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Many privately held
distributors have advisory boards, but they are comprised entirely of
insiders. Or the board is convened merely as a formality or legality.
But a so-called "real board" could help in formulating and enforcing
company strategy, as well as provide a venue to ensure your wishes are
carried out after you retire or in the case of a disabling injury or
death. Read the Article
After reading your weekly ISA news, scroll past the yellow section
for more features.
Any company serious about the MROP channel and its
opportunities for the future will be in Chicago for the 2008 Conference
& Trade Fair, June 1-3, 2008. Join over 2,000 distributors,
manufacturers, manufacturer representatives and service providers for
three business-building days of learning and networking. Learn how to
increase your sales, reduce expenses and enhance profitability at the
Comprehensive Educational Sessions on Tuesday, June 3. Click here for
more information. Contact ISA at info@isapartners.org or call
215-320-3862.
If you
think you have heard all there is about the four different generations
in the workplace, you have not heard Meagan Johnson's hilarious spin on
how to attract, train, market, manage and retain people from each
generation and not strangle someone in the process. Click here for more information.
In this seminar, March
18-20, sales professionals will learn how to document their
organization’s value-added services and sell them to their
customers. With the help of the logical and systematic “SELL
Process,” attendees will work on a target account of their choice
to gain practical, hands-on tools for better face-to-face selling. Click
here for more information.
The new Industrial Careers Pathway newsletter has been
posted. The Industrial Careers Pathway links students to career paths in
industrial distribution through partnerships with local educators and
employees. The Industrial Supply Association is a partner in this
initiative.
Click here to read the latest update.
Maximize the true
value of your membership and participate in the 2008 Employee
Compensation Report, which is only conducted EVERY OTHER YEAR. It is
not too late as the deadline to participate has been extended to Feb.
15. Click here for more information.
NOVA is 100%
responsible for front-end authorizations, back-end settlements, and all
customer support functions. You have one source for all of your payment
processing needs. NOVA also offers 24/7 customer support and an online
service is available via www.merchantconnect.com. To take advantage of this
affinity program and learn more about their products and services call
866-213-4754 and mention promotion code 86600 to receive member pricing.
Check out the other cost reduction programs ISA has to offer at
www.isapartners.org.
Be sure to check out all of the other cost reduction programs ISA has to
offer at isapartners.org.
A copy has been sent to all member locations. Additional copies are
available to members only at a cost of $10 plus $5 for shipping and
handling. All orders must be accompanied by a check or credit card. An
order form is available here.
The ISA eBusiness Committee announces availability of the ISA
eBusiness Implementation Guideline. Click here for more information.
Feb. 15: Employee Compensation Report – Survey Deadline! Details
Feb. 18: Watch your mail for 2008 ISA Profit Survey
March 12: ZAP THE GAP! How to Solve the Multi-Generational Puzzle
Webinar Details
March 18-20: The Four Pillars of the Sales Profession Seminar,
Dayton, OH Details
May 21: How to Find and Keep the Right Employees … Without
Stealing from the Competition Webinar
April 18: Deadline to receive ISA Conference & Trade Fair Early Bird
Registration Fees and to be listed in the printed conference program.
The program will be mailed in advance.
June 1-3: ISA Industrial Supply Conference & Trade Fair, Chicago, IL
Details
Sept. 10: Developing an Inventory State of Mind Webinar
Dec. 2: The Telephone Doctor Webinar
For more information on upcoming ISA events, go to isapartners.org.
Send name, title, email address and company
name of each colleague to info@mdm.com. Only employees of ISA member companies
will be added to the list to receive this weekly association update.
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MDM NEWS UPDATE: January 31, 2008
(Click headline
to view)
Based on news reports on TV and
in the paper, you'd think we were already in a recession. The reality
is, we're not. The economy is still growing. MDM Editor Lindsay Young
reports on the latest economic commentary from the Institute for Trend
Research. Economist Alan Beaulieu spoke on the subject this week at the
National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors annual meeting in
Washington D.C. He says a recession is a likelihood going into 2009.
What are you doing to prepare? Or do you expect a significant slowdown?
Comment here.
More...
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The half-point cut made by the Fed
on Wednesday followed news that the economy had slowed significantly in
the final three months of last year; the gross domestic product expanded
at a barely discernible pace of 0.6 percent, less than half what had
been expected. More...
This article from BusinessWeek
says that though the Fed's quick moves to cut interest rates this month
may help keep the economy from plunging, the underlying problems the
markets and economy are facing "cannot be waved away by the Fed's magic
wand." The author argues that we're at the start of figuring out how
much of the recent prosperity was "real" and how much was the result of
a "credit-induced frenzy."
More...
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Wholesaler-distributors in varied
sectors have been seeing strong double-digit top-line revenue growth.
Still, while the economic expansion increased unit sales, recognize that
unusually high commodity prices have made revenue growth easier to
achieve in recent years. In Adam Fein’s recent MDM Webcast, Wholesale Distribution Economic Outlook, he addressed
this issue.
Fein, president of Pembroke Consulting, presented as example the
hardware, plumbing, heating and cooling distribution sector, which has
seen flat growth year-over-year. But once adjusted for inflation, unit
growth was negative. “I call that the growth gap,” he says. In
this case, the gap was 5.3 percent. “I can’t predict commodity
prices any better than anyone else can. But what it does say is there
has been a substantial amount of artificial inflation in the revenue
growth of some distributors.”
More...
NOW AVAILABLE: Annual & Fourth-Quarter Inflation Trends by
Commodity Group – Available for 44 Products See List Here
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Private equity dealmaking will
slow in 2008, a phenomenon that will last up to 12 months, according to
David Novak, partner at Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, the firm that has
stakes in Rexel and HD Supply, among other distribution companies. He
tells Reuters: "If there are some deals that are getting done, most of
them are smaller in nature – 1 to 2 billion euros – and are
seen to be focused on businesses that are very stable, with not having
any economic sensitivity to them."
Firms are keeping a close eye on what is happening in the global
macro economic environment and banks that are working out liquidity
issues. He says the slowdown is "not a big deal: Some of the best
private equity deals have been made after periods of slowdown."
More...
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Diversified manufacturer
Illinois Tool Works does not plan to slow its acquisition spree anytime
soon, according to this report from Crain's posted at financialweek.com.
In fact, the company is looking to make even bigger buys: companies with
at least several hundred million in annual sales. ITW has made 273
acquisitions in the past 10 years.
The goal? To offset slow growth in its core businesses by buying up
companies in high-growth sectors such as energy or aerospace. ITW's
chief also addressed its competition with private equity firms in the
recent buyout boom; credit turmoil has opened up opportunity for
strategic buyers and made potential deals cheaper.
More...
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