Who Killed the Electric?" seemingly stung General Motors enough that the company unveiled the Chevrolet Volt concept in 2007 and then, startled by its popularity, decided to put the range-extended electric car into limited production.
Now, there's a sequel, appropriately titled "Revenge of the Electric Car," and it premieres tonight as part of Robert De Niro's Tribeca Film Festival in New York City."
see the trailer at the link http://www.greencarreports.com/blog/1058848_who-killed-the-electric-car-sequel-premieres-tonight-video
Wednesday
Executive Searches are on the Rise.
In an article published in the Wall street Journal this week by Joann S. Lublin for Wall Street Journal www.wsj.com She had some very specific discoveries…...
“As the economic recovery gathers speed, big U.S. businesses are coming out of their crouch and hunting for fresh management talent that can help them grow faster. The number of North American executive searches rose by 27% last year after plunging 24% in 2009, according to the Association of Executive Search Consultants.
The hottest prospects are team players who created value at big companies that held their own during the downturn, recruiters said. Star executives innovate and move quickly.
Strategies needed "to steer toward new growth are different than in the past," said John Wood, head of the global CEO practice for executive search firm Heidrick & Struggles International Inc.
With the fastest growth happening overseas, many boards are looking for executives with a global view and work experience in several foreign countries, said Karena Strella, U.S. co-leader for another leading search firm.”
At PermanTech we are experiencing very similar issues within our searches. Management and executive level searches are on the rise in Electric Vehicles and Electronics. A track record of past successes is extremely important as hiring authorities are demanding talent that can hit the ground running. We’ve seen talent still a little skittish about relocating; the uncertainty of company stabilities have many talented professionals still a reluctant to make a move and several are turning down better paying, more challenging job offers due to that fear of uncertainty. Those that do step in tend to hedge their bets by refraining from selling their homes right away, negotiating employer paid temporary housing for six month or other strategies.
“As the economic recovery gathers speed, big U.S. businesses are coming out of their crouch and hunting for fresh management talent that can help them grow faster. The number of North American executive searches rose by 27% last year after plunging 24% in 2009, according to the Association of Executive Search Consultants.
The hottest prospects are team players who created value at big companies that held their own during the downturn, recruiters said. Star executives innovate and move quickly.
Strategies needed "to steer toward new growth are different than in the past," said John Wood, head of the global CEO practice for executive search firm Heidrick & Struggles International Inc.
With the fastest growth happening overseas, many boards are looking for executives with a global view and work experience in several foreign countries, said Karena Strella, U.S. co-leader for another leading search firm.”
At PermanTech we are experiencing very similar issues within our searches. Management and executive level searches are on the rise in Electric Vehicles and Electronics. A track record of past successes is extremely important as hiring authorities are demanding talent that can hit the ground running. We’ve seen talent still a little skittish about relocating; the uncertainty of company stabilities have many talented professionals still a reluctant to make a move and several are turning down better paying, more challenging job offers due to that fear of uncertainty. Those that do step in tend to hedge their bets by refraining from selling their homes right away, negotiating employer paid temporary housing for six month or other strategies.
How Do Your Employees Really Feel about Working for You?
Published in IEEE Todays Engineer
-Gary Perman
Many employers are feeling the double-edged sword of economic recovery. One the one hand, there’s the exhilaration that the recession may be ending; on the other, the stress of depleted inventories and resources, and the constant challenge of revenue growth. This plurality of thought is changing not just the landscape of how management views its continued corporate growth, but its relationship with its employees as well.
Recent federal incentives have seeded many companies in markets such as wind, solar, energy, automotive and the electronics industries to spur job creation. I have seen a flurry of industry growth and employee optimism. Unfortunately, federal incentive funding is also “running out,” exemplified by the Solar Panel incentives in Colorado, resulting in the closure of branch offices, and fueling the merger/acquisition of other companies. Venture capital remains tough to come by in the United States, and further contraction of venture firms is expected domestically so many entrepreneurs are reaching out to financiers in places like Poland, Brazil, Israel, India and China. to invest in America’s emerging technologies. Adding to the confusion is the big question: “Should we, as companies, grow, expand, or stay put? If our crystal ball were firmly in place, the answer would be easy, but accurately reading the pulse of industry in the next few years is beyond the scope of reality.
As managers focusing on this conundrum, you may be ignoring an even deeper concern—the employees and team spirit that drive your success. These are the very individuals who help your company grow and prosper, yet, as the economy slowly recovers, may, at this very moment, are thinking about leaving you.
Despite the recession, most employers have had a very difficult time recruiting and hiring away highly-qualified, technically-proficient people. No amount of advertising would entice them away from their current jobs because they fear any employment change. They are also not reading the very publications that would motivate them to seek you out, even though their unhappiness grows. The end result is a tremendous number of unfulfilled high-tech jobs, fueling the belief that the United States is plagued with a significant engineering shortage.
That perception is changing, though, as industry begins its slow but steady recovery, and consumer confidence grows. With an emerging light appearing at the end of this hiring abyss, and employees start to feel a bit more comfortable peeking out from behind their cubicles, this trickle will soon become a stream.
read the rest at http://www.todaysengineer.org/2011/Apr/employee-retention.asp
Saturday
2011 Technology Innovation Awards
Nominations are now being accepted.
The Wall Street Journal invites companies, organizations and individuals world-wide to apply for the 2011 Technology Innovation Awards.
Winners will be chosen by an independent panel of judges and will be featured in The Journal's Technology Innovations Report, appearing October 10 online and in our three global editions.
Please complete and return this form with any supporting documentation by May 6, 2011 (6 p.m. New York time) to: innovation@wsj.com
The Wall Street Journal invites companies, organizations and individuals world-wide to apply for the 2011 Technology Innovation Awards.
Winners will be chosen by an independent panel of judges and will be featured in The Journal's Technology Innovations Report, appearing October 10 online and in our three global editions.
Please complete and return this form with any supporting documentation by May 6, 2011 (6 p.m. New York time) to: innovation@wsj.com
Monday
Cause of worker unproductivity is Web surfing
The studies seem to agree on this one. The No. 1 cause of worker unproductivity is Web surfing. But rather than deal with it, most employers I know turn their heads the other way and rely on the professionalism of their employees to keep things in check.
But if your company does play Internet traffic cop, be aware there is a right way and a wrong way to get people off the digital drug.
In a new working paper called Temptation at Work, Harvard Business School professor Marco Piovesan and colleagues Alessandro Bucciol and Daniel Houser point to one common practice as an example of the wrong way to do it. This is when employers ban Web surfing until after work hours.
The problem? Workers who are asked to use willpower to resist temptation are more likely to be less productive and make more mistakes in subsequent tasks. Employers would be better off either turning off outside Web service completely, or allowing specific times of the day for personal surfing, they write.
“Employers should not prohibit the Internet and yet leave it available. Instead, employers should either remove it entirely or, when doing this is impractical, allow employees a certain amount of time — maybe even as often as several minutes per hour — for personal Internet activity. Perhaps lunch-breaks can be somewhat shortened to accommodate “surf-time”. Alternatively, employers might consider allowing regular Internet breaks, in the same way that many currently accommodate short but not infrequent cigarette or coffee breaks.”
Hey, are you reading this at work?
By Sean Silverthorne | March 11, 2011
See Article:
http://www.bnet.com/blog/harvard/the-right-way-to-curb-personal-web-surfing-at-work/10604?promo=665&tag=nl.e665
But if your company does play Internet traffic cop, be aware there is a right way and a wrong way to get people off the digital drug.
In a new working paper called Temptation at Work, Harvard Business School professor Marco Piovesan and colleagues Alessandro Bucciol and Daniel Houser point to one common practice as an example of the wrong way to do it. This is when employers ban Web surfing until after work hours.
The problem? Workers who are asked to use willpower to resist temptation are more likely to be less productive and make more mistakes in subsequent tasks. Employers would be better off either turning off outside Web service completely, or allowing specific times of the day for personal surfing, they write.
“Employers should not prohibit the Internet and yet leave it available. Instead, employers should either remove it entirely or, when doing this is impractical, allow employees a certain amount of time — maybe even as often as several minutes per hour — for personal Internet activity. Perhaps lunch-breaks can be somewhat shortened to accommodate “surf-time”. Alternatively, employers might consider allowing regular Internet breaks, in the same way that many currently accommodate short but not infrequent cigarette or coffee breaks.”
Hey, are you reading this at work?
By Sean Silverthorne | March 11, 2011
See Article:
http://www.bnet.com/blog/harvard/the-right-way-to-curb-personal-web-surfing-at-work/10604?promo=665&tag=nl.e665
Sunday
PermanTech Chosen to participate in MIT Research Collaborative
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Job Search Research Collaborative
In light of the current labor market crisis, the MIT Job Search Research Collaborative, has chosen Permantech to participate in researching job search and recruiting strategies and experiences. The ultimate goal is to provide more effective job search support and advice to job seekers.
"we are pleased to be asked and honored to assist such an important study. I hope the results positively assist job seekers-current and future" said Gary Perman, President of Permantech.
!
Friday
Thursday
Business Technology Spending Picking Up Indicating Hiring strain
WSJ writer Dana Mattioli announced this week that....."After delaying technology purchases and upgrades during the downturn, businesses started spending strongly again in the fourth quarter, lifting profits at tech suppliers including EMC Corp., SAP AG, International Business Machines Corp., and Xerox Corp.
Companies are signaling they’re more comfortable spending money on technology now that sales and profits are expanding. “What drives tech spending are profits,” said Bill Whyman, head of tech strategy research at equity research broker dealer ISI Group Inc. Corporate profits have been surging the last few quarters and spending usually lags profits by three quarters, he said.
World-wide information technology spending is forecast to increase 5.1% to $3.6 trillion this year, according to market research firm Gartner Inc." As Technology spending increases, Managers need to be prepared for the groundswell; increased hiring among vendors to supply the Tech companies with products and services - thus we'll see an upswing in Tech vendor output and a warning to management - as always, when business picks up, Management drives urgent needs to add talent. More talent is needed to grow and sustain the demands of your clients. Managers also need to be aware that this is also the most volatile time for existing talent to jump ship. The lure of higher salaries, more challenges, title promotions drive good talent away from many companies during this time. Now is the time to be focused on talent retention as well as hiring.
Companies are signaling they’re more comfortable spending money on technology now that sales and profits are expanding. “What drives tech spending are profits,” said Bill Whyman, head of tech strategy research at equity research broker dealer ISI Group Inc. Corporate profits have been surging the last few quarters and spending usually lags profits by three quarters, he said.
World-wide information technology spending is forecast to increase 5.1% to $3.6 trillion this year, according to market research firm Gartner Inc." As Technology spending increases, Managers need to be prepared for the groundswell; increased hiring among vendors to supply the Tech companies with products and services - thus we'll see an upswing in Tech vendor output and a warning to management - as always, when business picks up, Management drives urgent needs to add talent. More talent is needed to grow and sustain the demands of your clients. Managers also need to be aware that this is also the most volatile time for existing talent to jump ship. The lure of higher salaries, more challenges, title promotions drive good talent away from many companies during this time. Now is the time to be focused on talent retention as well as hiring.
Friday
Survey finds economists optimistic on hiring rate
We are see more and more reports of optimism in the business world lately.
WASHINGTON —Employers will hire more workers this year, and the economy will grow faster than envisioned three months ago, according to an Associated Press survey that found growing optimism among leading economists.
But unemployment will stay chronically high — nearly 9 percent by year's end, the latest quarterly AP Economy Survey shows. A majority of economists say it will be 2016 or later before unemployment drops to a historically normal rate of around 5 percent.
Economists have become more confident 19 months after the worst recession since the Great Depression ended. Lower Social Security taxes and higher stock prices will embolden Americans to spend more and help power the economy, they say.
'People will finally recognize that an economic recovery is under way,' said Lynn Reaser, a board member of the National Association for Business Economics. 'This won't be a recovery seen only by economists.'
The gains this year will be enough to withstand the threats still clouding the economy, the AP survey found. A majority of the economists doubt, for example, that falling home prices and higher mortgage rates will pose a major risk to the economy in 2011.
The AP survey collected the views of 42 private, corporate and academic economists on a range of indicators. Among their forecasts:
The economy will grow 3.2 percent this year, compared with the 2.7 percent they forecast in October; employers will create a net total of 2.2 million jobs; consumers will spend 3.2 percent more this year than last year; inflation will be 1.8 percent this year, barely more than the 1.7 percent the economists forecast previously.
Among the reasons for the economists' growing optimism: an extension of income-tax cuts, a cut in Social Security taxes for workers, easier access to loans, higher stock prices and a government that seems more sympathetic to the priorities of businesses
WASHINGTON —Employers will hire more workers this year, and the economy will grow faster than envisioned three months ago, according to an Associated Press survey that found growing optimism among leading economists.
But unemployment will stay chronically high — nearly 9 percent by year's end, the latest quarterly AP Economy Survey shows. A majority of economists say it will be 2016 or later before unemployment drops to a historically normal rate of around 5 percent.
Economists have become more confident 19 months after the worst recession since the Great Depression ended. Lower Social Security taxes and higher stock prices will embolden Americans to spend more and help power the economy, they say.
'People will finally recognize that an economic recovery is under way,' said Lynn Reaser, a board member of the National Association for Business Economics. 'This won't be a recovery seen only by economists.'
The gains this year will be enough to withstand the threats still clouding the economy, the AP survey found. A majority of the economists doubt, for example, that falling home prices and higher mortgage rates will pose a major risk to the economy in 2011.
The AP survey collected the views of 42 private, corporate and academic economists on a range of indicators. Among their forecasts:
The economy will grow 3.2 percent this year, compared with the 2.7 percent they forecast in October; employers will create a net total of 2.2 million jobs; consumers will spend 3.2 percent more this year than last year; inflation will be 1.8 percent this year, barely more than the 1.7 percent the economists forecast previously.
Among the reasons for the economists' growing optimism: an extension of income-tax cuts, a cut in Social Security taxes for workers, easier access to loans, higher stock prices and a government that seems more sympathetic to the priorities of businesses
The Five Worst Management Concepts in Business.
Geoffrey James published an article last week in BNET which is a good springboard for contemplation and discussion.
See the entire article at http://www.bnet.com/blog/salesmachine/the-5-dumbest-management-concepts-of-all-time/13630?pg=2
Geoffrey highlights some very common sense and sometimes humorous ideas. Although I agree with many of these ideas, I doubt industry will make any fundamental change….companies are too engrained, set in their ways. The larger the company, the more beaurocratic and less likely to make any significant departure from tradition. Below are the five areas Geoffrey James mentions.
#1 Downsizing
“Downsizing is a sign of failure. It means that management has failed and rather than doing the right thing — which is to quit without severance — they’re passing along the penalty for that failure to the people who, in good faith, tried to execute the flawed strategy that top management pursued. That’s why top managers (and the kiss-butt journalists in the mainstream business press) love the word “downsizing.” It makes the results of failure sound like a strategy, rather than a desperate way to remain profitable after top management has made a complete pig’s breakfast of things.”
“… As we go forward [in business] let’s stop calling it downsizing. Let’s call it what it is: firing productive workers because top management was a bunch of overpaid pinhead losers who shouldn’t be allowed to run a company again.”
#2 Leadership
But what is a “leader,” anyway? What does a “leader” do?
“… As we go forward [in business], let’s stop enabling all these tin-pot “leaders” by pretending that they’re doing anything other than grandstanding. Let’s value the real managers, who actually do the hard (and largely thankless) work of making other people productive.”
#3: “Human Resources”
“When you talk to people who work in “Human Resources”, they pretend that they’re all about helping people to become more successful. But the truth is that the entire concept of HR is really just a way to make sure that employees don’t act uppity…. What better way to let people know that they’re expendable commodities than calling them “resources”?
So, as we go forward [in business] let’s stop talking about “human resources” and start calling people what they are: people. People who have real lives and real ideas and real emotions and who, frankly, are doing work that’s often more important than that of the top executives.
#4: “Empowerment”
“it’s abundantly clear that technology isn’t empowering employees; it’s empowering management to spy upon employees. And technology isn’t empowering small organizations; it’s making it easier for large organizations to drive the smaller ones out of business.
So, as we go forward [in business], let’s stop talking about technology as “empowerment” and start talking about what really counts: human creativity freed from the limitations imposed by bonehead “leaders” who think they’re managing “human resources”.
#5: “Business Warfare”
“A glance at the titles of popular business books-Marketing Warfare, Leadership Secrets of Attila the Hun, Guerrilla PR-offer ample testimony for this widely held viewpoint. We’re told that we must imitate generals and warlords if we want to be successful managers…….So, going forward [in business], let’s deep-six the militaristic jingoism and start talking about business in terms of relationships, agreements and profitability. Then we’ll all be better off.
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