What happens when some of the most influential thinkers in wholesale distribution get into one room and debate the future of the industry, the rise of AI, human centered leadership, and the coming wave of agentic systems?

In this powerful year end roundtable, the Around The Horn panel returns for its third annual state of the industry conversation, featuring Mike Marks, Ian Heller, Dirk Beveridge, Paul Kennedy, Tom Burton, and Kevin Brown.

What You Will Learn:

• Why AI is moving from experimentation to strategy and what this means for distributors in 2026
• How human centered leadership and people centric cultures are becoming competitive advantages
• Why the distributor divide is widening and how early adopters are achieving measurable gains
• How agentic systems, digital orchestration, and physical AI will reshape operations
• Leadership insights on trust, empowerment, anti fragility, and preparing teams for the next decade

Episode Highlights:

• 03:14 The panel opens year three of the annual roundtable and explains why 2025 was a turning point
• 17:22 Mike Marks breaks down what he is seeing in AI orchestration and contractor tech adoption
• 31:40 Ian Heller explains why proximity and fulfillment speed are becoming competitive battlegrounds
• 46:55 Dirk Beveridge challenges the industry to move from resilience to true anti fragility
• 58:14 Paul Kennedy shares how ESOP leadership shapes digital adoption and trust
• 01:12:09 The group debates agentic AI, workforce displacement, and the future of work
• 01:33:42 Final predictions for 2026 and what will separate the distributors who thrive from those who drift

Meet the Guests:

Mike Marks
Founding Partner at Indian River Consulting Group and one of the most respected strategists in modern distribution.

Ian Heller
Co Founder of Distribution Strategy Group, leading thinker on AI, data, and competitive disruption in the industry.

Dirk Beveridge
Founder of the Fully Alive Movement, champion of people centered leadership and the human side of distribution.

Paul Kennedy
President and CEO of DSG, ESOP leader, and current chair of the National Association of Electrical Distributors.

Tools, Frameworks, and Strategies Mentioned:

• AI Orchestration Models
• Agentic AI Systems
• Customer Intelligence Platforms
• Order Automation
• Anti Fragility Leadership Framework
• Digital Centers of Excellence
• ESOP Driven Workforce Models

Closing Insight:

“Thriving companies are built by thriving individuals. Not the other way around.”

This roundtable makes one message clear: AI may accelerate performance, but people will determine the future. How leaders shape culture, trust, empower teams, and integrate technology will define the next decade in distribution.

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Learn more about the LeadSmart AI B2B Sales Platform: https://www.leadsmarttech.com/

Join the conversation each week on LinkedIn Live.

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What happens when economic volatility, tariff pressure, AI disruption, and shifting distributor behavior all collide in the same quarter?

In this episode, Kevin and Tom unpack a whirlwind week inside wholesale distribution, revealing how new data, emerging AI workflows, and tariff rulings are reshaping strategy across the channel.

Listeners gain a front-row view into the real conversations shaping 2025: revenue headwinds, inventory tightening, economic softening, distributor risk posture, and how AI agents are redefining customer-facing operations.

What You’ll Learn:

• Why distributors are tightening inventory positions heading into 2025, and what “flat inventories” actually signal about downstream demand.
• How upcoming tariff rulings and active lawsuits (like Costco’s) may reshape pricing models, contract structures, and channel profitability.
• Why AI agents from Amazon, Salesforce, and emerging tools will transform inside sales, service platforms, counter operations, and multi-branch workflows.
• How economic signals, PCE, sentiment scores, personal spending, and Fed pacing, will shape capital planning into mid-2025.
• The competitive gap forming between distributors who unify data vs. those still operating silo-based systems.

Episode Highlights:

03:11 – Why this past holiday week felt like a 3-week sprint for operators and sales teams
10:44 – Breaking down the PCE report, sentiment data, and the Fed’s rate-cut trajectory
18:26 – Are mortgage rates returning to the “fours”? A practical take on borrowing costs
27:15 – Mohamed El-Erian’s latest economic lens and why 2 percent inflation may be the wrong benchmark
40:02 – Flat U.S. inventory levels and what that means for 2025 distributor demand
53:19 – Costco’s bold lawsuit over tariffs, and whether refunds to consumers are even logistically possible
01:05:12 – Why Amazon’s new AI agents increase competitive pressure on distributors
01:17:50 – The rise of blueprint-driven AI takeoff tools (Home Depot, Lowe’s, and the coming B2B wave)

Tools, Frameworks & Strategies Mentioned:

• AI Agents for Distribution Ops (Amazon Connect, Salesforce Agentforce)
• Data Unification for AI Readiness (LeadSmart Platform + Data Cloud methodology)
• Synthetic Data for forecasting and demand simulation
• B2B Digital Takeoff Systems used by contractors and enterprise distributors
• Tariff Litigation Modeling driven by channel economics

Closing Insight:

“AI isn’t replacing distributors, AI is replacing the distributors who refuse to modernize.”
This episode makes one message clear: the teams who unify their data, modernize their workflows, and embrace AI-assisted operations will define the next decade of competitive advantage.

Leave a Review: Help us grow by sharing your thoughts on the show.

Learn more about the LeadSmart AI B2B Sales Platform: https://www.leadsmarttech.com/

Join the conversation each week on LinkedIn Live.

Want even more insight to the stories we discuss each week? Subscribe to the Around The Horn Newsletter.

You can also hear the podcast and other excellent content on our YouTube Channel.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or TikTok.

What happens to wholesale distribution when tariffs rise, interest rates stay high, and customers expect more with less friction?

In this episode of Around the Horn in Wholesale Distribution from LeadSmart Channel Cloud, Kevin Brown and Tom Burton sit down with Modern Distribution Management editor and market analyst Mike Hockett to unpack the data behind the headlines and what it means for revenue leaders in distribution.

You will hear a practical, numbers-driven outlook for 2025 that connects GDP forecasts, Fed policy, and tariff risk with real impacts on margins, inventory, and channel relationships. The conversation stays grounded in what wholesalers, manufacturers, and reps can control, and how to use planning, consultative commerce, and better pipeline visibility to future-proof distribution businesses through uncertainty.

What You Will Learn:

• Why November’s softer numbers do not necessarily signal a collapse, and how MDM thinks about “soft landing” versus “stall.”
• How tariffs, elections, and Fed policy are likely to affect pricing power, imports, and inventory strategy for wholesale distribution teams.
• Where distributors are still leaving money on the table because of weak forecasting, poor CRM adoption, and limited collaboration with suppliers and reps.
• How to connect market forecasts to practical decisions about hiring, territory coverage, and hybrid selling models.

Episode Highlights:

• 00:00 – Why this conversation matters now
  08:15 – Inside MDM’s latest distribution data
  18:40 – Are we heading toward a soft landing or a stall?
  30:10 – Tariffs, trade policy, and pricing pressure
  42:35 – Forecasting failures inside distribution organizations
  55:20 – Hybrid selling and channel conflict
  1:07:45 – Technology, CRM adoption, and operational readiness
  1:21:30 – M&A, succession planning, and consolidation signals
  1:33:10 – Practical priorities for the next 12 months
  

Meet the Guest:

Mike Hockett is an editor and market analyst with Modern Distribution Management (MDM) and the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors. He spends his time inside the data and conversations that shape the future of wholesale distribution, from sector forecasts and benchmarking to technology, talent, and channel strategy.

Tools, Frameworks, or Strategies Mentioned:

• MDM’s annual distribution forecast and benchmark reporting.
• Practical approaches to collaborative planning and forecasting between manufacturers, reps, and distributors.
• CRM and pipeline practices that give revenue leaders in distribution a clearer “ground truth” for planning.

Leave a Review: Help us grow by sharing your thoughts on the show.

Learn more about the LeadSmart AI B2B Sales Platform: https://www.leadsmarttech.com/

Join the conversation each week on LinkedIn Live.

Want even more insight to the stories we discuss each week? Subscribe to the Around The Horn Newsletter.

You can also hear the podcast and other excellent content on our YouTube Channel.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or TikTok.