Gail Short

Gail is a journalist and copywriter based in Birmingham, Alabama. She writes about business, health, and lifestyles. She has published articles in American City & County, American Profile, Spry Living, Outreach Magazine, Southern Automotive Alliance, Good Grit, BeautyLink, GACS Today, Business Alabama Magazine and the University of Alabama at Birmingham Magazine, to name a few. Check out her latest work at www.gailshortwrites.com.

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Articles by Gail Short

• 6 high-paying logistics and supply chain jobs to watch

  Wednesday, February 10, 2021

  According to Digital Commerce 360, Americans spent more than $861 billion with online retailers in 2020, the highest annual e-commerce growth in the United States in at least 20 years. With the explosion of e-commerce, the need for logistics and supply chain professionals has expanded as well. In fact, the recent LinkedIn Jobs on the Rise report listed several occupations on the frontlines of e-commerce among the 15 fastest-growing jobs. The industries in this sector include logistics services, warehouse operations and transportation. The following are just some of the highest paid jobs in the sector today.

• The tricks online retailers use to promote impulse shopping

  Thursday, December 17, 2020

  For online retailers, the goal is not only to get customers to buy. It is getting them to buy more. Even on impulse. "Impulse shopping involves making unplanned purchases with little deliberation that’s typically associated with feelings of guilt or regret afterward," says Sarita Schoenebeck, Ph.D., an associate professor at the University of Michigan's School of Information. For many Americans, impulse shopping is pretty common, according to a recent survey by the research firm DAC. The survey shows that 88% of Americans admit to impulse buying, spending about $81 on average every time they shop.

• The smart strategy that’s helping women become CEOs

  Monday, November 23, 2020

  Recently, Fortune Magazine reported that women made the biggest gain ever in capturing CEO positions this year. Thirty-seven chief executive officers on the Fortune 500 list for 2020 are women. However, the number is still puny compared to men. The problem is that public companies tend to hire CEOs with prior CEO experience. That puts many women at a disadvantage since, unlike men, they are less likely to have CEO experience. But in a study published in the Harvard Business Review last year, two researchers reported that for many women, the path to becoming CEO may lie with serving on corporate boards.

• Why micro-fulfillment centers are the future of online grocery shopping

  Thursday, November 05, 2020

  As many Americans seek to avoid crowded stores to protect themselves from COVID-19, more and more of them are shopping for groceries online. But even before the pandemic, a 2017 report by the Food Marketing Institute (FMI) and the Nielsen Company predicted the trend. It says, "Initial findings from this study show that within the next decade, online food shopping will reach maturation in the U.S., far faster than other industries that have come online before. … The research estimates that in the current climate of technology adoption and evolution, consumer spend on online grocery shopping could reach $100 billion."

• Algorithm could help keep consumers safe from illegal online pharmacies

  Tuesday, October 20, 2020

  The National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP) reported this year that it identified dozens of illicit online pharmacies (IOPs) selling drugs marketed as treatments for COVID-19, drugs that would normally require a prescription. "Rogue internet pharmacy networks are run by criminal opportunists, and the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has provided the perfect opportunity for illegal online drug sellers to prey on fearful consumers," the NABP says in its "Rogue Rx Activity Report." But now, researchers at Penn State University have developed an algorithm that may be able to identify which online pharmacies are legitimate and which ones are not. They wrote about their findings in the Journal of Medical Internet Research.

• One simple trick to boost workplace knowledge sharing

  Wednesday, September 30, 2020

  Many experts say having a workplace culture of knowledge sharing raises productivity and creates a more positive work environment. Unfortunately, knowledge flow among employees doesn’t always happen. Worries about looking incompetent can keep struggling workers from asking for help. But in a new study in The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Jason Sandvik, Ph.D., an assistant professor at Tulane University's Freeman School of Business, and his co-authors discuss an innovative strategy for increasing knowledge sharing at work to boost performance.

• Retailer survival: 4 actions to take ASAP

  Friday, September 11, 2020

  The coronavirus pandemic forced governments around the United States and abroad to temporarily close down their economies to contain the virus, resulting in jobs losses and disruptions to global supply chains. Because of the pandemic, many U.S. retailers had to shut down their brick-and-mortar stores temporarily while other stores that sold products deemed as "essential" remained open. Since reopening, some retailers have struggled financially. Some even filed for bankruptcy this year. But others saw their sales soar.

• Study: Researchers search for better ways to nix inventory errors

  Thursday, August 27, 2020

  You log onto your favorite retailer's app to look for that must-have pair of sneakers you want to buy. The shopping site says shoes are in stock. But when you arrive at the store, an empty shelf says otherwise. Inventory errors like this frustrate customers and can eventually lead to dwindling customer loyalty and lost sales, says Rafay Ishfaq, Ph.D., the W. Allen Reed associate professor of supply chain management at Auburn University's Harbert College of Business.

• 7 smart tips for nailing a virtual pitch

  Thursday, August 06, 2020

  The coronavirus pandemic and the need for social distancing have forced millions of Americans to work from home. That goes for startup founders, CEOs and sales teams, too. But problems with video equipment can make pitching via video chat more challenging than a traditional face-to-face meeting, says Luis Vasquez, associate director of Venture Capital Collaboration at UC Irvine Beall Applied Innovation.

• 3 ways to make your supply chain more resilient

  Wednesday, July 15, 2020

  The COVID-19 pandemic has tested the strength of supply chains around the world this year. In the United States, the outbreak led to a spike in consumer demand for items like hand sanitizer, rubbing alcohol and other essentials, and retailers struggled to keep them on the shelves. Today, as the pandemic rages on, experts say now is a good time for companies to determine how they can build more resilient global supply chains going forward.

• Warehouse technologies: 3 trends to watch

  Thursday, June 25, 2020

  These days, many warehouses and distribution centers are under the gun to boost efficiency and productivity and ship products and materials faster than ever. In the e-commerce industry alone, a recent survey by the global consulting firm Capgemini Research Foundation reported that 55% of consumers polled said they would choose a brand or retailer over its competitor if it offered a faster delivery service. That said, a white paper titled "Warehouses of the Future," published by the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University (ASU), says warehouses are becoming places "not just to store stuff," but places integrated into supply chain processes.

• Federal agency sets final rule on truckers’ hours of service

  Thursday, June 04, 2020

  Drivers of large, heavy trucks must regularly meet tight deadlines set by shippers and receivers to deliver goods to warehouses and other customers on time, and fatigue can make truckers' jobs both difficult and risky. To help keep fatigued and drowsy drivers of commercial motor vehicles off the road, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) sets hours of service (HOS) regulations for truck drivers. This spring, the FMCSA presented its final rule on updates to the HOS rules to give drivers more flexibility regarding when and how long they can take breaks.

• The ABCs of cargo insurance

  Tuesday, May 19, 2020

  As COVID-19 swept through Wuhan earlier this year, China fought to contain the spread of the virus by locking down the city and closing the port of Fuzhou from vessels from several foreign countries, including the United States. Subsequently, exports to the United States fell sharply. But even before the COVID-19 pandemic, shipping freight has always been a venture full of risk. The potential disasters and mishaps include theft, hurricanes, train derailments, truck collisions and containers jettisoned or lost at sea as well as corruption and political unrest in foreign nations.

• Pandemic sheds light on weak links in inventory strategies

  Tuesday, May 05, 2020

  In the weeks after COVID-19 began sweeping across the United States, the pandemic succeeded in revealing chinks in the country’s retail and manufacturing supply chains. Many factories and retailers use an inventory system called the just-in-time (JIT) method to save on costs and, in the case of factories, to support lean manufacturing practices. But in light of the recent disruptions to supply chains due to the coronavirus pandemic, some experts say it is time to review current supply chains and inventory processes like JIT.

• As COVID-19 cases swell, the trucking industry struggles to keep drivers safe

  Monday, April 13, 2020

  While many Americans are sheltering in their homes to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus, long-haul truckers are traveling down the highways day and night delivering food, medicines and other essential goods to grocery stores, hospitals and pharmacies. But what happens if a trucker gets coronavirus or feels ill while on the road? While driving heavy or tractor-trailer trucks has always put drivers at a high risk for accidents and injuries, COVID-19 poses an added danger. But, as the pandemic rages on across the country, truckers, their employers, associations and others are working to keep them healthy.

• How blockchain works in the food industry

  Monday, March 23, 2020

  While blockchain technology is usually associated with bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, today some companies in the food industry are beginning to implement this tool to increase transparency, trust and consumer safety while reducing waste. Every transaction along the supply chain is recorded on the digital ledger, time stamped, given a code or "hash," and linked to the blockchain. All parties on the network — growers, wholesalers, distributors and retailers — can read the data in real time and add their own updates.

• How the e-commerce boom is transforming warehouses

  Tuesday, February 25, 2020

  As e-commerce retail sales continue to grow, the need for warehouses and fulfillment centers that meet the needs of online retailers and brick-and-mortar stores is also rising, says James Breeze, senior director and global head of industrial and logistics research at CBRE Group Inc. "E-commerce has been the largest disruptor for warehouse distribution design on record," says Breeze. "Distribution centers have grown in size, clear height and added amenities based on the larger employee counts that are needed for e-commerce fulfillment centers."