Natalie Forster is the director of communications for the American Supply Association (ASA), where she leads the association's public and media relations strategy, social media efforts, and member-focused online and print communications. Prior to joining ASA, she was the Editorial Director of Plumbing & Mechanical and Supply House Times. Before that, she served as an editor and digital content director for Southern Trade Publications, a publishing company focused on the PHCP trades and real estate industries. Natalie holds a bachelor's degree in communication studies from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
As always, to hear first-hand from reps on the state of the market, challenges and the evolving role of manufacturers’ reps, Supply House Times held its annual Rep Council roundtable discussion where five engaged AIM/R members gather to discuss the hot-topics.
When you listen to a good speech, there are usually a couple of standout phrases that stick with you. A really good speech will have you jotting down notes of a few key quotes that you don’t want to forget. This was the case for me as I listened to a few different speeches throughout the 2022 Affiliated Distributor’s PHCP North American Meeting.
Prior to 2020, the majority of everyday consumers didn’t think much about the global supply chain; some may not have even understood what that meant or at all how it works. Thanks to nearly three years of severe disruption, post-pandemic factors such as spiked product demand and nationwide media coverage, supply chain is now a topic of conversation that will come up at nearly any dinner table.
With more tools than ever to gain critical insight into a business, enterprise leaders employ data and artificial intelligence (AI)/machine learning (ML) capabilities more than ever to help drive daily decisions about their customers, supply chain(s), pricing, and more.