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The Working Supervisor's Support Kit is a collection of information and tools to help working supervisors do a better job. It's based on what Wally's learned in over twenty years of supervisory skills training.

For weekly tips and resources pointers, check Wally's Three Star Leadership Letter

Find out more about having Wally speak to your company or convention.

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Every week, reporters around the continent write great business stories that don't make it onto your screen or into your local paper. And every week I scour newspapers around the continent to identify five of those great stories to enrich your weekend reading. This week I'm pointing you to stories about revamping the Home Depot supply chain, Jamie Dimon, green opportunities, a storied law firm's demise, and a nation of debtors.

Look to your left to see what I blogged about here this week. Over at Momentor I blogged about "It's Not Your Fault. It's Just Your Turn." and did my weekly selection of Top Career Posts.

Last week's newsletter was "The Law of the Loaf." As usual there were pointers to Web and Reading Resources, too.

And now, here's my pick of the five best local stories this week.

From the Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Home Depot’s supply chain overhaul to free up cash, improve inventory
"For years, he said, 80 percent of the “cost of goods sold,” a measure of the product cost flowed through the company, have been shipped directly to stores. The company’s goal is to reduce that to 25 percent by the end of 2010."

Wally's Comment: A great piece about wringing the inefficiencies out of the supply chain.

From the Washington Post: In Full Stride as Others Fall
"Jamie Dimon steered his bank away from the bad mortgage bets and risky financing methods that have damaged much of his competition. But the J.P. Morgan Chase chief executive finds himself playing a major role in the credit crisis anyway."

Wally's Comment: A few months ago they were writing stories about Jamie Dimon concentrating on how he kept JP Morgan Chase clear of the bad paper. Today the stories are about how Chase is scooping up bargains and building for the future.

From the San Jose Mercury News: Green's the thing at sustainable building show
"Terry Alsberg didn't start out to make a green-building product. But there he was Friday at West Coast Green, telling potential customers about Warmboard, a sub-floor product that uses hot water in thin aluminum tubes to heat a house."

Wally's Comment: "Green" is the word of the day. This story will give you some ideas of where the green opportunities are.

From the San Francisco Chronicle: Heller Ehrman law firm to dissolve Friday
"San Francisco's Heller Ehrman law firm will formally vote to dissolve today, ending a legal partnership that survived earthquakes, the Depression, wars and social upheavals but was unable to preserve its culture of community service amid an increasingly competitive and global legal industry."

Wally's Comment: Read about how some basic structural and tax decisions came home to roost for this fabled firm.

From the Toronto Globe and Mail: A nation of debtors
"The fabled American consumer, driver of two-thirds of U.S. economic activity and de facto engine of the world's economy, is vanishing from the aisles of the nation's stores. Already reeling from the implosion of the country's housing market and the jobs shed by the slowing economy, the voracious U.S. consumer is now being choked by evaporating credit. "

Wally's Comment:US consumers haven't been running on empty. They've been running on debt.

Wally's Working Supervisor's Support Kit is a collection of information and tools to help working supervisors do a better job. It's based on what Wally's learned in over twenty years of supervisory skills training. Click here to check it out.

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Wally Bock has helped people learn to be great bosses for more than a quarter century. His latest book, Performance Talk: The One-on-One Part of Leadership, makes learning key leadership principles almost effortless by teaching through a story and providing lists of resources for further growth.

Click here to find out more about Wally's coaching services.

For weekly tips and resources pointers, check our Wally Bock's Three Star Leadership Letter.

Click here to find out more about having Wally speak to your company or convention.