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Private Eyes December 2009 Newsletter
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| Letter from the President: |
 Season's Greetings! After a haze of
turkey and Black Friday shopping, we leave one holiday behind, only to enter
the season of another. With the holiday season officially upon us, I want to
extend my appreciation to all of our clients, both large and small, for
allowing Private Eyes to aid you in finding the right employee for all of
your employment needs. I know that finding your employees quickly and easily can
ease any stress related to holiday hirings, allowing you to spend more time
with family and friends.
The entire staff here at Private Eyes would like to acknowledge one of our key players this month. We will be highlighting Desiree Nudo. In the first of a series of staff interviews, I will give you a sneak-peak into the internal world of Private
Eyes. Since our primary goal is to provide pre-employment screening with a
human touch, it is only appropriate that you get to know the team leaders.
As always, our Newsletter will delve into some timely issues and events. President Obama's upcoming Job Summit, the U.S. Dept. of Labor's investment in grants for "Green Job" training, and the pros and cons of allowing social networking in the workplace are all topics that we feel are at the forefront this month.
Happy Holidays!
Sandra James
President
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President's Job Summit: The Changing State of Employment
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 The Changing State of Employment
During these rough economic times, employment is on everyone's mind. While
prospective employees aim at finding a job that suits their needs, for
employers, the goal is to find the right employee.
In the upcoming Job Summit, President Barack Obama plans to summon "130 leading
experts ranging from Fortune 500 CEOs to professors of highly regarded
education institutions to discuss ways to create jobs and stimulate
hiring" ( TPG). Even though the
national economy is recovering, both job seekers and firms are still dealing
with daily on the ground fears of low employment.
Politico argues that,
while positive benefits may be achieved by the Job Summit, the summit still does
not provide the public a "magic bullet" in solving America's
joblessness. In fact, Politico points out that there are some steep challenges
that the President must face.
Just days away, the job summit looks to provide Americans with the right steps
towards a recovery that will benefit labor, firms, and communities by finding
answers for maintaining a productive labor-management relationship.
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Getting Serious about Green
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Getting Serious about Green 
While most sectors of the economy are losing jobs, there may be signs of hope through
the push at both the state and national level towards increasing 'green' jobs. Many
states have begun to provide grants for companies that can hire more workers
while, at the same time, produce a sustainable product.
An example of increased interest in green jobs at a state level is the North
Carolina Employment Security Commission. The commission has just received a
pair of federal grants for the purposes of analyzing the green jobs market. The
grants will focus on analyzing job creation mechanisms for the energy sector at
the state level. (TBJ.com).
Companies in Rhode Island are also receiving grants, this time from the
Governor's Workforce Board (PBN.com). This
consortium of businesses ranges from wind farmers and waste management to even
academic institutions. You can find more information about the consortium here. While these
efforts may not relieve immediate employment problems, funding for these
projects will lead to an increase in sustainable jobs in the long-term.
For more immediate relief, the "U.S. Department of Labor doled out nearly
$5.5 million in grants for green-jobs training [...] with more than a dozen
awards scattered throughout California" (LAT). The money is provided
though the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Unlike the grants
give to North Carolina and Rhode Island, this investment is aimed squarely at
training people for green jobs and enabling companies to find those quality
workers.
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The Pit Falls and Benefits of Social Networking
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Social Networking or Social Not-Working?
With the penetration of social networking
in all facets of our digital lives, curbing the constant use of such portals as
Facebook, myspace, and Twitter in the workplace can be a daunting task for your
IT staff.
However, the question of whether social  networking provides gains or losses in
productivity has not been fully determined. Because there are both positives
and negatives related to social networking, it has been difficult to quantify
changes in productivity. For example, businesses can use these portals as an
"excellent way [...] to 'network' with customers, colleagues and
partners."
Wavecrest Computing attempts to narrow down major pros and cons of social networking
in the workplace.
Two of the major pros are an increase in "worker morale" and
increase in ease of communication for the business. Unfortunately, social
networking also may have severe disadvantages, one being a decrease in
productivity:
In July, one survey indicated that "employee
productivity drops 1.5 percent in companies that allow full access to Facebook
in the workplace. That survey of 237 corporate employees also showed that 77
percent of workers who have a Facebook account use it during work hours. It
also found that some employees use the social networking site as much as two
hours a day at work, and that one in 33 workers surveyed use Facebook only
while at work. And of those using Facebook at work, 87 percent said they had no
clear business reason for accessing the network."
However, a middle ground can be found in this controversial issue. With the
help of sophisticated software, employees can have limited access to these
social networking tools, while businesses can monitor and track any loss in
productivity, allowing them to act accordingly.
Social networking is inescapable part of our Web 2.0 lives. Thus, allowing
businesses the flexibility to deal with this 'problem' leaves room for
moderation. Simply put, we can have our cake and eat it too.
Find out more on this article here. |
| Spotlight on Desiree Nudo |
Featured Article 
Desiree is our first featured employee because of the consistent positive customer feedback that we have received about her in the last quarter. She came to Private Eyes with a background in recruiting, so Desiree understands our clients' needs and the expediency required. She is currently our Vendor Relations Manager. When asked about what her favorite part of her job is, she laughs and struggles with narrowing it down to one aspect. "I love the challenge of my job. It has given me the opportunity to understand how the court system really works. Seeing justice prevail is the best part. It always amazes me when applicants omit or falsify information on their applications. What they don't know is that my team of researchers will uncover the truth. We always do, and the satisfaction of helping our clients keep their workplace safe is huge. I love what I do. I know that I'm extremely good at it and I know what we do here makes a difference."
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HealthcareSource
Private Eyes has a commitment to client satisfaction that includes not only
the human touch, but also a simplification of the screening process through the
use of technological partnerships. Our company has many partnerships with
various venders who can service our clients in numerous industries. In
particular, our partnership with HealthcareSource provides those in the healthcare
industry with the tools for seamless and secure transfer of applicant
information, allowing a simplified recruiting process with a fast transition
from candidate to hire. Thus, with partnerships like HealthcareSource,
you have both ease of tracking and the care of the human element.
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