By Bruce Merrifield

Global companies have formal, “enterprise accounts” programs. Distributors typically do not. Deploying a team of specialists (to augment the Rep) on the biggest, 1-5%, profit-potential accounts will yield, however, big profit gains, especially in down economies.

Profit-Ranking, Math-Facts

A cumulative, customer-profitability ranking report for distributors reveals stats like the top 40% generate about 150% of the financial statement’s profit total. More sensationally, the top 20% customers yield 140%; top 10, 95%; and, – in one case – the #1 account scored 25% of the peak internal profits.

Protecting the #1 Profit Account?

In the case above, the CEO decided to try an experiment to defend against competitive intrusions. He personally followed his company’s product and paperwork flow through the customer’s internal systems visiting with customer employees along the way. He knew he would find fixable inefficiencies, because:

From World Economic Forum

The changing nature of work in the decades ahead means that leaders to prepare their people to coexist and collaborate with machines. The skills needed today are very different than they were five years ago. Click here to read more

The loss a data breach could cost you has only gone up in recent years, leading many to reevaluate their cybersecurity strategies and adjust their insurance policies.

In a video recently published in the St. Louis Business Journal, Bill Goddard, Principal in the Insurance Advisory Services practice for Brown Smith Wallace, describes some important precautions to take to ensure your business is protected.

From Elm Sustainability Partners

Our previous article highlights the absence of any new information or guidance on US conflict minerals filings, the deadline for which is looming (May 31). The lack of information is creating confusion for some companiesand we have had a number of calls in the past weeks to clarify where things stand relative to Form SD and Conflict Minerals Reports requirements. Click here for a summary of the major points

From Brown Smith Wallace

The Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 (PATH Act) made permanent many popular but previously temporary tax breaks for individuals and businesses. The PATH Act also enhanced many incentives. Click here for more information

Tonawanda, NY, March 8, 2016 – Sherex Fastening Solutions, a global leader of engineered fasteners, tooling and automation is pleased to announce the acquisition of DISC-LOCK, Inc. effective March 1, 2016. DISC-LOCK is an originator of wedge-lock technology and a pioneer in the design and manufacturing of secure and durable vibration proof fastening systems.

"With over 35 years of successful applications history and highly patented technology, DISC-LOCK innovations solve one of the world’s most challenging fastening problems of vibrational loosening. The combination of each company’s strengths will deliver a broader range of engineered solutions while providing the lowest total installed cost to our customers," said James Pickren, CEO of Sherex.

Since its inception in 2004, Sherex Taiwan, led by Dr. Alex Hsaio, has provided high quality products, industry leading new product development, as well as full manufacturing capabilities for Sherex’s key product lines of standard rivet nut inserts, custom engineered rivet nut and stud inserts, and clinch nuts. 

By Bill Conerly

When your company is planning its future, how can it understand the impact of technology on the business? Click here to ready the full article

By Bill Conerly

Businomics ®: Connecting the dots between the economy and business. Click here to see the February issue

From Brown Smith Wallace

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is asking for public comments on several key changes to its rules by the first quarter of 2016. Although its proposal on intrastate crowdfunding has garnered significant attention, the comment deadlines for five other regulatory proposals also are in early 2016. Here’s a heads-up on what regulatory changes are currently in the works. Click here to read more

By Tom Reilly

Customer satisfaction is a function of how you perform vis-à-vis the customer’s expectations. Satisfaction is often expressed numerically as a ratio: performance to expectations. Customer satisfaction is an attitude and attitude drives behavior, including retention which is a measure of the likelihood that someone returns as a repeat customer. So, what affects expectations?

From Brown Smith Wallace

From Elm Sustainability Partners:

Last week, the US Supreme Court granted the SEC an extension for filing an appeal of the Appellate Court rulings on the conflict minerals disclosure requirements related to the use of specific determination wording. Click here to read more

From Elm Sustainability Partners

As more companies complete their conflict minerals Reasonable Country of Origin Inquiry (RCOI) and smelter/refiner verification for their CY2015 SEC disclosures, many are surprised to find diminishing data gaps and uncertainties prevalent in previous years. Click here to read more

Submit your nominations by February 28.

The National Industrial Fastener & Mill Supply Expo (NIFMSE) Hall of Fame was established in 1982 to recognize and honor those individuals who have made significant contributions to the betterment of the fastener industry.