POP QUIZ: The National Association of Wholesalers asked the American Management Association, “What single trait do you think a manager needs most to be successful in today’s business environment?” The response was surprising. Communication skills headed the list with 36.96% and leaderships skills followed with 28.26%. So, is the effective communicator more valuable than the successful leader? Maybe on a sales call but not in the boardroom. Anyway, integrity and trustworthiness polled 23.91%; listening skills, 6.52%; time management, 4.35%, and conflict resolution and experience, 0%. It is interesting to note that experience, once so highly touted, is now a disdained attribute. They used to say there is no substitute for experience. Now there is: communication skills. If you haven’t done it, just say you did.

NEW STUDY: Check this out: The 2010 Miller Heiman Sales Best Practice Study is in progress and concludes on Oct. 30. The annual study of business-to-business selling and sales management best practices is the world’s largest on sales effectiveness. In its seventh year, more than 21,000 sales professionals have participated to date. The results are analyzed and sales experts identify the activities that are most effective in the current selling environment. After the survey concludes, analysts compile a number of reports specific to industries, regions and countries. An executive summary will be available to provide an overall analysis of the most significant results. To take part in the study, visit millerheiman.com/2010research. All participants will gain immediate access to the executive summary of 2009.

SAXON’S 7: Miki Saxon poses this conundrum: Do you know the 7 most important words a manager at any level should know? The 7 words that make the difference between engaged, turned-on, motivated people and those who spend their time polishing their resumes? The 7 words that make you a hero to your team? The 7 words that enhance your reputation and improve your paycheck? The 7 words that are equally applicable in your personal life? Says Saxon, “Have you figured it out yet?” Then she gave a final hint: The 7 words describe two critical actions that we all do every day in one way or another. At that point, I gave up and the 7 magic words were unveiled: Praise in public and criticize in private. Good advice. My 7 magic words: come in early and go home late. It worked for me.

BAD NEWS: One of the oldest and best-known floor covering retailers in the central San Joaquin Valley has filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy claim, seeking the protection of the court. A&M Carpet Inc. does business as A&M Flooring America and Big Bob’s, and continues to operate while reorganizing its finances. A 45% drop in revenue over the past 18 months prompted the move, said Lee Horwitz, president of the second-generation family-owned business established in 1940. Horwitz said he has no plans to close the operation, though two of his four stores have been shuttered. The company’s flagship store at Highway 41 and Bullard Ave., and Big Bob’s showroom at Blackstone and Dakota Aves., remain open, and stores on West Shaw Ave. in Fresno and on Clovis Ave. in Clovis have been closed. Horwitz hopes to exit bankruptcy as quickly as possible. We hope so, too.

BRAND LAND: Coca-Cola and IBM retained their spots as the world’s two most valuable brands, according to Interbrand, an international branding agency. The list’s total value, including brands like Google, Nintendo and Sony, fell 4.6% to $1.15 trillion, the first time in the 10-year history of the ranking. Definition: Brands are promises that we value and are prepared to pay for and they include all the elements of a product from its design, ingredients and manufacture to its marketing, advertising and logo.