News and Trends

• Cerberus denies claims in United Rentals' suit
  Cerberus Capital Management LP has refuted claims in a lawsuit brought by United Rentals Inc., which seeks to make the private equity firm complete its $6.6 billion acquisition of the construction equipment rental firm. Cerberus said the merger agreement contains a "clearly and unambiguously stated" provision allowing the equity firm to walk away from the deal provided it pays a $100 million termination fee to United Rentals. The equity firm had said it was pulling out of the deal over concerns about problems in the credit and residential construction markets. It then expressed willingness to negotiate new merger terms or leave the deal and pay the termination fee, after which United Rentals filed suit, saying in a statement that Cerberus violated the terms of the merger agreement in a "naked ploy to extract a lower price at the expense of United Rentals' shareholders." Industrial Distribution (11/20)

• HD Supply reels in staffing expansion at Florida plant
  Building materials supply company HD Supply had planned to add 100 jobs to its 223,000-square-foot lumber and building materials plant in Port St. Lucie, Fla., but due to current market conditions, the company will hold the number of staff at the 10 employees it currently has. Industrial Distribution (11/19)

• Alternative-fuels sources deliver for freight carriers
  Freight carriers and equipment suppliers are under more pressure than ever to run fuel-efficient operations and reduce dependence on crude oil. Some alternatives that are available or could become available include biodiesel, electricity, ethanol, hydrogen, natural gas and propane. DC Velocity (11/2007)

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Best Practices

• Key employee attributes essential for success
  Gauge your employees' effectiveness and suitability for their jobs by examining their strengths in such areas as goal-setting, leadership skills and cooperation with others. CEO Strategist (11/13)

• Don't overlook the importance of record-keeping
  Sales guru Dave Kahle urges sales professionals to keep good records on every account-holder, including both account and personal information. Even with modern-day devices and CRM systems, many sales forces still don't use automation tools to their full potential to manage information on their accounts. DaveKahle.com (11/13)

Sales

• Choose compensation plan that meshes with your corporate strategy
  A solid compensation plan is essential in terms of getting top performances from your sale reps. A strong compensation plan takes into account such key elements as performance measures, the salary-commission mix and payout timing. Selling Power (free registration) (11/19)

Hot Topics

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

• United Stationers to acquire ORS Nasco (Modern Distribution Management)

• Graybar awarded five-year GSA contract (Industrial Distribution)

• Sales team should be able to read prospects' body language (Manage Smarter)

• 10 tips on documenting workplace bullies (NBC4/NewsChannel 4 (New York))

• Hoboken Wood Flooring's Ch. 7 bankruptcy petition dismissed by court (Modern Distribution Management)

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

Small Business Manager

• Entrepreneurs can set up market survey themselves
  One way an entrepreneur can conduct inexpensive market research is to survey people on the street during a related industry conference, says Karen E. Klein in her Smart Answers column for Business Week. An easier and more effective way, if funds are available, is to hire a professional research company to conduct a survey. BusinessWeek (11/19)

Executive Life

• New Fed forecast calls for uncertainty, sluggish growth
  The first new and expanded forecast by the Federal Reserve was released Tuesday and predicted sluggish growth for the next year. The forecasts also hinted at greater-than-expected risks. The Fed said the degree of uncertainty for growth risks was even greater than the risk of inflation. ClipSyndicate (11/21) , Financial Times (free content) (11/21) , MSNBC/Associated Press (11/20) , The Washington Post (11/21) , The Wall Street Journal (11/21)

• San Sebastian emerges as culinary mecca
  Located on northern Spain's Basque coast, San Sebastian has become known as one of the world's best places to eat. From the French aristocracy who brought chefs to the area in the 1800s to today's local Basque population, the surfing resort is filled with cafes and has an unusually high concentration of Michelin stars. The New York Times (11/18)

NAW Insider

• Order best-selling Facing the Forces of Change report
  Facing the Forces of Change®: Lead the Way in the Supply Chain by the NAW Institute for Distribution Excellence is a best seller! This all-new study provides practical insights into key trends impacting the wholesale distribution supply chain and is packed with specific action ideas and planning tools that executives can use today to lead the way in their supply chains.

• Now distributors can quote prices with greater confidence
  NAW's Price For Success: An Online Course for the Wholesale Distribution Sales Team shows your inside and outside salesforce how to quote prices with complete confidence that they are striking the correct balance between pleasing the customer and achieving the company's profit goals.

Weekly Poll

• Does your business have any mergers or acquisitions planned for 2008?
  The NAW Year-End Report, to be published Dec. 11 and 13, will include an industry roundup, the most important stories of the year and your favorite SmartQuotes. Make sure to look for the results of this poll in Part 2, on Dec. 13.

	Yes, we already have at least one planned.
	We don't have any plans yet, but there is still time.
	No, we don't foresee any 2008 mergers or acquisitions.

Associate Product Manager Travers Tool Co Flushing, NY Continuous Improvement Manager - Distribution Center GRAINGER Mira Loma, CA Chief Executive Officer National Multi-Billion Dollar Distribution Company Northeast

SmartQuote

An optimist is a person who starts a new diet on Thanksgiving Day." --Irv Kupcinet, columnist and TV personality