The recession has been absolutely brutal to many CEOs, company presidents and business owners according to Howard Lewinter, Business Management Specialist, who serves clients throughout the United States.
From his 20 years as a trusted business advisor, Lewinter knows that this recession is different from earlier ones in its effects on business. Many leaders of businesses feel beaten down by this recession. “It’s really hit business people in the gut,” Lewinter says.
Even when it’s over, because the effects on so many businesses have been so severe, a full rebound to a robust economy is very likely to take time. Till business resumes a sense of normalcy, how do business people deal with running their companies in an uncharted business economy?
“Right now, they’re finding it can be really ‘lonely at the top.’ They need advice that can’t come from within the organization. Yet they don’t know where to go or who to trust for business advice because we have never experienced an economy quite like this. And they are not really sure what the next step is for their business. They need the perspective of an unbiased, outside expert,” says Lewinter.
That’s why Lewinter created the video series, “How Your Business Can Survive, and Prosper, in the Recession” … and why he’s offering it free to CEOs, company presidents, and business owners exclusively. He wants to bring his solid, straightforward style of business advice to as many business people as possible … as soon as possible … to help them during these tough economic times and be ready for the eventual upturn in business.
In this 7-part video series, Lewinter provides answers to business people who are encountering business problems and issues in this recession. Each video focuses on a different business topic and offers valuable strategies, including: How not to be a victim of the recession; How to get in action and get business back on track; Cutting the cost of running a business; Marketing; Prospecting and sales; and How to deal with business stress.
To sign up for Howard Lewinter’s free video series - “How Your Business Can Survive, and Prosper, in the Recession” - go to http://www.TalkBusinessWithHoward.com/recession.
Related posts
Tags: business advice, business advisor, business economy, business marketing, business owners, business problems, business topic, ceos, company presidents, economic times, lewinter, lonely at the top, management specialist, normalcy, recession, robust economy, running a business, straightforward style, upturn, video series
RSR’s newest research study, “Walking the Razor’s Edge: Managing the Store Experience in an Economic Singularity,” sponsored by Epicor and SAP, shows retailer recognition that low price alone will not help them gain or maintain market share.
“Perhaps one of the biggest turn-arounds compared to previous studies on this topic is the full-blown recognition within the retail enterprise that store technologies really do matter,” said Paula Rosenblum, managing partner at RSR Research and co-author of the report. “Retailers understand they cannot efficiently maintain or improve the customer experience without it.”
“Retailers still have a long way to go in unlocking the potential of these technologies,” added Brian Kilcourse, managing partner at RSR Research and co-author of the report. “Retailers selling General Merchandise and Apparel have been hardest hit by the economy, and also have the most to gain from taking better advantage of store solutions.”
RSR’s new study, “Walking the Razor’s Edge: Managing the Store Experience in an Economic Singularity,” explores the challenges retailers face in the worst economy of our lifetimes. The report, with benchmark data captured from April and May 2009, provides recommendations on how to improve the in-store experience even in an economic downturn.
PR Web
Related posts
Tags: benchmark data, challenges, co author, customer experience, economic downturn, economy, epicor, general merchandise, lifetimes, market share, retail enterprise, rosenblum, rsr, sap, singularity, store experience, store solutions, store technology, technology investments, unlocking the potential
Carnegie Mellon University researchers have created a model for providing empirical evidence on when an ex-convict has been “clean” long enough to be considered “redeemed” for employment purposes.
The new study, which appears in the current issue of Criminology, estimates that after five years of staying clean an individual with a criminal record is of no greater risk of committing another crime than other individuals of the same age. The research comes at a time when President Barack Obama’s crime agenda includes breaking down employment barriers for people who have a prior criminal record, but who have stayed clean since their earlier offense.
“In the past, employers had no way of knowing when it might be safe to look past a criminal record,” said Alfred Blumstein, co-author of the study and the J. Erik Jonsson University Professor of Urban Systems and Operations Research at Carnegie Mellon’s H. John Heinz III College. “Hiring an ex-offender was a totally arbitrary decision. We believe our model can change that and help provide employers with data in making such decisions. Or it can be used by state criminal-record repositories in deciding when a prior arrest is too ’stale’ to warrant distributing.” Blumstein’s co-author is Kiminori Nakamura, a Ph.D. student at the Heinz College.
The issue of employing ex-offenders has become more of a problem, as a vast majority of larger U.S. employers now perform criminal background checks, Blumstein said. He noted that advances in information technology allow criminal records to be kept longer and to be distributed easily, and employers are concerned about liability risk if the former offender commits a new crime. Blumstein said this makes it difficult for a large number of people who have committed crimes when they were much younger, but have stayed clean since then.
The study, funded by The National Institute of Justice, used criminal-history records of more than 88,000 first-time offenders in New York in 1980. Most committed new crimes within the first few years after their initial arrest, but only a small minority had a new arrest after staying clean for at least five years. After determining whether the offenders had remained clean during the ensuing 25 years, the data on the 1980 offenders was compared against two comparison groups. The study determined that after about five years those in the offender group were at or below the risk of arrest as people in the general population who were the same age. A more demanding comparison is with people of the same age who had never been arrested. Those with a prior record had to stay clean longer, but their risk could be close enough even to that low-risk group.
Future studies will address other states and sampling years to assess the consistency of results. This effort is intended to develop standards for employers and record repositories to help reduce the handicaps imposed on those who had committed a crime when they were younger.
Related posts
Tags: advances in information technology, alfred blumstein, arbitrary decision, barack obama, carnegie mellon university, criminal background checks, criminal history records, criminal record, criminology, empirical evidence, employment barriers, employment purposes, first time offenders, john heinz iii, liability risk, national institute of justice, new crime, new crimes, record repositories, urban systems
The CAW has reached a tentative settlement with General Motors Canada following weeks of intense negotiations for a new collective agreement as part of the company’s North American restructuring process.
The agreement includes a series of cost-saving provisions affecting cash compensation, health benefits, other non-wage benefits, and work practices and productivity improvements. The company and the union have agreed that the changes will reduce all-in labour costs to a level comparable to those paid at Toyota Canada.
The new agreement also includes a comprehensive restructuring of the company’s pension plan.
Through this plan, the company commits to move to funding its pension on a solvency basis, moving away from the special funding loophole established in 1992 in Ontario (referred to as Section 5.1). Thanks to a combination of upfront contributions and sustained funding commitments over the next several years, GM’s pension funding status will quickly reach levels comparable to Ford and Chrysler in Canada.
“This deal will be an immense relief to the more than 25,000 retired GM workers in Canada,” said CAW President Ken Lewenza. “They will sleep much easier tonight.”
CAW President Ken Lewenza said the union was able to resist cuts to many core benefits, maintained wages and secured pensions for members at General Motors, a testament to the strength and solidarity of CAW members throughout these negotiations.
“In the face of tremendous economic and political pressure we have ended up with an agreement that protects the interests of our members, which is an important victory,” Lewenza said. “This agreement was a crucial step in the overall process of restructuring this company, and allowing us all to move forward.”
The agreement includes all of the cost-saving provisions originally included in the contract negotiated with GM in early March and all of the changes CAW negotiated with Chrysler in May.
Additional changes negotiated in the second round of talks with GM include substantial workplace practices and productivity improvements, an extra freeze in all pension levels (going out to 2015), and the details of GM-specific deals regarding pensions and the new independent Health Care Trust.
The agreement also preserves the restructuring agreements which were negotiated at the Windsor Transmission Plant and Oshawa Truck Plant.
Press
Related posts
Tags: caw members, caw president, collective agreement, compensation health, general motors canada, gm workers, health benefits, immense relief, intense negotiations, labour costs, loophole, pension funding, pension plan, productivity improvements, solvency, tentative settlement, toyota canada, work practices
Evergreen Healthcare has announced that is has completed the transition of the company from a privately owned organization into a 100% owned venture through an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) Trust.
“We feel that this is the highest benefit we can provide for our devoted employees who, we hope, will have long, fulfilling careers with Evergreen Healthcare,” said Anne Nipp, CEO of EHC Management, L.L.C. “By offering this ESOP to our employees, we are doing our part to support hard working healthcare professionals in these challenging economic times, and simultaneously better serve our residents and their families by retaining highly skilled care givers.”
Evergreen Healthcare and its affiliates have been privately owned and operated since 1997. The company’s founder, Andy Martini, had the vision to grow a responsible company that, at its heart, had core values and strong, stable management personnel and practices dedicated to providing quality services to the elderly.
The transfer of ownership to those who have helped build the company enables the company to make a seamless transition, with the same people and systems in place. Minimized disruption will assure ongoing continuity and quality for its residents and their families.
(Source) Press
Related posts
Tags: care givers, continuity, core values, disruption, economic times, ehc, employee stock ownership, employee stock ownership plan, esop trust, healthcare professionals, management personnel, martini, nipp, quality services, responsible company, seamless transition, skilled care, stable management, transfer of ownership
It is the time for filing taxes but most tax payers are familiar with the old table. Apparently there is a new tax table released and while employers may make the necessary adjustments, the employees may not be as understanding especially during these hard times when everyone seems to be gasping for cash.
Employers will soon be (or have already commenced) using the tables in IRS Publication 15-T (New Wage Withholding and Advanced Earned Income Credit Payment Tables for wages paid through December 2009). The new tables reflect the Making Work Pay Credit (MWPC) that was adopted as part of the recently enacted American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
However, some employees will discover that their withholding and take-home pay haven’t changed at all, even though they will be entitled to the full credit. Others may need to file new Form W-4s in order to avoid being underwithheld. “This could result in new headaches for payroll departments and employees alike,” says Bob Trinz, Senior Tax Analyst from the Tax & Accounting business of Thomson Reuters.
The analysts at the Tax & Accounting business of Thomson Reuters have performed some calculations under the old and new withholding tables to get a clearer picture of how employees’ take-home pay will be affected. In these sample calculations, it is assumed that the employee is paid weekly and that the new withholding tables will be used for 40 weeks in 2009. All of the calculations use the percentage method under the new withholding tables and those that were in effect before enactment of the 2009 Recovery Act.
Here are some scenario examples:
Example A: Lower Paid Employee, One Job Only: An employee who is single, claims one withholding allowance, and makes $45,000 a year will see a $10.20 increase in his take-home pay. That works out to $408 for the balance of the year, slightly more than the $400 MWPC credit he will be entitled to when he files his 2009 return.
Example B: Employee With Multiple Jobs: The employee in the previous illustration also has a part-time job paying $15,000 a year, and he also claims one withholding allowance at this job. His weekly take-home pay at the second job will increase by $8.70, or $348 for the year. The employee’s total withholding will be reduced by $756 ($408 for the main job, and $348 for the second job), but he will only be able to claim a $400 credit on his personal income tax return. As a result, the employee may want to consider filing a new Form W-4 to have more withholding taken out of his pay.
“The employee is receiving a withholding tax reduction in excess of the allowable credit because the MWPC is taken into account in the withholding calculations of each employer,” Trinz notes.
Example C: Higher Paid Employee, One Job Only: A married employee earns $100,000 a year at one employer and claims four withholding allowances. His wife is a homemaker. This employee will see a $15.35 increase in take-home pay, or a total of $614 extra for the year, even though he will be able to claim a full $800 MWPC credit on the 2009 return.
“The tables appear to be engineered so that they will generate a maximum increase in take-home pay of about $400 for a single employee, and $600 for married taxpayers filing jointly, even though the maximum MWPC for the latter is $800,” says Trinz.
Example D: Working Couples: A married couple who each earn $75,000 a year each claim two withholding allowances. Each spouse will receive a $614 withholding tax reduction. Their combined withholding reduction will be $1,228, but the maximum credit they can claim on their 2009 personal income tax return is $800. One or both of these individuals may want to consider filing a new Form W-4 to increase withholding.
“This is another situation where the withholding tax reduction exceeds the allowable credit, because the MWPC is taken into account in the withholding calculations of each employer,” says Trinz.
Example E: Joint Filers With Only One Earner: A married couple earns $150,000, all of it generated by the wife, who claims four withholding allowances. The couple receives $5.39 extra each week ($215.60 for the balance of the year), even though they may claim an $800 credit on their 2009 personal income tax return (assuming their modified AGI doesn’t exceed $150,000). The working spouse may want to consider submitting a new Form W-4 to reduce withholding.
“This result occurs because some of the working spouse’s income is being taxed at a higher bracket using the new withholding tables,” says Trinz.
(Source) Press
Related posts
Tags: 4s, credit payment tables, enactment, filing taxes, headaches, irs publication 15, mwpc, necessary adjustments, payroll departments, percentage method, recovery act, reinvestment act, reuters, scenario examples, tax analyst, tax payers, tax table, wages, withholding allowance, withholding tables
Posted by Damien on Mar 25, 2009 in
Business Administration,
Career With unemployment on the rise, job seekers are welcoming all the help they can get. And with that in mind, it looks like CareerBuilder will be answering the call as the editors of CareerBuilder announced a no-nonsense handbook that tells workers of all ages and all stages of their careers and everything they need to know about landing a great job and navigating through the workplace. CAREER BUILDING: Your Total Handbook for Finding a Job and Making it Work provides some of the best-kept secrets of job hunting effectively, career troubleshooting and transitioning into new career paths.
Expanding on CareerBuilder’s most popular articles, CAREER BUILDING is filled with insightful statistics and advice from top experts on making yourself indispensable as a candidate or employee. It includes a variety of good and bad examples of resumes, thank-you notes, networking letters and emails to bosses. It also contains information on how to leverage social media, build rapport, strengthen skill sets and make yourself visible. You can also find warning signs to watch out for in the workplace and information on how to prepare for the unexpected.
Career Building offers expert tips for job-searching in a bad economy, including:
- What to do after a layoff
- How to look confident (even if you have to fake it)
- How to make yourself relevant to a variety of employers
- How to make a bad job work for you (when need be)
The book was published by Collins Business, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, and is available in major book stores across the country. It can also be purchased at amazon.com, borders.com and bn.com.
Source
Related posts
Tags: amazon, answering the call, best kept secrets, borders, Career, career paths, CareerBuilder, Collins, editors, examples of resumes, expert tips, finding a job, handbook, harpercollinspublishers, insightful statistics, job hunting, job seekers, networking, networking letters, skill sets, transitioning, unemployment, unexpected career, warning signs
For the people jobless right now, NEW is the focus to be. NEW is a leading provider of extended service plans and buyer protection programs for consumer products. They have announced today at a press conference with Gov. Edward G. Rendell plans that they will be opening a new customer service call center in Altoona by May of this year that will bring up to 481 new jobs to the area.
With the addition of the new call center jobs, NEW will become one of the area’s top fifteen largest employers. Last July, NEW established a Work-at-Home Training Center that currently employs 60 people from the Altoona region.
“At a time when too many companies are laying off too many employees, it’s extremely good news that a company, like NEW has chosen Pennsylvania to grow its business and to give hundreds of the region’s hardworking men and women the opportunity to provide for themselves and their families,” Governor Rendell said. “Our investments in the creation and growth of businesses in the commonwealth are vitally important, and our efforts have paid off.”
(Source) Press
Related posts
Tags: altoona region, buyer protection, call center jobs, commonwealth, customer service call center, governor rendell, hardworking men, investments, men and women, new call center, new jobs, pennsylvania, work at home training
Today, if you want to survive the financial crisis, it looks like you have to try to invest in a business that can help stave off being bludgeoned in debt. A lot of people make use of their separation or retirement pay to try and gain a steady source of income via business venture but it seems that not all are getting the returns expected from business.
But would you believe you can start a business for $1? It does sound impossible but if you are creative and witty enough, you can really start your road to fame and fortune with a measly buck.
Here are some ideas:
1. Time machine
Buy your all-time favorite song at an MP3 store, iTunes or Amazon.com and use your imaginary time machine, for only a dollar. There’s sure to be a melody in your mind now that will take you to a nostalgic or magical destination. Maybe the song was played at your quinceanera, your wedding or was the theme song of the last World Cup. Let the music transport you to your favorite time and place.
2. A ticket to Mexico
For a little less than a dollar, a packet of Mexican “chile en polvo” will transport you to a typical Mexican mercado. A small bag of chile en polvo, lime and some fruit, sliced cucumber or chicharrones will make your lips pucker and your eyes crinkle, and land you in a northern Mexican town where kids and adults enjoy this savory snack that is sure to knock your socks off.
3. Breakfast, lunch or dinner
At Sonic Drive-In, you can choose from an array of options such as a Jr. Breakfast Burrito, a Chicken Strip Sandwich or a Jr. Deluxe Burger, all for just a dollar each. All are made with the same high-quality ingredients Sonic is known for, but for only a dollar, plus tax. You can even get dessert. Take your time to order. Enjoy your food in your car or on the patio, or even order it to go, and don’t forget to share with friends, co-workers and family.
4. New pair of shoes
Hidden in a dark corner of your closet is what was once your favorite pair of shoes. Yes, the shoes that you wore at your graduation or wore regularly to go salsa or merengue dancing … now you remember. Buy a container of shoe polish for around a dollar. Carefully apply polish to your shoes. If needed, guys can also replace their old shoe laces with new ones. Once again, you’re ready to shine on the dance floor.
5. Be a philanthropist
During slow economic times, people in our community need help, too. Make a difference! Donate a dollar to a charity close to your heart. Think of a nonprofit community organization with global reach; there is always a cause that could use an extra dollar or two, maybe hunger or disaster relief. And to stretch your donation, look for organizations that provide matching funds. Nonprofit organizations are experts in multiplying your donation and making it worth so much more. Plus, doing something good for your community will give you a great sense of personal satisfaction.
6. A miracle
Of course miracles are free, but for around a dollar, a “veladora” of your devoted saint or the always-miraculous Virgin of Guadalupe will help you focus and establish that spiritual connection. There is no guarantee the “veladora” will make Chivas or Americas win the next soccer match; for that you’ll have to grab your friends, watch the game, and cheer for your team. Pick up some Slushes and snacks at Sonic on the way. A small drink or famous Slush is only $1.
7. Open a new savings account
Banks are a good, safe place for your money, but the faithful “cochinito” could help you save for something special. Every day, deposit all the change you have accumulated in your pocket or purse in the piggy bank. If you deposit 25 cents a day, you’ll collect $1.75 a week, or around $90 per year - not exactly pocket change. Use this money to jump-start your savings plan or splurge on something you’ve always wanted. Think big.
8. Get in touch with old friends for $1
Perhaps your hectic life hasn’t let you keep in touch with old friends. If your friends live in faraway countries, buy a one-dollar telephone card. Call them and remind them that you appreciate them and miss them very much. You’ll be updated on their whereabouts, and you may even have a place to crash on your next vacation … again, for only a dollar.
9. A personal touch
Words are one of the few things that don’t cost much. This, along with a dollar in postage stamps, is all you need to send a friend a personalized thank you or a congratulatory note. Sure, an email or text message will reach them faster, but those don’t have the personal touch that a handwritten letter does. In these digital times, receiving a note in the mail is always a welcomed surprise.
10. Stress therapy for $1
Go to the nearest Sonic Drive-In, park in a stall, take your time looking at the menu and deciding what to order, listen to relaxing music on your radio, then press the red button. Order a Jr. Candy Sundae with your favorite candy topping: Reese’s, M&Ms, Oreo or Butterfinger candies. Feel your stress melt away with every bite, for just a dollar, plus tax.
(Source) Press
Related posts
Tags: amazon, breakfast burrito, breakfast lunch, business venture, chicken strip, fame and fortune, favorite song, itunes, magical destination, mexican chile, mp3 store, new pair of shoes, polvo, pucker, quality ingredients, quinceanera, sonic drive, time machine
The common yelp of companies these days is to be the best and provide efficient business services to their respective markets. But while that sounds a bit passé, being adjudged as a company to watch by a third party is certainly a big boost as far as carving your niche and strengthening your brand name. Not only can you expect attention from your potential customers, all eyes including employment opportunities and business partnerships are bound to be included.
Vertica Systems has been named “Company to Watch” in TechWeb’s Intelligent Enterprise 2009 Editors’ Choice Awards. The honor is bestowed to an elite class of the most influential technology companies impacting smart enterprises, according to the award judges. Companies are chosen based on their ability to provide “exceptional vision, technology innovation and customer leadership in attaining strategic objectives.”
Vertica made the list for the development of its Vertica Analytic Database, the only analytic database specifically built to handle today’s business intelligence data management workloads. It features a unique columnar, MPP architecture to speed up query processing by orders of magnitude and aggressive data compression that reduces storage requirements by as much as 90 percent, dramatically cutting hardware overhead and energy consumption so customers can analyze larger amounts of data at a fraction of the cost.
In customer benchmarks (http://www.vertica.com/benchmarks), Vertica has answered queries against terabytes of data 50 to 200 times faster than competing databases and specialized analytic hardware. The Vertica Analytic Database gives more people the freedom to analyze more data in more ways, faster, so they can out-innovate the competition.
(Source) Press
Related posts
Tags: benchmarks, business intelligence, business partnerships, competition source, data compression, elite class, energy consumption, intelligence data, intelligent enterprise, orders of magnitude, storage requirements, technology innovation, terabytes, yelp
