins by upping your game on pricing decisions. If you keep doing more with less, you'll soon be doing everything with nothing. The issue of margin erosion will never end if you don't get creative -- first with your pricing methods and second with your value proposition. If you want to leverage pricing optimization best practices that are rooted in sound analytics, start by reading "Pricing Optimization."

In observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the US, SmartBrief will not publish Monday. Publication will resume Tuesday.