A Black and White Issue in New York City; CIOs

The Fire Department of New York City has reportedly been trying everything to increase the number of black firefighters. It’s not working.

 

Also: A proposed CIO hiring process.

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What Saddam Hussein Looked for in Job Candidates

The May/June 2006 issue of the centrist Foreign Affairs will offer an inside look at Saddam Hussein’s management style, based on documents captured from him.

 

Regarding his hiring practices:

 

Saddam truly trusted only person: himself. As a result, he concentrated more and more power in his own hands.

 

No single man could do everything, however; forced to enlist the help of others to handle operational details, Saddam used a remarkable set of hiring criteria.

 

As one senior Iraqi leader noted, Saddam selected the “uneducated, untalented, and those who posed no threat to his leadership for key roles.” Always wary of a potential coup, Saddam remained reluctant to entrust military authority to anyone too far removed from his family or tribe.

The Internet's Role in Decision-making

New study from the Pew Internet & American Life Project.

Using the Internet for Decision-Making
Percent of internet users who dealt with the issue		Percent of those who dealt with issue for which internet played crucial role		Percent of those who dealt with issue for which internet played important role		Number of Americans who said the internet was crucial or important
Gotten additional training for your career	39%		21%		18%		21 million
Helped another person with a major illness or medical condition	49		9		17		17
Chosen a school or college for yourself or your child	29		22		20		17
Bought a car	46		12		15		16
Made a major investment or financial decision	41		12		17		16
Found a new place to live	24		15		15		10
Changed jobs	25		13		12		8
Dealt yourself with a major illness or other health condition	19		5		23		7

 

The Latest Heather Hamilton

You may have heard of Heather Hamilton’s blog, aimed at drumming up interest in Microsoft careers with a tangent thrown in here and there (they were giving out samples of the coffee-and-Coke combo here in Los Angeles and I think it’s great) …

 

The newest employer blog: Allianz, an insurance company that is looking to fill actuarial jobs, auditing jobs, a chief HR executive, and more.

Hiring College Students With Disabilities

The U.S. Department of Labor is offering a free CD database of 1,900 college students and recent graduates with disabilities who seek summer and full-time employment. The DOL says that the the CD can be ordered by sending your name, company name and mailing address to wrp(At)dol.gov

Wal-Mart

Wal-Mart publishes its diversity stats for the first time.

Some New Numbers

—
Zurich is the world?s No. 1 city when it comes to quality of living, according to Mercer Human Resource Consulting, whose criteria included political stability, economics, medicine, schools, recreation, climate, and more. Geneva was second, Vancouver third. (Baghdad is the lowest). Honolulu is the highest-ranking city in the United States, Houston the lowest.

 

–“Approximately 46 percent of CEOs anticipate an increase in employment levels in their industry, about the same as last year when 44 percent said they expected an increase,” according to the Conference Board. “But the proportion of CEOs who anticipate a decline in jobs over the next six months rose sharply to 24 percent, up from about 11 percent a year ago. Health care costs remain the major obstacle to hiring new workers. Regulation and litigation costs were second on the list, while other fringe benefits and wage and salary costs remain of lesser concern to business leaders when hiring new workers.”

 

—“Tech-sector job cuts announced in the first quarter were 40 percent lower than the same quarter a year ago,” according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas. This was the fourth consecutive quarter in which tech cuts were below the year-ago level. 

 

—?More than 77 percent of (mainly large companies) see dramatic increases in talent management initiatives within the organization over the next three years? said Jason Averbook, CEO of Knowledge Infusion.

 

—$30,000 to $40,000 is the going rate for St. Louis technicians (and $80,000 to $100,000 for Ph.D. scientists), on the hunt for “the perfect pet food.”

 

–About $11 to $17 is the going rate for security professionals at the San Diego airport.