IT worker confidence down
Confidence
among IT workers plunged over 12 points from 109.9 to 97.5 in August.
This is only the second time in its history that it fell below the base
of 100. Sector employees rating their finances as excellent or good fell
dramatically from 62 percent the previous month to 47 percent in August.
In addition, only 70 percent stated they were happy in their
current jobs, compared to 75 percent in July. U.S. worker confidence
fell 5.5 points, taking it to the lowest level on record as the national
Hudson Employment Index dropped below the base of 100, also for only the
second time ever, to 98.2.
After holding steady near 31 percent
for nine consecutive months, the number of workers expecting hiring
slipped to 30 percent. At the same time, the percent anticipating job
cuts rose from 16 percent in July to 18 percent, which shows the same
pattern from one year ago. Job security concerns also climbed a point to
21 percent this month, as the percent reporting job satisfaction slipped
from 74 percent to 72 percent.
Investigo teams with Ameritrade
Minneapolis-based Investigo formalized an agreement with
Ameritrade Advisor Services by which Ameritrade will offer Investigo's
Web-based data consolidation and reporting software to its 1,400-plus
registered investment advisor clients.
Investigo's Web-based
platform automatically updates, consolidates and reconciles client data,
and it provides a single portal for asset tracking, client management
and regulatory compliance.
HotGigs teams with employment
group
Minneapolis-based HotGigs.com, a contract talent
provider, and the Indianapolis-based DirectEmployers Association, a
non-profit consortium which runs the Internet's only job board and
employment Web site owned and managed by leading U.S. employers, have
partnered to create a co-branded version of HotGigs' contractor sourcing
tool for users of Direct Employers' job search engine at
www.JobCentral.com.
HotGigs' search engine lets hiring managers
perform targeted searches on HotGigs' growing pool of contract employees
from more than 2,500 IT consulting and staffing firms and 11,000-plus
independent contractors.
The HotGigs service at the
JobCentral.com site also features an online research tool that helps
managers compare the hourly billable rates for thousands of IT skills,
enabling them to create an instant budget based on the resources that
they plan to use.
Ceridian debuts retirement tool
Minneapolis-based Ceridian added a new interactive online retirement
planning tool to its work-life and employee assistance program Web site,
LifeWorks Online.
The retirement planning tool, available to
employees of organizations that provide Ceridian EAP and work-life
services as part of their employee benefit package, combines life
planning and information about non-financial aspects of retirement, such
as relocating, volunteering and lifelong learning, as well as financial
education. This retirement planner is an online counterpart to the life
planning counseling Ceridian already offers people calling in direct to
LifeWorks.
New Boundaries releases Prism Suite
Minneapolis-based New Boundary Technologies, a provider of automated
IT management and security solutions, release Prism Suite.
Prism
Suite automates a wide variety of IT workflow processes, allowing
administrators to create a self-healing computing environment. By
leveraging Prism Suite's rules-based architecture, administrators can
assign configuration and remediation tasks such as removing unauthorized
software, deploying software updates, and repairing installed software
to be automatically performed based on results of inventory scans.
MPR parent invests in networking site
American Public
Media Group (APMG), the parent company of Minnesota Public Radio,
invested about $1 million in a social networking Web site.
Boston-based Gather.com, set to launch in December, is a nonprofit
Web site designed to bring public-radio listeners together. The site
will allow people to create their own home pages, where they can list
their interests, keep a blog and communicate with other members.
Gather.com will generate revenue through advertising and will not
charge for membership.
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