The business community is up against the wall. Predictions are that the average Fortune 500 Company will spend as much on employee healthcare benefits as it makes in profits by 2008. General Motors (GM) already spends more on healthcare than it spends on steel. We’re losing our edge to global competitors in countries with lower costs and universal healthcare services. GM’s … [Read more...] about Rising Healthcare Costs: Hurting Pockets of Businesses and Individuals

Summerlin Hospital Undergoes $100 Million Expansion Summerlin Hospital recently announced plans for a $100 million expansion which will mark the largest expansion project to date in the hospital’s history. In its 10 years of existence, the facility has grown from a 147-bed community hospital to a 281-bed medical center offering services ranging from pediatric intensive care to … [Read more...] about May 2007: Building Nevada Briefs

Although many bills have already been passed, any bill labeled “exempt” can be held until the last minute. That’s when the legislature puts in an extra shift so it can grind out all the bills under the cover of darkness. How can Nevada taxpayers keep track of what’s going on in Carson City so they can have some input? One great source of information is the official Web site … [Read more...] about Legislative Watch: Web site Can Be Your Security Camera

I have one word for you – plastics,” was the advice given young Benjamin Braddock in the classic film The Graduate. Some forty years later, the advice should be “global trade.” The Nevada Commission on Economic Development (NCED) is your global trade partner. The agency’s Global Trade and Investment Office assists Nevada businesses to begin or expand trade activities in … [Read more...] about Here’s to You Mrs. Robinson: Global Trade is the New “Plastics”

Imagine running a business where your main competitor not only controls 95 percent of the market and provides its services for free, but federal law makes use of this product mandatory. Sounds like a recipe for disaster, doesn’t it? Yet, this is the marketplace for Nevada’s private schools. It is a marketplace that forces them to constantly evaluate their product and prove … [Read more...] about Business ABC’s: Private Education in Nevada

In an economy such as the one Nevada has enjoyed for more than two decades, local individuals have accumulated large amounts of personal wealth and continue to accumulate even more. Now, Nevadans are looking to professionals to help them preserve and cultivate that wealth. The process of selecting an individual to manage your wealth should be given careful thought and … [Read more...] about Choosing a Private Wealth Manager: Where to Start

The older baby boomers are retiring and the younger ones are next in line. Many organizations have found they aren’t prepared for the accompanying loss of technical knowledge, job skills and abilities. In many cases, the reasons why many decisions were made the way they were, may only be found between the ears of these departing, or soon-to-be-departing employees. Organizations … [Read more...] about Are You Developing Your Employees … or Hoping for the Best?

There has been a lot of talk about blogs lately. Politicians and businesses alike are entering the blogosphere at a surprising rate. Why? Currently, more than 57 million American adults read blogs. For many years, the blog – a term coined by contracting “web log” – was conduit for personal expression by individuals who opened on a wide range of topics. Blogs did not appear to … [Read more...] about Blogging for Business: Why should businesses care about blogs?

In one of the fastest growing cities in the country, Nigro Development, LLC has earned respect in a competitive industry. Nigro Development, LLC has been developing retail, commercial and residential projects since 1979. Established by Edward Nigro, the firm is a second-generation company dedicated to creating developments of distinction. “Growing up in Las Vegas and knowing … [Read more...] about Nigro Development, LLC: Family Owned and Operated

Residential housing continues to rebalance. US housing starts are down 18 percent, measured December 2006 to December 2005. Meanwhile, residential permitting in Las Vegas and Reno is down by more than 60 percent, January 2007 to January 2006. The more severe contraction for the Nevada housing market shows the better economic prospects of the Silver State compared to other … [Read more...] about April 2007: Business Indicators

Each time the Nevada Legislature convenes, lawmakers struggle to solve the problem of an educational system that is failing the state’s children. Occasionally, a creative solution like the Millennium Scholarship program is passed. More often, a few well-intentioned modifications to the current system are proposed, but by the time they are watered down enough to get past all the … [Read more...] about School Vouchers: A Solution for Nevada

At the end of 2006, more than 500,000 plans were in place with 47 million participants and combined assets of $2.9 trillion dollars. However, numerous fees are keeping plan holders from receiving monies that are rightfully theirs. The majority of these fees are kept hidden from plan holders. There are four types of fees within 401(k)s: contract, fund, employer and employee. … [Read more...] about Avoid Hidden 401(k) Fees: Costing Plan Holders and Companies Millions

When Maurice Gallagher, Jr., CEO of Allegiant Travel Company, rang the closing bell at NASDAQ in January, he became the envy of a large number of business entrepreneurs. Gallagher and key employees were celebrating their successful launch as a public company. Since the NYSE’s birth in 1792, many business owners have dreamed of seeing their company’s symbol listed on a stock … [Read more...] about Taking Your Company Public: The Process, Headaches and Rewards