Blogs from Art Waskey

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Cutting Dead Inventory Costs with Advanced Inventory Management

Reducing dead inventory is essential for distribution companies to stay competitive. As a senior executive, I once faced a period when our obsolete stock hit 5% of annual sales. To tackle this, I initiated weekly meetings with outside sales reps to review slow-moving...

To Retain Employees Look to your Managers

Look to your managers Managers are the link to employee retention. The management consulting firm Gallup specializes in the science of employee engagement. Also, their surveys have found that people don’t leave companies, they leave managers. If you have a turnover...

Retain Employees using these Six Questions

Employee retention Employee retention is essential to a successful business.  When I reflect on my time as a sales manager, I often think of the employees who got away. I wonder why some people stayed with the company, and others left.  More specifically, I...

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Featured

Adjusting to change

Information technology is at the root of so many alterations in the way we do business, both internally and externally. We all need to learn, and continually be adjusting to change. Study the...

Organizational Tools

Why organize? What is it that makes being organized a functional way to succeed? To begin, it is important to realize that with every business interaction, your colleagues and customers will feel...

Identifying Customer Needs

Once you have built trust and understand your customers’ backgrounds and motivations, you can identify their needs and begin to formulate solutions. If your customer relationship is...
Adaptability

Adaptability

Looking Back As I start the New Year, I like to make observations about the previous year. Looking back, 2023 was a year replete with some big...

AI and Cost Containments

AI and Cost Containments

One of the greatest advantages of deploying Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications is the effective cost containments they yield. AI can help...

Consider Implementing AI

Consider Implementing AI

Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications offer exciting possibilities for transforming how business is done. Its applications are complex and very...

AI and Marketing Productivity

AI and Marketing Productivity

Coming to your market Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications are rapidly infiltrating market spaces. McKinsey has declared that “AI is poised to...

Managing Change and Building Trust

Managing Change and Building Trust

Be a differentiator The distribution business is built on managing change, building trust, strong relationships, and the ability to find solutions...

Strengthen Your Sales Position

Strengthen Your Sales Position

Digital tools have altered the customer experience. For example, product research, once the realm of the sales rep, is now done routinely by the...

Build Online Confidence

Build Online Confidence

Changing Customer Relationships I consult primarily with distributors with revenues of $10 million and below. This group's success stems from...

Taking Control of the Mind

Taking Control of the Mind

Our mind can be likened to an iceberg. The tip of the iceberg represents the relatively small part of our brain which is our conscious mind. This...

Organizational Tools

Organizational Tools

Why organize? What is it that makes being organized a functional way to succeed? To begin, it is important to realize that with every business...

Passionate About Success

Passionate About Success

There are many elements that go into achieving success in a competitive sales environment. I have found that passion is one of the most critical. A...

Managing Stress

Managing Stress

Stress at Work When stress overcomes you, it can hinder your ability to move forward. I have often been so stressed by noon that I wasn’t hungry for...

Managing Your Projects

Managing Your Projects

The Problem As a consultant to small- and medium-sized distributors, I often focus on project management. I generally begin an assignment with the...

Technology and Personalization

Technology and Personalization

As digital transformation reshapes the sales process, it is crucial to establish a good balance between technology and personalization. Also, the...

Taking Action With AI

Taking Action With AI

Professional sales reps need to pay attention to what is new, particularly as it relates to Artificial Intelligence (AI) and enterprise selling. It...

Finding Opportunity in Change

Finding Opportunity in Change

We need to look for the opportunities often hidden within disruption. As author Barbara Kingsolver, says, "The changes we dread most may contain our...

A Strong Cultural Foundation

A Strong Cultural Foundation

Cultural Fragility Each business has a unique culture and it can be fragile. Changes within and outside your organization can threaten the culture...

Build Customer Loyalty

Build Customer Loyalty

Building customer loyalty in a business environment typified by rapid digital transformation and virtual online alternatives is challenging. Sales...

Pricing— A Core Competency

Pricing— A Core Competency

As customers, we look for vendors who provide stable and fair pricing.  As sales reps, we know that pricing products consistently creates better...

Pricing Solutions for Disruptive Times

Pricing Solutions for Disruptive Times

There is no stopping the impact of economic disruptors on your business. Consequently, supply chains may become tangled, inflation can flare up, and...

Pricing Dynamics for Today

Pricing Dynamics for Today

With digitization has come rapid change in how we view and analyze pricing decisions. It is no longer viable to price on a set-it and forget-it...

Pricing — A Data-Driven Process

Pricing — A Data-Driven Process

Technology has changed the dynamics of pricing strategy. With digitalization, information is now readily available to measure customer performance....