News and Trends

• Hoboken Wood Flooring files for bankruptcy
  Hoboken Wood Flooring, Wayne, N.J., the largest independent distributor of wood flooring in the U.S., has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection. The company has seen a steady decline in sales over the last year, owing to the sluggish housing market, competition from direct-selling manufacturers and national expansion, a local newspaper reported. Modern Distribution Management (11/7)

• Avnet, Sun expand relationship in North America
  Avnet Inc. and Sun Microsystems have expanded their relationship through an agreement under which Avnet Technology Solutions, the technology distributor's enterprise computing products distribution arm, will serve as Sun's value-added distributor for Oracle products in North America. EDN (11/7)

• McKesson reports Q2 sales growth
  McKesson Corp. said its revenues for the second quarter ending Sept. 30, grew from $22.4 billion in the same period a year ago to $24.5 billion. The distributor also reported an 8% profit increase to $247 million. Modern Distribution Management (11/7)

	Analyst Webcast: Reducing Inbound Paper A/P Invoices Leading analyst PayStream Advisors will discuss why EDI and OCR aren't enough to eliminate the manual processes associated with inbound paper invoices? REGISTER

Best Practices

• "Homeshoring" a growing trend
  "Homeshoring" is gaining ground as a solution in instances where offshore outsourcing doesn't yield the results a company is looking for. Although many companies look to overseas hiring as a cost-cutting move, some higher-paid U.S. workers can save money for a company through better customer service, one expert says. Entrepreneur.com (11/7)

• Mandalay exec: Every good company tells a story
  Peter Guber, a movie producer and chief executive of Mandalay Entertainment, in an interview said a company leader must "narrate the story of the company." A leader also "must narrate the product, the people, the information into a set of rules, tools, values and beliefs that trickle down all the way through the culture of the company." Forbes (11/2)

	STREAMLINE BUSINESS PROCESSES Learn how SAP for Wholesale Distribution can help high-tech distributors streamline business processes from start to finish. Customer- and supplier-facing applications in the portfolio are linked together to make the most of inventory, while tracking all activity in real time.

Sales

• E-mail can play important role in lead management
  E-mail can serve as an excellent marketing tool, offering the opportunity to combine CRM and e-mail data and names to automate lead-generation campaigns. Some tips for making the most of e-mail include creating an e-mail schedule that runs parallel with the company's sales cycle and offering worthwhile sale proposals. Selling Power (free registration) (11/7)

Hot Topics

Top five news stories selected by NAW SmartBrief readers in the past week.

• Poll: Analysts believe Rexel will raise bid for Hagemeyer (Industrial Distribution online)

• Instead of seeking new clients, cultivate existing ones (Entrepreneur.com)

• How to lure sought-after executives (Bloomberg Businessweek)

• Airgas picks up two Texas firms (American City Business Journals)

• Get creative with sales incentives (American City Business Journals)

• Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.

Small Business Manager

• Video player allows companies to customize Web site
  Video is becoming a must-have for successful Web sites, and companies have a nifty new way of customizing the video they display. The Self Serve Video Player Creator, from Fliqz, assists companies in personalizing their online videos with logos, watermarks and various other features. Inc.com (11/7)

Executive Life

• Forbes reveals 401(k) strategies used by money managers
  A Forbes special report offers advice on maximizing 401(k) returns. The magazine interviews money managers and asks them about strategies they use for their own retirement holdings. "Even if you think you have a well-funded retirement plan, don't be complacent," Forbes editor Matthew Schifrin warns. Forbes (11/8)

• "Green" gifts grow in popularity
  Twenty percent of shoppers in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area -- and 18% nationwide -- plan to buy an eco-friendly product during the holiday season, according to Deloitte's annual survey of holiday moods, set for a Monday release. San Francisco leads the list of cities with environmentally conscious buyers at 27%. Star Tribune (Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.) (11/8)

NAW Insider

• Billion Dollar Company CIO Roundtable Metrics Survey ends Nov. 15
  NAW's Billion Dollar Company CIO Roundtable and Deloitte are conducting a metrics survey that ends Nov. 15. Survey results will be presented at NAW's Dec. 10 to 11 Billion Dollar Company CIO Roundtable. For questions about who can participate, contact Carl Farr or John Peter at (202) 872-0885. View the survey here.

There's no better way to find first-rate professionals with expertise in the wholesale distribution industry. Click here to display your open positions in NAW SmartBrief.

SmartQuote

I like to dream, but I like to make things happen." --Heidi Klum, supermodel and TV producer/host