Top 5 Industries for Remote and Flexible Jobs

2.8 million Americans now consider their home offices to be their primary workplace and 27 million Americans have flexible schedules. Between 2005 and 2009, telecommuting grew 61 percent and is expected to grow another 69 percent by 2016. Despite the rapid growth of remote work and flexible jobs, they continue to be discussed by many employers as though they are a scarce, and perhaps even scary, way of working.

2012 Workplace Trends Report: Integration, Flexibility and Wellness Top Drivers of Employee Engagement

GAITHERSBURG, Md., Jan. 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — Sodexo, Quality of Daily Life Solutions provider to more than 1,800 corporate clients in the United States, released its 2012 Workplace Trends Report today, offering a unique perspective on the workplace that combines insight from clients, academia, principal research, and leading facilities management and human resource trade organizations.

The research predicts continued focus on well-being and the ability to deliver a unique value proposition to business communities that focuses on not only integrated, effective and efficient use of space, but also the performance of human capital. Employees are looking to organizations for tools and resources to help them simplify their lives, stay healthy and balanced, and bring their “whole self” to work as these continue to be top drivers of engagement. Employee engagement, productivity, brand image and loyalty continue to be relevant measures of success.

New HR & Recruiting Webinar Unveils Trend in Mobile Engagement

(PRWEB) January 18, 2012 Mobile has been listed as one of the top ten HR and Recruiting topics for 2012. That’s the topic of the Tuesday, January 24, 2012 webinar titled, “Mobile: The Next Big Thing in HR, Recruiting, and Employee Engagement.” Industry experts, Rayanne Thorn and Jessica Miller-Merrell, SPHR, will discuss mobile engagement basics and success stories from this new and emerging industry.

Participants will learn how to effectively use mobile technologies and apps, text messaging, and QR (quick response) Codes in addition to your social media and engagement campaigns. Learn how to use mobile technologies to build relationships with your employee population, a communication tool for emergency response, and building a talent community and candidate pipeline.

Lumesse Sponsoring Webinar on “The Flow of Technology in HR” Featuring John Sumser, CEO of HRExaminer, on January 11, 2012

January 09, 2012 07:57 AM Eastern Time — AUSTIN, Texas — (EON: Enhanced Online News) — Lumesse, a global leader in integrated talent management solutions, today announced that it is sponsoring the first in a series of insightful webinars focused on important industry trends. It will feature John Sumser, CEO of HRExaminer, on Wednesday, January 11, at 1 p.m. EST on the topic of “The Flow Of Technology in HR.”

According to Sumser, “There is a huge supply of conflicting information about social media and its utility in HR. The evangelists seem to line the streets insisting that the end is near and that you are a loser if you aren’t an early adopter. The truth is a little slower.”

SmartSearch® integrates with Adobe’s EchoSign electronic signature service

OCEANSIDE, CA January 5, 2012 – Advanced Personnel Systems, Inc. (APS), the maker of SmartSearch® recruiting business software, announced a new integration with Adobe’s EchoSign, the world’s leading online digital document signing service. When used in conjunction with SmartSearch® automated tasks, EchoSign gives corporate employers additional paperless document management and onboarding capabilities, and for recruiting firms, digital document signing helps streamline the sales and placement process by reducing the time needed to capture and manage required signatures from both customers and candidates.

The EchoSign integration includes a new document signing portal on the built-in SmartSearch® career center to facilitate signature gathering. Web portal options allow candidates to upload documents with their online employment application, and specify desired documents when applying for a position or at any time during the hiring process. New hires may be directed to the candidate portal to begin the on-boarding process by updating their records with additional documentation, e-signatures, voluntarily provide EEOC data, and more. Hiring Managers and other designated portal users may access documents via their own web portal to e-sign contracts, offer letters, job requirements, or other documents that require their approval. The portal enables web site visitors to view documents that require a signature as well as previously signed documents. Single sign-on eliminates the need to distribute passwords, and SmartSearch users may include an expiration date and reminders to limit how long a person has to sign each document.

Alternative Hiring Strategies Dedicated Virtual Employee Is Replacing Full-Time In-house Employment

Wilmington, DE — (SBWIRE) — 12/21/2011 — Since hiring fresh in-house employees can be definitely cost-prohibitive, the next best – and cheap – alternative is to outsource. Not to freelancers but to full-time dedicated remote employees, who cost a company nothing more than their salary.

Luckily, the outsourcing industry has now helped the ubiquitous freelancer evolve into what is known as the remote employee or the virtual employee. This remote employee scores over an in-house employee in more ways than one.

Two Human Resource Standards Taskforces Formed

Alexandria, Va., Dec. 14, 2011 – The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) today announced the formation of two new taskforces that will develop national HR standards for compliance and regulatory and employee and labor relations.

The taskforces will focus on employee relations, labor relations, HR compliance and regulatory issues such as workplace investigations, employee onboarding, employee retention and downsizing methods, and succession planning.

Outplacement Solutions Provider RiseSmart Wins 2011 Red Herring Global Top 100 Award

San Jose, CA (PRWEB) December 12, 2011 – RiseSmart, the leading provider of next-generation outplacement solutions, has been named to the Red Herring Global Top 100, which recognizes the leading private companies in North America, Europe and Asia. RiseSmart is among just 47 U.S. companies on the Global Top 100 list.

SimplyHired.com Releases December Employment Outlook

SimplyHired.com released its December Employment Outlook highlighting national and local market forecasts, as well as industry and employer trends.

According to the report, nationwide job openings increased for the fifth consecutive month, up 2.7 percent month-over-month and 7.4 percent year-over-year. Most industries and occupations experienced job growth. Average job competition decreased, most likely a combined result of a slight decrease in unemployment and a slight increase in job openings due to seasonal hiring.

Professional Level Hiring Expected To Increase In First Quarter

MENLO PARK, CA — Employers expect to increase hiring for professional-level positions in the first quarter, but they have concerns about finding qualified candidates for these roles, a new Robert Half survey shows. A net 10 percent of executives interviewed for the Robert Half Professional Employment Report plan to add full-time staff in the first three months of the year, up three points from the fourth-quarter forecast. However, the number of respondents who report recruiting challenges also is on the rise: 67 percent of executives said it is at least somewhat challenging to find skilled employees today, up from 59 percent last quarter and42 percent in the third quarter.