Business Up Front

Employers seeking to make workplace accommodations for employees with disabilities can find help on the Internet through Searchable Online Accommodation Resource (SOAR). SOAR is a Web-based service of the President’s Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities. The program takes the user through a step-by-step process, beginning with the identification of the impairment … [Read more...] about October 2006: Business Up Front

Cutting Health Insurance Costs It’s no secret that rising healthcare costs are handcuffing small-business owners and their employees in this country, forcing many to forego health insurance coverage just to keep their businesses viable. In 2005, premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance rose to an average of $10,880 annually for family coverage ($907 per month) and … [Read more...] about September 2006: Business Up Front

Driving You to the Poorhouse? The 2006 edition of AAA’s “Your Driving Costs” study shows the overall average cost of owning and operating a passenger vehicle is 52.2 cents a mile, or $7,834 per year based on 15,000 miles of driving. AAA estimates driving costs based on an extensive list of factors, including gas, maintenance, tires, depreciation, finance charges and insurance. … [Read more...] about August 2006: Business Up Front

The Great Vacation Excuse Are you facing another long hot summer of slogging away at your desk? Unfortunately, you just can’t swing a vacation this year – or can you? "Actually, you probably can," said Tripp Friedler, author of Free Gulliver: Six Swift Lessons in Life Planning. Financial planner Friedler says "I can't afford it" and "I’m too busy to take time off" are excuses … [Read more...] about July 2006: Business Up Front

Economic Freedom throughout the World The world is economically freer today, according to the 12th annual "Index of Economic Freedom," published by The Wall Street Journal and The Heritage Foundation. Of the 157 countries graded in the 2006 index, 99 improved their overall scores, compared to 51 whose scores worsened and five that remained unchanged. Twenty are classified … [Read more...] about June 2006: Business Up Front

"Be Careful Out There" According to the National Safety Council, workers are safer on the job than they are at home. A decrease in workplace deaths – down 17 percent since 1992 – has been undone by fatalities occurring off the job, up 14 percent. According to a 2004 National Safety Council Off the Job Safety Symposium, twice as many workers – approximately 6.8 million … [Read more...] about May 2006: Business Up Front

Test Your OSHA Vocabulary For Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations, a common term like "apron" can mean something else entirely. According to construction industry regulation 1926.606, under Subpart O: Motor Vehicles, Mechanized Equipment and Marine Operations, an apron is "the area along the waterfront edge of the pier or wharf." Here are … [Read more...] about April 2006: Business Up Front

Outsourcing Tax Returns According to Jeanne Yamamura, chairman of the Nevada Society of CPAs, an increasing number of U.S. tax services are being outsourced to India. In 2003, approximately 25,000 U.S. tax returns were completed in India. In 2004, that number grew to 100,000 and for 2005 it is expected to be 400,000. "Anything that can be digitized and routinized is being … [Read more...] about February 2006: Business Up Front

Checking Monster.com at Work University of Phoenix, offering education and degree programs for busy adults, found more than 67 percent of working adults are looking for a job, although 76 percent are satisfied at their current place of employment. The university polled nearly 2,500 professionals in diverse industries to determine what keeps them happy, motivated and loyal in a … [Read more...] about January 2006: Business Up Front

It Isn’t Me – It’s the Economy Americans, tired of being told they aren’t saving enough for retirement, have a message of their own, according to Allstate’s fifth annual "Retirement Reality Check" survey. Over 1,600 people born between 1946 and 1978, with household incomes of $35,000 or more, sent the clear message that they’re doing just fine, given the resources they have. … [Read more...] about December 2005: Business Up Front

Time for Your Annual Checkup Key Questions for Small Business Owners Robert Half Management Resources has identified 10 key questions for small business owners to address when conducting an annual business checkup: 1. Is it time to update your financial systems? Outdated systems can hinder business performance. Identify a project manager to oversee the update and … [Read more...] about October 2005: Business Up Front

We All Pay for Healthcare for Uninsured Premiums for employer-provided family health insurance will cost, on average, an extra $922 in 2005 to cover the unpaid expenses of healthcare for the uninsured, according to a recent report issued by Families USA, a health consumer organization. These added costs account for $1 out of every $12 spent for employer-provided health … [Read more...] about September 2005: Business Up Front

"Data Data Everywhere" on Used Hard Disks Every day on eBay, over 10,000 hard disks are auctioned off to the highest bidder. When O & O Software purchased 200 used hard disks on eBay and scanned them for existing data, it discovered some sort of personal or business data on 70 percent of them. Results of this test are contained in an O & O study entitled "Data Data … [Read more...] about August 2005: Business Up Front

Twelve Proven Rules for Sales Success Stephan Schiffman, president of D.E.I. Management Group, Inc. and author of several books about selling, offers the following 12 rules for sales success: 1. Always respond to customers and prospects within 48 hours. 2. Schedule sales appointments for early (8 a.m.) or late (4 p.m.) in the work day. 3. Follow through immediately on … [Read more...] about July 2005: Business Up Front

Sarbanes-Oxley Affecting U.S. Not-for-Profits Awareness of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 surged in the not-for-profit industry in 2004, according to the second annual Grant Thornton LLP Board Governance Survey for Not-for-Profit Organizations. Eighty-three percent of survey respondents said they are "very" or "somewhat" familiar with the act, compared to 56 percent in the … [Read more...] about June 2005: Business Up Front