The MDM Podcast

Research lead Kevin Reid-Morris and Tom Gale discuss the insights, surprises and hopes for AI this 2023 research into artificial intelligence surfaced. We also map out five behaviors and supporting b…

STAFDA Chief Executive Georgia Foley stops by to discuss the association's new educational initiative, the state of industry demand how it's being impacted by U.S. Infrastructure Bill rollout and fac…

With budgets and operational planning already eyeing the year ahead, Mike Marks and Tom Gale explore where distributors have the most leverage, and where their common gaps are.

What can we learn from distributors that have achieved a higher EBITDA multiple value on a sustained basis? McKinsey partner Kevin Sachs shares a preview of his team’s keynote at SHIFT 2023 on the di…

The post-2020 era has seen distributors make enormous strides in technology adoption and application across their organization. Hisco VP of IT Ana Bennett - one of MDM's upcoming SHIFT conference spe…

Speed wins in distribution. The ability to recognize and respond to threats and opportunities defines winners. Mike Marks talks about culture as the critical differentiator in periods of uncertainty,…

While distributors are proud of the culture they've crafted, far less discussed in that topic is mental health. This episode joins The Granite Group's Tracie Sponenberg and mental-health-at-work spec…

The power of AI as a competitive differentiator is far from being defined. In this conversation, James Dorn and Tom Gale look at the bigger picture of data analytics in distribution, the stages of co…

Fairfield, Ohio-based AFC Industries has burst onto MDM's Top Industrial Distributors scene, charting for the first time this year at No. 34 after several years of frequent acquisitions. We chat with…

We chat with former MSC Industrial Supply veteran Steve Gettleman on the topic of category management, for which he says a formal plan is severely lacking across the distribution sector. We cover the…

In May, Mike Marks and Tom Gale talked about what the shift from a gen-one to gen-two distributor looks like. This conversation goes into the deeper dimensions of a larger business model transformati…

“Why didn’t we make budget and how can we fix it?” The volatility of recent years has made budget variance a demanding challenge for all distributors. Jonathan Byrnes of Profit Isle discusses the pro…

Distribution consultant and serial entrepreneur Brent Grover joins MDM’s Tom Gale to discuss customer immersion as a best practice for developing breakthrough products and services. He also gives us …

Electrical distribution veteran executive Scott Schuenke discusses Sonepar North America’s growth in his 16 years with the company, which culminate with his retirement this month as VP of Strategic D…

We condense the guest interviews and analysis from our Top Distributors webcast into a compilation podcast about the economic and industry factors that dictated who appeared where on our 17 different…

James Dorn and Tom Gale explore how to collect qualitative data to ensure distribution associates are in tune with what their end customers most value.