This year will likely present "an economic soft landing as opposed to a recession," and M. Holland expects "steadily improving demand for the plastics industry as businesses work through excess inventories accumulated as a hedge against supply chain disruptions," said executive Dwight Morgan. New polyethylene and polypropylene capacity in the US and China should also help shore up resin supplies, said Morgan.

Lineage Logistics will expand its fresh storage solution service to Europe. The service, called Lineage Fresh, opened in the US last November, meeting the needs of grocers, importers and other businesses.

Third-party financing is "becoming the go-to strategy," because it gives buyers a financial cushion and domino effect of other benefits, while getting sellers paid faster and strengthening those relationships, Jamie Clemons of Artis Trade writes. Clemons outlines other benefits for both sides -- such as reducing risk -- and explains why automating the process can make it more effective.

Gartner's "Future of Supply Chain" report finds that only 23% of the supply chain leaders surveyed emphasize customer enablement -- but that those who do reap the financial rewards of being twice as likely to receive repeat orders. The survey identified high-performing supply chain companies as those able to exceed expectations in eight specific areas, including business performance and stakeholder expectations.

Business-to-business marketing leaders becoming drivers of growth and the increasing importance of the customer experience are two key B2B trends for this year, explain Prophet's Scott Davis and David Novak. The pair outline the four B2B leadership roles marketers must master to successfully navigate these trends and three others that will be important during 2023.

Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., has introduced the Fair Access to Banking Act, which would prohibit financial institutions from refusing to do business with companies in certain industries such as fossil fuels. "There is no place in our society for discrimination, and big banks and financial institutions are no exception," Cramer said of the bill, which is endorsed by the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors.

A company culture of well-being revolves on shared values and goals, a sense of community and many ways to plug in to that culture, writes Richard Safeer, chief medical director of employee health and well-being at Johns Hopkins Medicine. Some of those "culture connection points" should be created during employee recruitment and in training, policies and benefits that all support health and well-being, Safeer notes.

Being aware of your own needs, emotions, weaknesses and strengths as a leader can help you spot and change unhelpful behaviors, become more flexible in your thoughts and beliefs and be more available to support your team, writes Shellye Archambeau, founder of MetricStream. "Self-awareness also establishes a culture of trust as employees are more engaged and better respond to leaders who are accountable," Archambeau writes.