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Jobs Data Ease Fears of Sharp Slowdown in U.S. Economy

May 3, 2013 by Leave a Comment

The latest jobs figures from the Department of Labor paint a brighter picture of the overall economy than other recent data, which had been weaker and prompted economists to warn of a spring swoon for the third year in row. Those worries had been heightened after the March jobs report, which initially showed the economy to have added just 88,000 jobs, much fewer than had been expected.

On Friday, however, the government sharply revised upward its estimates for job creation in February and March, concluding that the economy actually generated 332,000 jobs in February and 138,000 in March. The unemployment rate, which is based on a separate survey, fell by 0.1 percentage point to 7.5 percent, from 7.6 percent in March.

“It’s back to normal for this cycle,” said Steve Blitz, chief economist at ITG. “This number is back to the mainstream of what we’ve seen in this recovery.”

Still, Mr. Blitz said, many of the new jobs were in lower-paying sectors like retail and food services. Stores hired 29,000 workers, while the leisure and hospitality sector added 43,000 employees. Hiring for temporary positions also strengthened, as the temporary help sector gained more than 30,000 jobs.

“You’re hiring people, but you’re not generating high-income jobs,” he said. “But work is work. It’s honorable.”

The stock market reacted strongly to the better-than-expected figures, with the Standard Poor’s 500 index breaking through the 1,600-point level for the first time, rising almost 1.2 percent by late morning. The Dow Jones industrial average was up over 150 points, or just over 1 percent as well.

Another positive sign was that the size of the labor force increased, while the total number of unemployed Americans dropped by 83,000 to 11,659,000. What’s more, the ranks of the long-term unemployed, defined as workers who have been out of a job for 27 weeks or more, declined especially sharply, falling by 258,000 to 4.4 million. That’s still far above what’s typical at this stage of a recovery, but it is a marked improvement from past months. The long-term unemployed have been a particular cause of concern for economists in this recovery, because skills degrade the longer a person is out of the work force, and employers are reluctant to hire someone who has not held a job in a while.

The least-educated workers continue to bear the brunt of elevated joblessness, with the unemployment rate for workers who failed to graduate from high school rising to 11.6 percent from 11.1 percent in March. At the other end of the education spectrum, unemployment among people with a college degree or more remained at a low level, rising by a bare 0.1 of a percentage point to 3.9 percent.

Employment in the construction sector, which increased at a healthy pace in the first three months of 2013, actually dipped by 6,000 in April. The recovering housing market has been one of the most notable bright spots in the overall economic landscape, and economists will be closely watching to see if higher home prices and increased construction translate into additional jobs in the months ahead.

At 7.5 percent, overall unemployment now stands at its lowest point since December 2008, when joblessness was rising rapidly after the collapse of Lehman Brothers and the onset of the financial crisis. Unemployment ultimately peaked at 10 percent in October 2009, and there has been a steady, if frustratingly slow, decline since then. The manufacturing sector, which is closely watched as a gauge of broader economic strength, was unchanged in April. Private sector job creation totaled 176,000.

Economists have been warning that the economy — and job creation — will slow in the second-quarter, largely as a result of fiscal tightening in Washington. Payroll taxes increased in January, and across-the-board spending cuts mandated by Congress went into effect in March, and their impact is expected to be felt more broadly in the months ahead.

Article source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/04/business/economy/us-adds-165000-jobs-in-april.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

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Unemployment at 4-Year-Low as U.S. Hiring Gains Steam

March 8, 2013 by Leave a Comment

The gains were broad-based, the Labor Department said Friday, with sectors ranging from manufacturing to business services turning in healthy results. Construction was especially strong, adding 48,000 jobs, a sign that the recovery in the housing market is beginning to translate into new jobs.

Public-sector employment continued to shrink, however, as the number of government employees nationwide fell by 10,000.

While many economists were encouraged by the report, some noted that the size of the labor force contracted by 130,000. Some of that was because of retirements, but some was also a result of discouraged workers giving up the search for jobs.

As a result, the labor participation rate sank to 63.5 percent, a low for the current economic cycle.

At the current rate of job creation, unemployment could actually crack the 7 percent level by the end of the year. However, economists expect the budget cuts now under way in Washington to contribute significant headwinds in the months ahead. The so-called sequester went into effect March 1.

“We think we’ll see some slowdown in April and May because of the sequester,” said Michelle Meyer, senior United States economist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. “We’re going to see federal job cuts and the spring is going to be a soft patch for the labor market.”

She estimated that the unemployment rate would stabilize at about 7.5 percent later this year.

The unemployment fell from 7.9 percent in January. Economists had been expecting the economy to add 165,000 jobs in February, with no movement in the rate.

After peaking at 10 percent in October 2009, the unemployment rate fell steadily for three years but has been stuck at just below 8 percent since last September.

The pace of hiring in February represented an acceleration from the previous four months, when the economy added jobs at a monthly rate of 190,000.

The budget cuts in Washington are expected to reduce federal unemployment benefits by about 10 percent. State benefits, which cover the first 26 weeks of unemployment in most states, will not be affected by the federal budget squeeze.

Dan Haney has worked occasionally since he was laid off from his job as a customer service representative two years ago, but lately the hunt for work has proved fruitless, and he is concerned about what would happen if his unemployment benefits were reduced.

“At this point, I have to take what comes down the pike,” said Mr. Haney, who is 54 and lives in Philadelphia. “I’m on the computer every day looking for jobs.”

A high school graduate, Mr. Haney has some computer training but lacks a college degree, which has made finding a job all the more difficult.

“Some of these entry-level jobs say college is preferred,” Mr. Haney said. “Why do you need a college degree to answer a phone?”

Article source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/09/business/economy/us-added-236000-jobs-in-february.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

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Services Still the Backbone of Job Growth, Data Shows

January 4, 2013 by Leave a Comment

Employers added 155,000 jobs in December, approximately matching the solid but unspectacular monthly rate of the last two years.

Companies increased their orders in November for manufactured goods, reflecting investment plans, even though total orders were unchanged for the month, the Commerce Department said in a second report.

Back-to-back increases in core capital goods followed a period of weakness that raised concerns about business investment, which has been a driving force in the economic rebound.

Analysts say they think that companies will increase spending on computers and other equipment to expand and modernize now that Congress and President Obama have reached a deal on taxes, removing uncertainty that had been weighing on business investment.

In a third report, a gauge of service companies’ activity expanded in December by the most in nearly a year, driven by an increase in new orders and hiring, a trade group said.

The industry group, the Institute for Supply Management, said its index of nonmanufacturing activity rose to 56.1 in December from 54.7 in November. It was the highest level since February and above the 12-month average of 54.7. Any reading above 50 indicates expansion.

Companies had a “year-end surge” in orders, in the words of one executive surveyed by the institute.

Services have been a crucial source of job growth, creating about 90 percent of the net jobs added since January. For all of 2012, the economy added 1.69 million service jobs, about the same as in 2011. Many of the new jobs are in low-paying retail and restaurant industries. The increase conflicted with a Labor Department report Friday that said the economy added just 109,000 service jobs last month, the fewest since June. One important difference between the two reports is the inclusion of construction jobs in the institute’s index. The government index excludes that category, which would have raised the December total by 30,000.

The institute’s report measures service growth in industries that cover 90 percent of the work force, including retail, construction, health care and financial services.

Article source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/05/business/economy/services-still-the-backbone-of-job-growth-data-shows.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

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More Americans Seek Jobless Benefits

January 3, 2013 by Leave a Comment

WASHINGTON — The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits rose last week, the Labor Department said Thursday, but the data was too distorted by the holidays to offer a clear reading of labor market conditions.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased 10,000 to a seasonally adjusted 372,000, the government said.

A Labor Department official said data for nine states, including California and Virginia, had been estimated last week because of the Christmas and New Year holidays. This suggested the numbers will be revised next week.

The prior week’s figure was revised to show 12,000 more applications than previously reported. Claims data reported for the week ended Dec. 22 had been artificially depressed by the holidays, which resulted in data for 19 states being estimated.

The four-week moving average for new claims, a better measure of labor market trends, rose 250 to 360,000. The claims data has no bearing on December’s national employment report, scheduled for release on Friday.

Employers are expected to have added 150,000 jobs to their payrolls last month, little changed from 146,000 in November, according to a Reuters survey of economists.

The claims report showed the number of people still receiving benefits under regular state programs after an initial week of aid increased 44,000 to 3.25 million in the week ended Dec. 22.

A separate report Thursday said that American private-sector employers added more new jobs than expected last month, helping the job market end 2012 on a high note.

The ADP National Employment Report showed the private sector added 215,000 jobs last month, comfortably above economists’ expectation of a 133,000 gain. The report is jointly developed with Moody’s Analytics.

“The underlying economy has momentum, and the employment data confirms that,” said John Brady, managing director at R.J. O’Brien Associates in Chicago. “The hope and prayer of the market is that our political leaders don’t screw it up.”

November’s private payrolls tally was also revised upward to show a gain of 148,000 from the previously reported 118,000.

Article source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/04/business/economy/more-americans-seek-jobless-benefits.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

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Consumer Spending Rose 0.8% in September

October 30, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Opinion »

Op-Ed: Science Is the Key to Growth

The Republican budget plan would kill research that leads to new jobs.

Article source: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/30/business/economy/personal-spending-rose-in-september.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

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Economix Blog: Signs of Hope on Jobs, and Some Caveats

January 5, 2012 by Leave a Comment

With as dismal a run as we’ve had in the economy over the last few years, it’s tempting to start looking for the glass to be half full.

After a traumatic late summer and fall, the economy showed some signs it was sputtering back with holiday sales strength and three months of steady – if uninspiring – job growth.

Hopes are rising for signs of accelerating job creation in Friday’s Labor Department report, following a decline in the four-week average of new unemployment claims and a strikingly robust report of job growth from ADP, the payroll service. ADP said on Thursday that the private sector added 325,000 jobs in December, the strongest increase in a year.

Without trying to knock the glass over, we have to point out that many economists consider the ADP numbers less than predictive.

“Its track record is spotty (and that characterization is being polite),” Tom Porcelli, senior United States economist at RBC Capital Markets in New York, wrote in a research note.” ADP often revises its numbers, and historically, December’s numbers have been subject to fairly wide swings.

Government forecasts, of course, can change as well, so perhaps Friday’s number will come with a dollop of salt, too.

That said, there’s another reason to be less than ecstatic about the jobs that are being created.

As my colleague Floyd Norris has pointed out, manufacturing has actually been a standout, generating a net gain of 302,000 jobs – or about 13 percent of the total — since American employment hit its recent low in February 2010. But about a third of all jobs created in that period have been in relatively low-paying sectors like retail, leisure and hospitality, and home health care.

And temporary help services account for 356,900 jobs – about 15 percent of all new jobs added since the trough.

Another number that has some economists dispirited is the number of people who are working part time because they cannot secure a full-time position. That number has remained stubbornly high. In November, it was 8.5 million, more than double what it was before the recession.

“A lot of firms have learned to hire and find people who are willing to work part time,” said John Silvia, chief economist at Wells Fargo. And he said that this is “not simply a short-term temporary thing, but it’s become much more permanent.”

Article source: http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=17af8a9330e5aa3af223ac30c1618da3

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Chrysler to Add 1,100 Jobs in Toledo, Ohio

November 17, 2011 by Leave a Comment

The new jobs, to be filled in 2013, amount to more than half of the 2,100 that Chrysler committed to creating under the four-year labor agreement that its unionized workers ratified in October.

“We are taking a big step forward toward fulfilling that promise today,” Chrysler’s chief executive, Sergio Marchionne, said during a ceremony at the Toledo Assembly Complex.

The investment will allow the plant to build replacements for two small S.U.V.’s, the Jeep Liberty and Dodge Nitro. Mr. Marchionne said the Liberty replacement might instead be called the Cherokee, resurrecting a nameplate that Chrysler discontinued in the United States a decade ago but still uses elsewhere in the world.

Some of the S.U.V.’s built in Toledo will be sold overseas as Jeep expands its presence in Russia, China and other countries, Mr. Marchionne said.

“The horrible thing about Jeep is that it’s never had a chance to be exploited internationally,” he said. “It’s the best brand at Chrysler by a long stretch.”

Chrysler is one of several carmakers adding large numbers of jobs in the United States after years of steep employment declines in the auto industry. On Thursday, Toyota is scheduled to begin production at a new plant in Mississippi that will employ about 2,000 people.

The mayor of Toledo, Mike Bell, described Chrysler’s announcement as “the equivalent of a blood transfusion” for this heavily industrial city along the Michigan border.

Chrysler said it planned to spend $500 million on an expanded body shop and other upgrades to the Toledo plant, which currently employs about 1,800 people and will gain a second shift when the new workers are hired.

“Not only is the company continuing to invest in its facilities,” General Holiefield, a United Automobile Workers union vice president, was quoted as saying in a statement released by Chrysler, “but it is adding jobs and securing the future of our current work force by demonstrating its commitment to the workers who have contributed to the company’s remarkable turnaround.”

The new workers will be paid entry-level wages, which start at about $15 an hour, a little more than half as much as most Chrysler workers earn now.

During labor negotiations this fall, Chrysler sought to eliminate a 25 percent cap on entry-level workers that takes effect in 2015. The union rejected that request.

Chrysler already has about 2,800 entry-level employees, 12 percent of its hourly work force.

Mr. Marchionne has said he wanted to eliminate the two-tier wage system, which is widely disliked within the U.A.W. but has been instrumental in persuading the automakers to add jobs. He clarified Wednesday that he did not want to reduce current workers’ wages, but rather that he wanted the two-tier system to be phased out as all of the full-wage workers eventually retire.

Article source: http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=5336c25ada38c6d4fde34bdeb0970220

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Economix Blog: The Lasting Financial Impact of a Layoff

November 5, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Losing a job you wanted to keep is never a good thing. But for those who lost their jobs during the Great Recession, the long-term consequences will probably be very significant.

According to an economic analysis by the Hamilton Project, a research group in Washington, those laid off from long-term jobs between 2007 and 2009 are likely to lose a total of $774 billion in earnings over the next 25 years, even if they get new jobs.

The analysis of Census Bureau data, conducted by Michael Greenstone and Adam Looney, looks at how the seven million workers who lost jobs they had held for three years or more at the time of the layoff fared in the two years following the job loss.

The graph below shows all workers who lost their job for economic reasons during the worst seven months of the recession and how they have fared since the job loss.

Monthly earnings (excluding severance) of full-time workers who lost jobs between October 2008 and April 2009 for economic reasons and who had at least $500 in monthly earnings in August 2008. (Source: Census Bureau Survey of Income and Program Participation, 2008-10)The Hamilton ProjectMonthly earnings (excluding severance) of full-time workers who lost jobs between October 2008 and April 2009 for economic reasons and who had at least $500 in monthly earnings in August 2008. (Source: Census Bureau Survey of Income and Program Participation, 2008-10)

Including those who have not yet found work as well as those who did find new jobs, the average earnings of the group were barely half what they were before the workers lost their jobs, falling from $43,700 before to $23,000 two years later. The income numbers do not include unemployment benefits.

Focusing just on those who were able to find new jobs, the study found they were earning an average of 17 percent less than they earned in their previous posts.

Mr. Greenstone and Mr. Looney based their calculations of future losses on research conducted by Steven J. Davis, an economist at the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago, and Till von Wachter, an economist at Columbia University, which found that workers who lose their jobs during recessions lose an average of $112,100 over their careers.

Mr. Greenstone, an economist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said many of the displaced workers either have no college degrees or have skills that are rapidly being outdated, and therefore need education to get back to work in jobs that will match their prior incomes. The sobering data, he said, “highlights the importance of trying to identify training programs that can help this set of workers so they don’t lose that money.”

This post has been revised to reflect the following correction:

Correction: November 4, 2011

An earlier version of this post misstated the period examined in arriving at an estimate that laid-off workers are likely to lose a total of $774 billion in earnings over the next 25 years. It involves those laid off from 2007 to 2009, not between October 2008 and April 2009.

Article source: http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=01356d87b5ea71def542a87089ade637

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You’re the Boss Blog: A Weekly Roundup of Small-Business News

September 6, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Dashboard

A weekly roundup of small-business developments.

What’s affecting me, my clients and other small-business owners this week.

First of all, Justin’s fine. Just fine.

The Economy: A New Head Is Named

The president names Alan Krueger the new head of his Council of Economic Advisers. Brian Proffitt says he may be good for small businesses. The American Small Business League writes him an open letter. Jared Bernstein likes him, too (but then again he thinks the stimulus worked). Many expect Mr. Krueger to push for more stimulus.

The Deficit: A National Debt Primer

Brad Plumer say it’s not too late to do nothing. Brad DeLong argues for keeping spending low. John Steele Gordon gives us a short primer on the national debt that concludes: “If the country can experience G.D.P. growth equal to what we had in the 1990s, the debt-to-G.D.P. ratio would drop, in just a decade, to 56.7 percent, about where it was in 2000.” The Economist Mom wants the “super” committee to raise taxes. Ramesh Ponnuru wants to lower them.

The Data: Too Many Buts, Not Enough Jobs

The unemployment rate stays the same as the government reports no new jobs were created. But A.D.P. says 91,000 jobs were added in August. But small-business hiring slowed in August. And employees worked fewer hours and received less money. Consumer spending and income jumped in July. But consumer confidence fell to a two-year low. Home prices continued their double dip. But bank lending increased. Pending home sales slipped in July but are up sharply from a year ago. Texas manufacturing activity was unchanged in August. Ford’s sales rose 11 percent. Hurricane Irene could cost insurers up to $3 billion (and washed up a monster!).

The Economy: A Little Optimism, a Lot of Paper Clips

Brett Arends says American companies are now more leveraged than at any time since the Great Depression — and then gives us 10 reasons to be optimistic. Small businesses may be rebounding, according to one survey. Retail employment rises in two-thirds of metropolitan areas. Brian Wesbury says stocks are undervalued (pdf) by 65 percent. Mark Perry contributes a roundup of positive economic news and reports that three-year inflation is the lowest in 54 years. A study finds small-business bankruptcy numbers are down. The American paper-clip market is huge. And here’s the very best news of all!

Starting Up: Boomers to the Rescue

A new report finds that the No. 1 reason start-ups fail is because they scale prematurely. Baby boomers account for 84 percent of new businesses, and one of them decides to scrap retirement for the start-up life. Start-up activity among unemployed managers and executives in the first half of 2011 fell to its lowest level on record. More than one million self-employed Americans are no longer in business almost four years after the last recession began. Ryan O’Reilly says the start-up visa could help. A start-up automates the process of starting up. Monica Rogati sequences the DNA of a start-up. Microsoft hosts a mega start-up event.

Red Tape Update: Obama’s Ozone

The House majority leader, Eric Cantor, lays out his party’s antitax and antiregulation agenda for the fall. Or was that Barack Obama’s agenda? Representative Sam Graves says the White House regulatory review is “appreciated, but doesn’t go far enough.” Hayden Murray says the E.P.A. chokes business. But not all small businesses believe they are over-regulated and over-taxed. Megan McArdle writes about the death of a D.C. tavern: “Punishing a restaurant owner for a liquor license violation with an open-ended maybe-we’ll-give-you-a-license-maybe-we-won’t delay is equivalent to giving someone the death penalty for a parking violation. Moreover, it punishes the neighbors and the employees right along with the owner.” Scammers are posing as FEMA reps. James W. Lucas reminds us that “the Federal Register for 2010 is over 81,000 pages long, a 19 percent increase in one year.” California legislators take aim at baby sitters. The N.L.R.B. issues a union-friendly regulation. A tax expert offers the best way for the owner of a corporation to claim a home-office tax deduction.

Marketing: E-Mail and Daily Deals Decline

E-mail marketing was down 14.3 percent year-over-year and George Bilbrey reports that spam also declined. The Atlantic reports that people seem to be getting sick of daily deals with traffic slipping for both Groupon and LivingSocial. Facebook and Yelp are dumping their daily deals. Laurie McCabe explains how to maximize our Twitter event hashtags. Rene LeMerle offers seven tips for better Twitter marketing. Evan Carmichael lists 50 top social media blogs. Lewis Howes explains how to convert Web traffic into customers. Here are four mistakes of the search-engine optimization novice. A cool graphic suggests small businesses must optimize or die. Check out this webinar on how to create engaging content to generate leads. In this video, John Jantsch explains how to succeed online. Google announces an effort to help companies do business online. Women click Facebook ads more than men. Eighty percent of consumers report that they have changed their minds about a purchase after reading a thumbs-down report. Scott McKain says that publicity is not the same as marketing.

Management: Why Customer Service Is Important

Inc. releases its list of fast-growing companies. Score shares 10 mistakes that hurt small businesses, including “heavy dependence on just one of anything.” Tony Johnson suggests 10 ways to make money from home. A new service lets 7-Eleven customers pay online bills with cash. Startups.com’s founder will inspire you. Office Depot announces the finalists for its official small business of Nascar contest. Isabelle Mercier Turcotte lists eight rules guaranteed to increase your sales. Infusionsoft’s chief executive says customer service is important to a small business.

Ideas: The $11 Bottle of Water

The world’s seven billionth person is on the way. A pedal-equipped school bus is powered by kids. Future Fords may run on the cloud. Eric Ries says ideas are overrated: “We still believe that entrepreneurial success is about being in the right place at the right time with the right idea. But there’s no empirical evidence that’s true.” An online florist announces a name the bouquet contest. A restaurant offers a menu for bottled water.

Your People: Maybe It Is Rocket Science

An astrophysicist in Illinois figures out how to board an airplane. Doug Davidoff says the most important thing to remember when hiring salespeople is to “stop sounding like every other company that treats salespeople like a commodity.” The Evil HR Lady warns against making someone salaried to avoid overtime payments. A recent survey finds that only 9 percent of corporate travel managers will reimburse for goodies from in-room minibars, (and 4 percent said they reimburse for the costs of in-room movies and other entertainment). Lifehacker’s Alan Henry lists the best credit cards for travel rewards. The “Catch Me If You Can” guy explains how to avoid check fraud.

Around the States: Amazing Business Owners in Joplin

In Wisconsin, there’s a rash of restaurant failures. FEMA’s Dan Stoneking meets some amazing business owners in Joplin, Mo. Gov. Jerry Brown reveals a $1 billion tax relief plan for California businesses. Washington’s Economic Partnership presents its 2011 Small Business Awards.

Around the World: A Dutch Treat

Michael Pettis predicts, “Chinese growth will begin to slow sharply by 2013-14.” Willis Wee reports on the amazing start-up scene in India: “Many of these folks are very technically gifted, showing that there is a reason why Bangalore is called the Silicon Valley of India.” The Dutch National Wheelchair Basketball team shows what perseverance is all about.

Technology: Do QR Codes Work?

Hey fellow geeks: you be the judge. A Pittsburgh Marriott bans phones. Skype introduces a new phone adapter for home offices. Growing numbers of small businesses cut costs with server virtualization. Scott Rankin explains how to tell if tablet computers are right for your business. Dell offers hosted applications for small businesses. Joan Voight wonders if QR codes work for us.

The Week Ahead: Obama’s Speech

After some bickering, President Obama plans a major speech on jobs and the economy. Congress returns from its August recess. Wall Street will be watching the release of the purchasing managers’ Index, weekly unemployment claims, and trade balance data.

This Week’s Bests

Way to Find an Edge: Julien Smith argues that the secret to your success may be to act more like you’re criminally insane: “If you are looking for an edge and you can’t find one, ask yourself what you would do if you were a criminal, or a sociopath, or had delusions of grandeur, didn’t think you could fail, or that there would be no negative consequences.”

Reason to Watch ‘Glee’: James Miller describes the entrepreneurship of “Glee”: “It is a testament to the entrepreneurial spirit of providing a good or service that is in high demand. For those like myself who have a keen interest in pop music, the producers do a phenomenal job bringing out the best in the songs they cover.”

Reason to Keep Things Simple: Joseph Putnam thinks we may be giving our customers too many choices: “Google is the number one visited site on the Internet, yet they’re still able to limit their home page to a single action. … They don’t distract visitors with other options. Once you land on the site, you just have to decide one thing: What am I going to search for today? How’s that for not giving customers too many choices?”

This Week’s Question: Have you tried limiting the choices you offer your customers?

Gene Marks owns the Marks Group, a Bala Cynwyd, Pa, consulting firm that helps clients with customer relationship management. You can follow him on Twitter.

Article source: http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=06d66f182beb3462fb194838a4f8db19

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Bucks Blog: Thursday Reading: Obama’s Push for Job Creation Measures

August 18, 2011 by Leave a Comment

August 18

Thursday Reading: Obama’s Push for Job Creation Measures

The president’s push for new jobs, health care cuts may slow industry hiring, apps for wine lovers and other consumer-focused news from The New York Times.

Article source: http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=0aefd97659c1c4a41a32714545e1f6c3

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