News and Trends

• Cardinal Health names new leader for medical supply chain
  Cardinal Health Inc. has tapped Michael C. Kaufmann to succeed Thomas M. Slagle as group president of its Healthcare Supply Chain Services Medical Segment. Kaufmann is a 16-year veteran of the company, most recently serving as CFO of Healthcare Supply Chain Services. American City Business Journals/Triangle (2/21)

• Industrial Distribution Group posts increased sales, profits
  Industrial Distribution Group Inc. said its sales increased 2.9% on an organic basis in 2006, and its profits were up about 26% compared to the year before. The CEO said 2006 marked the year the company "began the development of a strategic pricing initiative that we believe will be the cornerstone for improved pricing and margin expansion in the future." Modern Distribution Management (2/22)

• Henry Schein smiling about Q4 numbers
  Henry Schein Inc., a wholesaler-distributor of dental and medical equipment, posted a strong fourth quarter following an increase in the sales of its health care products. Profits rose 30% during that period, on a 12% increase in sales. Newsday (Long Island, N.Y.) (2/21)

• Other News

• Hagemeyer sees profit in 2006
  Modern Distribution Management (2/21)

	Facing the Forces of Change® - Live with Author Dr. Adam Fein Don't miss this unique opportunity to interact with the author of Facing the Forces of Change®, Dr. Adam Fein, during a live complimentary web conference sponsored by IBM. Dr. Fein will discuss the four major trends outlined in the book, along with innovative strategies, and field questions from the audience—Tuesday, March 6 at 1PM ET. Click here to learn more.
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Best Practices

• Learn about OS security issues
  Baseline offers an overview of potential security loopholes in several information technology applications, including Vista and voice over Internet protocol (VoIP), which could cause problems for your business if not addressed. Baseline (free registration) (2/16)

• Avoid being confused with a junk-mailer
  Some of the easiest ways to avoid having your e-newsletters or updates dropped into a reader's spam folder are common sense and just plain courteous. If a user requests to be unsubscribed, fulfill it promptly; don't sign up your list of subscribers for other mailings without asking; and keep your address lists current. Forbes (2/20)

	Wholesale Distributors Send More Invoices Per $ of Revenue Many distributors now outsource their invoicing to reduce costs and hassle. Top invoicing services send via post, fax, and email and process / reconcile incoming payments. Remote web install in less than a day with no upfront costs is critical for rapid ROI. Learn more with a Complimentary Study from analyst PayStream Advisors. Request a Brochure from an innovative vendor: Transcepta.
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Sales

• Multiple ways to capture customers' attention
  Attract more customers by mixing up your promotional style. Create ads that use audio, video and text, so customers feel more entertained than overwhelmed by your fresh approach. American City Business Journals (2/20)

Hot Topics

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

• Trends to watch in wholesale distribution (Modern Distribution Management)

• Master distributors have tough entry, but bright future (Supply House Times magazine)

• The benefits of having a "work spouse" (The Washington Post)

• Home Depot reports tough Q4 (Industrial Distribution)

• Performing better: Tips from a guru (MSNBC)

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

Small Business Manager

• Apply corporate lessons to small businesses
  Corporate America may not be the right business-setting for entrepreneurs in the long run, but it can offer ideas and solutions to problems faced later as small-business owners, say several former executives who moved on to build their own successful companies. BusinessWeek (2/16)

Executive Life

• Credit, debit cards replacing traveler's checks
  Traveler's checks are becoming all but obsolete as travelers switch to using debit and credit cards when traveling abroad. Experts say that by using the cards, travelers get better exchange rates and other advantages. Contra Costa Times (Walnut Creek, Calif.)/MediaNews (2/19)

• What do you get when you cross a laptop with a cell phone?
  Nokia's N800 Internet Tablet represents a switch toward small multimedia devices with connectivity, from a company known more for its cutting-edge mobile-phone offerings. The laptop-cell-phone hybrid touts instant-messaging and Web-browsing capabilities, along with the ability to handle numerous multimedia applications. The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) (2/22)

	The Buzz(CORPORATE ANNOUNCEMENTS) Improve performance in your warehouse. Learn about practical solutions, best practices and proven techniques at WERC's 30th annual conference. Hear how leading companies apply winning practices in their DCs. The only conference dedicated to warehouse/distribution management. Early bird rates until March 7. For complete information click here. Interested in learning more about advertising in NAW SmartBrief? Contact Henry Murphey at (202) 737-5500 ext. 245 or hmurphey@smartbrief.com

NAW Insider

• Save on overnight shipping with DHL ShipReady
  NAW and DHL have partnered to offer a unique delivery service from DHL Express. Members can ship anywhere in the continental U.S. for one flat rate with no weight limits, extra fees or fuel surcharges. Receive two FREE envelopes with your first order by visiting the ShipReady site and entering the promo code NAWSR07.

• Move the distributor-supplier relationship from dysfunctional to effective
  It takes a long time to develop good distributor-supplier relationships, but it only takes a short time to destroy them. Working at Cross-Purposes from the NAW Institute for Distribution Excellence examines what drives these relationships, how often they go bad and why. Both partners can learn to avoid the economic and other consequences of a relationship turning sour by correcting emerging problems before they become critical.

Weekly Poll

• Did you begin in the corporate world before moving into small business?
  After voting once, check out the real-time poll results on NAW's All Access page as often as you'd like.

	Yes
	I have been in small business since the beginning.
	I started in the corporate world and never left.
	I got my start at a small business and moved into corporate.

Corporate Purchasing Manager Crescent Electric Supply Co. East Dubuque, IL Marketing Analyst Industrial Electric Wire & Cable New Berlin Quality Assurance Specialist Confidential Pittsburgh, PA Sales - Major Accounts Manager ProLift Industrial Equipment Company Louisville, KY Inside Sales Professionals AcuSport Corporation TX, GA, PA and OH Assistant Category Manager AcuSport Corporation Bellefontaine,Ohio Outside Sales Rep - Tampa, Florida HISCO, Inc. Tampa/Orlando, Florida Area Lean Implementation Leader and Administrator, Quality and Safety Werner Electric Supply Company Neenah, Wisconsin Director of Information Technology APA Search Tampa, FL

SmartQuote

The secret of staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly, and lie about your age." --Lucille Ball, actress and comedian