Nokia's CEO's Letter to Employees

Hello there,

There is a pertinent story about a man who was working on an oil platform in the North Sea. He woke up one night from a loud explosion, which suddenly set his entire oil platform on fire. In mere moments, he was surrounded by flames. Through the smoke and heat, he barely made his way out of the chaos to the platform's edge. When he looked down over the edge, all he could see were the dark, cold, foreboding Atlantic waters. As the fire approached him, the man had mere seconds to react. He could stand on the platform, and inevitably be consumed by the burning flames. Or, he could plunge 30 meters in to the freezing waters. The man was standing upon a "burning platform," and he needed to make a choice. He decided to jump. It was unexpected. In ordinary circumstances, the man would never consider plunging into icy waters. But these were not ordinary times - his platform was on fire. The man survived the fall and the waters. After he was rescued, he noted that a "burning platform" caused a radical change in his behaviour.

We too, are standing on a "burning platform," and we must decide how we are going to change our behaviour. Over the past few months, I've shared with you what I've heard from our shareholders, operators, developers, suppliers and from you. Today, I'm going to share what I've learned and what I have come to believe. I have learned that we are standing on a burning platform. And, we have more than one explosion - we have multiple points of scorching heat that are fuelling a blazing fire around us. For example, there is intense heat coming from our competitors, more rapidly than we ever expected. Apple disrupted the market by redefining the smartphone and attracting developers to a closed, but very powerful ecosystem.

In 2008, Apple's market share in the $300+ price range was 25 percent; by 2010 it escalated to 61 percent. They are enjoying a tremendous growth trajectory with a 78 percent earnings growth year over year in Q4 2010. Apple demonstrated that if designed well, consumers would buy a high-priced phone with a great experience and developers would build applications. They changed the game, and today, Apple owns the high-end range. And then, there is Android. In about two years, Android created a platform that attracts application developers, service providers and hardware manufacturers. Android came in at the high-end, they are now winning the mid-range, and quickly they are going downstream to phones under €100. Google has become a gravitational force, drawing much of the industry's innovation to its core.

Let's not forget about the low-end price range. In 2008, MediaTek supplied complete reference designs for phone chipsets, which enabled manufacturers in the Shenzhen region of China to produce phones at an unbelievable pace. By some accounts, this ecosystem now produces more than one third of the phones sold globally - taking share from us in emerging markets. While competitors poured flames on our market share, what happened at Nokia? We fell behind, we missed big trends, and we lost time. At that time, we thought we were making the right decisions; but, with the benefit of hindsight, we now find ourselves years behind.

The first iPhone shipped in 2007, and we still don't have a product that is close to their experience. Android came on the scene just over 2 years ago, and this week they took our leadership position in smartphone volumes. Unbelievable. We have some brilliant sources of innovation inside Nokia, but we are not bringing it to market fast enough. We thought MeeGo would be a platform for winning high-end smartphones. However, at this rate, by the end of 2011, we might have only one MeeGo product in the market. At the midrange, we have Symbian. It has proven to be non-competitive in leading markets like North America. Additionally, Symbian is proving to be an increasingly difficult environment in which to develop to meet the continuously expanding consumer requirements, leading to slowness in product development and also creating a disadvantage when we seek to take advantage of new hardware platforms. As a result, if we continue like before, we will get further and further behind, while our competitors advance further and further ahead. At the lower-end price range, Chinese OEMs are cranking out a device much faster than, as one Nokia employee said only partially in jest, "the time that it takes us to polish a PowerPoint presentation." They are fast, they are cheap, and they are challenging us. And the truly perplexing aspect is that we're not even fighting with the right weapons. We are still too often trying to approach each price range on a device-to-device basis.

The battle of devices has now become a war of ecosystems, where ecosystems include not only the hardware and software of the device, but developers, applications, ecommerce, advertising, search, social applications, location-based services, unified communications and many other things. Our competitors aren't taking our market share with devices; they are taking our market share with an entire ecosystem. This means we're going to have to decide how we either build, catalyse or join an ecosystem. This is one of the decisions we need to make. In the meantime, we've lost market share, we've lost mind share and we've lost time.

On Tuesday, Standard & Poor's informed that they will put our A long term and A-1 short term ratings on negative credit watch. This is a similar rating action to the one that Moody's took last week. Basically it means that during the next few weeks they will make an analysis of Nokia, and decide on a possible credit rating downgrade. Why are these credit agencies contemplating these changes? Because they are concerned about our competitiveness. Consumer preference for Nokia declined worldwide. In the UK, our brand preference has slipped to 20 percent, which is 8 percent lower than last year. That means only 1 out of 5 people in the UK prefer Nokia to other brands. It's also down in the other markets, which are traditionally our strongholds: Russia, Germany, Indonesia, UAE, and on and on and on.

How did we get to this point? Why did we fall behind when the world around us evolved? This is what I have been trying to understand. I believe at least some of it has been due to our attitude inside Nokia. We poured gasoline on our own burning platform. I believe we have lacked accountability and leadership to align and direct the company through these disruptive times. We had a series of misses. We haven't been delivering innovation fast enough. We're not collaborating internally.

Nokia, our platform is burning.

We are working on a path forward -- a path to rebuild our market leadership. When we share the new strategy on February 11, it will be a huge effort to transform our company. But, I believe that together, we can face the challenges ahead of us. Together, we can choose to define our future. The burning platform, upon which the man found himself, caused the man to shift his behaviour, and take a bold and brave step into an uncertain future. He was able to tell his story. Now, we have a great opportunity to do the same.

Stephen.

ICC World Cup Cricket 2011 Complete Schedule

Here is the schedule of the most awaited ICC World Cup Cricket 2011 jointly held in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh

Group A:

Sri Lanka, Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Zimbabwe, Canada, Kenya

Group B:

India, South Africa, Bangladesh, West Indies, England, Ireland, Netherlands

Group matches:

1 – 19th Feb – India vs Bangladesh – Dhaka
2 – 20th Feb – Kenya vs New Zealand – Chennai
3 – 20th Feb – Sri Lanka vs Canada – Hambantota
4 – 21st Feb – Australia vs Zimbabwe – Ahmadabad
5 – 22nd Feb – Netherlands vs England – Nagpur
6 – 23rd Feb – Kenya vs Pakistan – Hambantota
7 – 24th Feb – South Africa vs West Indies – Delhi
8 – 25th Feb – Australia vs New Zealand – Nagpur
9 – 25th Feb – Bangladesh vs Ireland – Dhaka
10 – 26th Feb – Sri Lanka vs Pakistan – Colombo
11 – 27th Feb – India vs England – Kolkata
12 – 28th Feb – Netherlands vs West Indies – Delhi
13 – 28th Feb – Canada vs Zimbabwe – Nagpur
14 – 01st Mar – Kenya vs Sri Lanka – Colombo
15 – 02nd Mar – England vs Ireland – Bengaluru
16 – 03rd Mar – South Africa vs Netherlands – Chandigarh
17 – 03rd Mar – Canada vs Pakistan – Colombo
18 – 04th Mar – New Zealand vs Zimbabwe – Ahemadabad
19 – 04th Mar – West Indies vs Bangladesh – Dhaka
20 – 05th Mar – Sri Lanka vs Australia – Colombo
21 – 06th Mar – India vs Ireland – Bengauru
22 – 06th Mar – England vs South Africa – Chennai
23 – 07th Mar – Kenya vs Canada – Delhi
24 – 08th Mar – New Zealand vs Pakistan – Pallekele
25 – 09th Mar – India vs Netherlands – Delhi
26 – 10th Mar – Sri Lanka vs Zimbabwe – Pallekele
27 – 11th Mar – Ireland vs West Indies – Chandigarh
28 – 11th Mar – Bangladesh vs England – Chittagong
29 – 12th Mar – India vs South Africa – Nagpur
30 – 13th Mar – Canada vs New Zealand – Mumbai
31 – 13th Mar – Australia vs Kenya – Bengaluru
32 – 14th Mar – Pakistan vs Zimbabwe – Chittagong
33 – 14th Mar – Bangladesh vs Netherlands – Chittagong
34 – 15th Mar – South Africa vs Ireland – Kolkata
35 – 16th Mar – Australia vs Canada – Bengaluru
36 – 17th Mar – West Indies vs England – Chennai
37 – 18th Mar – Sri Lanka vs New Zealand – Mumbai
38 – 18th Mar – Netherlands vs Ireland – Kolkata
39 – 19th Mar – Australia vs Pakistan – Colombo
40 – 19th Mar – South Africa vs Bangladesh – Dhaka
41 – 20th Mar – Zimbabwe vs Kenya – Kolkata
42 – 21st Mar – India vs West Indies – Chennai

Quarter Finals:

23rd Mar – First Quarter Final – Dhaka
24th Mar – Second Quarter Final – Colombo
25th Mar – Third Quarter Final – Dhaka
26th Mar – Fourth Quarter Final – Ahmedabad

Semi Finals:

29th Mar – First Semi Final – Colombo
30th Mar – Second Semi Final – Chandigarh

Final:

02nd Apr – Mumbai

This is worth the read. Great analogy.

I bought a bird feeder.
I hung it on my back porch and filled
i with seed. What a beauty of
A bird feeder it was, as I filled it
lovingly with seed. Within a
Week we had hundreds of birds
Taking advantage of the
Continuous flow of free and
Easily accessible food.

But then the birds started
Building nests in the boards
Of the patio, above the table,
And next to the barbecue.

Then came the poop. It was
Everywhere: on the patio tile,
The chairs, the table ..
Everywhere!

Then some of the birds
Turned mean. They would
Dive bomb me and try to
Peck me even though I had
Fed them out of my own
Pocket.

And others birds were
Boisterous and loud. They
Sat on the feeder and
Squawked and screamed at
All hours of the day and night
And demanded that I fill it
When it got low on food.

After a while, I couldn't even
Sit on my own back porch
Anymore So I took down the
Bird feeder and in three days
The birds were gone. I cleaned
Up their mess and took down
The many nests they had built
All over the patio.

Soon, the back yard was like
It used to be .... Quiet, serene....
And no one demanding their
Rights to a free meal.

Now let's see.
Our government gives out
Free food, subsidized housing,
Free medical care and free
Education, and allows anyone
Born here to be an automatic
Citizen.

Then the illegal's came by the
Tens of thousands. Suddenly
Our taxes went up to pay for
Free services; small apartments
Are housing 5 families; you
Have to wait 6 hours to be seen
By an emergency room doctor;
Your child's second grade class is
Behind other schools because
Over half the class doesn't speak
English.

Corn Flakes now come in a
Bilingual box; I have to
'press one ' to hear my bank
Talk to me in English, and
People waving flags other
Than 'Old Glory' are
Squawking and screaming
In the streets, demanding
More rights and free liberties.

Just my opinion, but maybe
it's time for the government
To take down the bird feeder.

If you agree, pass it on; if not,
Just continue cleaning up the poop.

An extract from frozen thoughts for the month of september

"No matter what circumstances men of substance encountered in their lives, they always triumphed over them through some mental philosophies they believed in."

I used to work for a taskmaster in Dubai. His name was Mahesh Menda. He always challenged his people to go beyond what they believed to be possible. Every time we went back to him to explain why a task could not be done, his standard reply would be, “I am not paying you to tell me it cannot be done.” Though he seemed apathetic during such moments, on retrospection I realized, it enabled us to look at possibilities that we hadn't looked at till then. And invariably, we did come up with solutions that seemed impossible earlier. He led our minds beyond what we believed we were capable of.

Bruce Lee uttered, “To hell with circumstances. I create opportunities.”

I was also fortunate enough to work with an incorrigible optimist in Mumbai. His name was David Samson. His famous lines were, “I don't take 'no' for an answer. First say 'yes, it can be done', and then let us discuss how to do it. There must be a way. There is always a way.” In fact, his lines had rubbed so much into us that in most meetings, whoever said 'no', the rest of us would smile at David Samson, and in chorus we would say, “First say 'yes', it can be done…” And invariably, we did come up with a way that we were blind to till then. He led our minds beyond what we perceived as our limits.

Napoleon Bonaparte stated, “Circumstances! What are circumstances? I make circumstances.”

I was blessed to be a witness to that moment. “How are you?” asked the elderly gentleman to the one who had a fracture in his hand. The man replied, “I am pulling on.” The wise old man roared back, “Say, you are on 'Top of the World'. Out of 206 bones, only one is broken. Celebrate the remaining 205 that are intact.” He then added these transforming words, “Don't look at what has left you. Look at what you are left with.” Ever since, I experience a compulsive gratitude to 'what I am left with', and never the repulsive remorse for 'what has left me'. He led my mind to see the larger picture beyond the immediate trifles.

James Allen tells us, “Circumstances do not make the man. They reveal him to himself.”

No matter what circumstances men of substance encountered in their lives, they always triumphed over them through some mental philosophies they believed in.
Rather than allowing the circumstances to govern them, they ensured that the mental philosophies they believed in governed the circumstances. They showed us that man is bigger than all his circumstances, which he will realise, only if his life is governed by strong mental philosophies.

What is possible for 'one' is possible for many. What is possible for 'many' is possible for all. If they all could do it, we too can. Let us take life head on...

What Paryushan means?

PARYUSHAN means: Festival of self friendship and realisation of soul. Festival of sacrifice, penance & endurance. Festival of soul purification & self search, time to keep aside the post, wealth & prestige & be with the God. The time to forget & forgiveness make the enemy a friend & increase the love and kindness.

1st Day of Paryusan: The day of making the mind & soul pure and concentrate in vitrag.

2nd Day of Paryushan: On this day with the help of our sweet & kind speech spread the fragrance of inspiring virtues & constructive activities. Donate with free hand & become a king.

3rd Day of Paryushan: To make the Mind (soul) & Body Pure and pious with the self of sacrifice & penance. Self control & self-friendship is also practice. Meditation for enlightment.

4th Day of Paryushan: Rare occasion of gaining AatmaLaxmi.

5th Day of Paryushan: The day of "KALPASUTRA" sacred document of Jainism. On this day Bhagwan Mahavira's birth is celebrated with special celebrations, a part of which is the auction of 14 items, dreams of by the Lords mother Trishala Devi, while she was carrying him.

6th Day of Paryushan: 'SWAN' floating in the MANSAROVAR of Jain Empire (Religion SASAN)

7th Day of Paryushan: Day of Divine message of Tolerance & power of endurance.

8th Day of Paryushan: 'SAVANTSARI': The Day of the grand 'GATE WAY' of 'SALVATION' (Moksha).

વાર નથી લાગતી

આશાઓ પર પાણી ફરી જતાં વાર નથી લાગતી
કિનારે આવી ડૂબી જતાં વાર નથી લાગતી
જીતનો જલસો માનવાની ઉતાવળ ન કર
જીતેલી બાજી હારી જવામાં વાર નથી લાગતી

તારી ઊંચાઇનું નાહક અભિમાન ન કર
કે મિનારોને તૂટી જવામાં વાર નથી લાગતી
બાંધ્યો છે માળો તો જરા દિલથી જતન કર
કે માળાને પીંખાઇ જતાં વાર નથી લાગતી

માણી લે હર એક પળ તું આજે
આંખોને મિંચાઇ જતાં વાર નથી લાગતી

Compelling Logic

An atheist professor of philosophy speaks to his class on the problem
science has with Krishna. He asks one of his new students to stand and.....

Professor: You are a Hare Krishna devotee, aren't you, son?

Student: Yes, sir.

Prof: So you believe in God?

Student: Absolutely, sir.

Prof: Is God good?

Student: Sure.

Prof: Is God all-powerful?

Student: Yes.

Prof: My brother died of cancer even though he prayed to Krishna to heal
him. Most of us would attempt to help others who are ill. But Krishna
didn't. How is this Krishna good then? Hmm? (The student is silent.)

Prof: You can't answer, can you? Let's start again, young fella. Is God
good?

Student: Yes.

Prof: Is Satan good?

Student: No.

Prof: Where does Satan come from?

Student: From...God...

Prof: That's right. Tell me son, is there evil in this world?

Student: Yes.

Prof: Evil is everywhere, isn't it? And God did make everything. Correct?

Student: Yes.

Prof: So who created evil?

(The student does not answer.)

Prof: Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible
things exist in the world, don't they?

Student: Yes, sir.

Prof: So, who created them?

(The student has no answer.)

Prof: Tell me, son. Do you believe in Krishna?

Student: Yes, professor, I do.

Prof: Science says you have 5 senses you use to identify and observe the
world around you. Have you ever seen Krishna?

Student No, sir.

Prof: Tell us if you have ever heard your Krishna?

Student: No, sir.

Prof: Have you ever felt your Krishna, tasted your Krishna, smelt your
Krishna? Have you ever had any sensory perception of Krishna or God for that
matter?

Student: No, sir. I'm afraid I haven't.

Prof: Yet you still believe in Him?

Student: Yes.

Prof: According to empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, science says
your Krishna doesn't exist. What do you say to that, son?

Student: Nothing. I only have my faith.

Prof: Yes. Faith. And that is the problem science has.

Student: Professor, is there such a thing as heat?

Prof: Yes.

Student: And is there such a thing as cold?

Prof: Yes.

Student: No sir. There isn't.

(The lecture theatre becomes very quiet with this turn of events.)

Student: Sir, you can have lots of heat, even more heat, superheat, mega
heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat. But we don't have anything
called cold. We can hit 458 degrees below zero which is no heat, but we
can't go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold. Cold is
only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold.

Heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of
it.

(There is pin-drop silence in the lecture theatre.)

Student: What about darkness, Professor? Is there such a thing as darkness?

Prof: Yes. What is night if there isn't darkness?

Student: You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is the absence of something. You
can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light.....But if
you have no light constantly, you have nothing and it's called darkness,
isn't it? In reality, darkness isn't. If it were you would be able to make
darkness darker, wouldn't you?

Prof: So what is the point you are making, young man?

Student: Sir, my point is your philosophical premise is flawed.

Prof: Flawed? Can you explain how?

Student: Sir, you are working on the premise of duality. You argue there is
life and then there is death, a good God and a bad God. You are viewing the
concept of God as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, science
can't even explain a thought. It uses electricity and magnetism, but has
never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the
opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a
substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life: just the absence of
it.

Now tell me, Professor. Do you teach tour students that they evolved from a
monkey?

Prof: If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, yes, of
course, I do.

Student: Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?

(The Professor shakes his head with a smile, beginning to realize where the
argument is going.)

Student: Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and

cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavour, are you not
teaching your opinion, sir? Are you not a scientist but a preacher?

(The class is in uproar.)

Student: Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the Professor's
brain?

(The class breaks out into laughter.)

Student: Is there anyone here who has ever heard the Professor's brain, felt

it, touched or smelt it?.....No one appears to have done so. So, according
to the established rules of empirical, stable, demonstrable protocol,
science says that you have no brain, sir. With all due respect, sir, how do
we then trust your lectures, sir?

(The room is silent. The professor stares at the student, his face
unfathomable.)

Prof: I guess you'll have to take them on faith, son.

Student : That is it sir.. The link between man & god is FAITH.

That is all that keeps things moving & alive.

When stock prices drop, where's the money?

Have you ever wondered what happened to your socks when you put them into the dryer and then never saw them again? It's an unexplained mystery that may never have an answer. Many people feel the same way when they suddenly find that their brokerage account balance has taken a nosedive. So, where did that money go? Fortunately, money that is gained or lost on a stock doesn't just disappear. Read to find out what happens to it and what causes it.

Disappearing money
Before we get to how money disappears, it is important to understand that regardless of whether the market is in bull (appreciating) or bear (depreciating) mode, supply and demand drive the price of stocks, and fluctuations in stock prices determine whether you make money or lose it.

So, if you purchase a stock for $10 and then sell it for only $5, you will (obviously) lose $5. It may feel like that money must go to someone else, but that isn't exactly true. It doesn't go to the person who buys the stock from you. The company that issued the stock doesn't get it either. The brokerage is also left empty-handed, as you only paid it to make the transaction on your behalf. So the question remains: where did the money go?

Implicit and explicit value
The most straightforward answer to this question is that it actually disappeared into thin air, along with the decrease in demand for the stock, or, more specifically, the decrease in investors' favorable perception of it.

But this capacity of money to dissolve into the unknown demonstrates the complex and somewhat contradictory nature of money. Yes, money is a teaser - at once intangible, flirting with our dreams and fantasies, and concrete, the thing with which we obtain our daily bread. More precisely, this duplicity of money represents the two parts that make up a stock's market value: the implicit and explicit value.

On the one hand, money can be created or dissolved with the change in a stock's implicit value, which is determined by the personal perceptions and research of investors and analysts. For example, a pharmaceutical company with the rights to the patent for the cure for cancer may have a much higher implicit value than that of a corner store.

Depending on investors' perceptions and expectations for the stock, implicit value is based on revenues and earnings forecasts. If the implicit value undergoes a change - which, really, is generated by abstract things like faith and emotion - the stock price follows.

A decrease in implicit value, for instance, leaves the owners of the stock with a loss because their asset is now worth less than its original price. Again, no one else necessarily received the money; it has been lost to investors' perceptions.

Now that we've covered the somewhat "unreal" characteristic of money, we cannot ignore how money also represents explicit value, which is the concrete worth of a company. Referred to as the accounting value (or sometimes book value), the explicit value is calculated by adding up all assets and subtracting liabilities. So, this represents the amount of money that would be left over if a company were to sell all of its assets at fair market value and then pay off all of liabilities.

But you see, without explicit value, implicit value would not exist: investors' interpretation of how well a company will make use of its explicit value is the force behind implicit value.

Disappearing trick revealed
For instance, in February 2009, Cisco Systems Inc had 5.81 billion shares outstanding, which means that if the value of the shares dropped by $1, it would be the equivalent to losing more than $5.81 billion in (implicit) value. Because CSCO has many billions of dollars in concrete assets, we know that the change occurs not in explicit value, so the idea of money disappearing into thin air ironically becomes much more tangible.

In essence, what's happening is that investors, analysts and market professionals are declaring that their projections for the company have narrowed. Investors are therefore not willing to pay as much for the stock as they were before.

So, faith and expectations can translate into cold hard cash, but only because of something very real: the capacity of a company to create something, whether it is a product people can use or a service people need. The better a company is at creating something, the higher the company's earnings will be and the more faith investors will have in the company.

In a bull market, there is an overall positive perception of the market's ability to keep producing and creating. Because this perception would not exist were it not for some evidence that something is being or will be created, everyone in a bull market can be making money. Of course, the exact opposite can happen in a bear market.

To sum it all up, you can think of the stock market as a huge vehicle for wealth creation and destruction.

Disappearing stocks
No one really knows why socks go into the dryer and never come out, but next time you're wondering where that stock price came from or went to, at least you can chalk it up to market perception.

Valentine’s Day

Every February, across the country, candy, flowers, and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. But who is this mysterious saint and why do we celebrate this holiday? The history of Valentine's Day — and its patron saint — is shrouded in mystery. But we do know that February has long been a month of romance. St. Valentine's Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. So, who was Saint Valentine and how did he become associated with this ancient rite? Today, the Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred.

One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men — his crop of potential soldiers. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine's actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.

Other stories suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons where they were often beaten and tortured.

According to one legend, Valentine actually sent the first 'valentine' greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed that Valentine fell in love with a young girl — who may have been his jailor's daughter — who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed 'From your Valentine,' an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories certainly emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic, and, most importantly, romantic figure. It's no surprise that by the Middle Ages, Valentine was one of the most popular saints in England and France.

While some believe that Valentine's Day is celebrated in the middle of February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine's death or burial — which probably occurred around 270 A.D — others claim that the Christian church may have decided to celebrate Valentine's feast day in the middle of February in an effort to 'christianize' celebrations of the pagan Lupercalia festival. In ancient Rome, February was the official beginning of spring and was considered a time for purification. Houses were ritually cleansed by sweeping them out and then sprinkling salt and a type of wheat called spelt throughout their interiors. Lupercalia, which began at the ides of February, February 15, was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, as well as to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus.

To begin the festival, members of the Luperci, an order of Roman priests, would gather at the sacred cave where the infants Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, were believed to have been cared for by a she-wolf or lupa. The priests would then sacrifice a goat, for fertility, and a dog, for purification.

The boys then sliced the goat's hide into strips, dipped them in the sacrificial blood and took to the streets, gently slapping both women and fields of crops with the goathide strips. Far from being fearful, Roman women welcomed being touched with the hides because it was believed the strips would make them more fertile in the coming year. Later in the day, according to legend, all the young women in the city would place their names in a big urn. The city's bachelors would then each choose a name out of the urn and become paired for the year with his chosen woman. These matches often ended in marriage. Pope Gelasius declared February 14 St. Valentine's Day around 498 A.D. The Roman 'lottery' system for romantic pairing was deemed un-Christian and outlawed. Later, during the Middle Ages, it was commonly believed in France and England that February 14 was the beginning of birds' mating season, which added to the idea that the middle of February — Valentine's Day — should be a day for romance. The oldest known valentine still in existence today was a poem written by Charles, Duke of Orleans to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt. The greeting, which was written in 1415, is part of the manuscript collection of the British Library in London, England. Several years later, it is believed that King Henry V hired a writer named John Lydgate to compose a valentine note to Catherine of Valois.

In Great Britain, Valentine's Day began to be popularly celebrated around the seventeenth century. By the middle of the eighteenth century, it was common for friends and lovers in all social classes to exchange small tokens of affection or handwritten notes. By the end of the century, printed cards began to replace written letters due to improvements in printing technology. Ready-made cards were an easy way for people to express their emotions in a time when direct expression of one's feelings was discouraged. Cheaper postage rates also contributed to an increase in the popularity of sending Valentine's Day greetings. Americans probably began exchanging hand-made valentines in the early 1700s. In the 1840s, Esther A. Howland began to sell the first mass-produced valentines in America.

According to the Greeting Card Association, an estimated one billion valentine cards are sent each year, making Valentine's Day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year. (An estimated 2.6 billion cards are sent for Christmas.)

Approximately 85 percent of all valentines are purchased by women. In addition to the United States, Valentine's Day is celebrated in Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, France, and Australia.

Valentine greetings were popular as far back as the Middle Ages (written Valentine's didn't begin to appear until after 1400), and the oldest known Valentine card is on display at the British Museum. The first commercial Valentine's Day greeting cards produced in the U.S. were created in the 1840s by Esther A. Howland. Howland, known as the Mother of the Valentine, made elaborate creations with real lace, ribbons and colorful pictures known as "scrap".

How the American housing dream went bust

The US housing boom, which occurred around 2001-2005 attracted a lot of curiosity and interest. The people and the banks of United States, wondered how to make the most of this consistently escalating prices in the real estate market. People were interested in buying homes and selling them at a profit. The subprime borrowers, who had a poor credit score felt they had an opportunity to pay off all their outstanding loans by cashing in on this boom.

Banks decided to cater to this segment as well. One such product, which became a rage during this boom season was Option ARM. The product pioneered by World Savings Bank, run by the Sandlers seemed like a miracle loan that could help people, particularly subprime borrowers aspiring for a change in fortunes. This subprime mortgage has been the subject of intense discussion, ever since it came into the limelight revealing shocking details and appalling truths of the intense drama of a lending operation gone berserk.

Optional Adjustable Rate Mortgage, is a loan product which, in addition to having a very low down payment (usually 5% of the home value), gave the borrower an introductory period during which he could choose to pay the interest due alone for the month or to pay an even lower repayment termed "minimum payment". Making only minimum payments would result in an ever increasing outstanding loan amount resulting in the "principal" growing large, which is known as "negative amortization".

One of the main USPs of this miracle loan is the fact that you can pay the low minimum payment in the first year, which is calculated at an interest rate of as low as one per cent, and for a few years the monthly payment rises by only 7.5 per cent. The flip side for those choosing the minimum payment option is that after the introductory period, their monthly payment will suddenly double or increase even further.

This will happen under two circumstances:

The first circumstance is that after the introductory period of about 5 years, the monthly payment gets "recast" to adjust the amortization to its full limits. The monthly payments will then be recalculated at the prevailing interest rates for the remainder of the loan tenure. This happens irrespective of the extent of increase in the amount to be repaid.

The second circumstance is when the outstanding loan exceeds a negative amortization maximum, which is about 125 per cent of the original loan amount. If the balance hits this limit, which can happen before a period of 5 years, when interest rates rise, the payment is increased to its full amortization level. Both the recast clause and the negative amortization cap can result in a rude "payment shock".

The Option-ARM terms run something like this:

$500,000 loan, 1.5% start rate, 2.80% margin over cost of funds, 11.95% lifetime cap, 125%/10-year reset cap

The minimum payment is based on the 1.5% start rate, and changes +/- 7.5% per year.

In this example, that minimum payment is:

1st year - $1,725.60
2nd year -$1,855.02
3rd year - $1,994.15
4th year - $2,143.71
and so on.

However the fully-amortized payment on the $500,000 is $3,296.35. This means that during the initial years, the principal gets larger and larger.

When the loan balance reaches 125 per cent of the original loan amount, the loan resets, causing the monthly payment to more than double as now the amount owed is much larger and the payment needs to be increased to a level, which enables the principal to be paid off.

Right from the early days of Option ARMs, it was clear that borrowers would not be able to afford the monthly payments once the loans reset, however banks made these loans in the hope that housing prices would continue to increase rapidly.

As long as housing prices rose, borrowers could sell their houses for a profit before their monthly payments were increased and pay back the bank, thus making a healthy profit for both the bank and the borrower. However once housing prices started to stagnate, borrowers were stuck in houses that they could not afford to keep but could not sell either. This is when the US housing bubble started to burst.

When the real estate markets crashed, many of banks had to declare bankruptcy. Two noteworthy examples of such lenders include Wachovia Corporation and WaMu (Washington Mutual). The former acquired the bank from World Savings, which was earlier run by the Sandlers, who pioneered the attractive loan product Option ARM.

By the time Wachovia bought over World Savings, the days of profitability were being counted and when Wachovia demanded more growth noticing the slackening market, an aggressive and indiscriminate selling of the loan product led to a sudden surge in the lending figures.

The sale of this product increased dramatically and the year 2005 recorded $238 billion made in option ARM loans nationally, out of which World Savings issued about $52 billion!

Of course when the market crashed a lot of subprime borrowers felt cheated and argued the logic of such a lending product, while the Sandlers who pioneered the concept kept saying in their defense that if only the market prices did not crash, the scenario would be the exact opposite.

WaMu on the other hand was promoting their loan shop aggressively and one notable ad campaign they ran was the "Power of Yes" campaign, which practically sums up their loan business model. They said yes to every loan purchase inquiry, without conducting a stringent quality check on the loan consumer's ability to repay the loan. In the bid to make the most of the real estate boom WaMu started ignoring even the basic eligibility factors like the compatibility check between loan and income.

There were examples of people claiming salaries that were ridiculously high for their professions. A popular newspaper in the United States , cites the incredible example of a "Mariachi Singer" ( a profession that one usually did not hear of) getting a loan approval and the documented proof for her profession that went into her file, was a photograph of the singer in her mariachi outfit! It's no wonder then that when the real estate markets crashed in the United States, WaMu eventually had to shut down its sub prime lending operations, recording a $67 million loss in 2007.

The lending scenario in India

A subprime crisis of this nature and magnitude is unlikely to occur in India, thanks to some very strict bank policies that are in practice.

As a general rule the borrower needs to pay a down payment that covers 15-20 per cent of the cost of the property. This by itself is a test of the borrower's credit worthiness and enables him to have a stake in the property. Also, the bank safeguards its lending interests by ensuring that the money lent is below the market value of the property making allowance for a nominal dip in property prices.

Another important factor is the initial screening banks conduct to confirm the eligibility of the loan seeker for the requested loan amount. Banks make sure that the EMI of their loan applicants does not exceed 50-55 per cent of their monthly incomes. This ensures that as long as the borrower is able to maintain his current income levels, he will have no trouble in making his monthly payments.

Moreover the Indian sentiment revolves around buying a house and spending a lifetime there. Home buyers looking to live in the house purchased rarely change homes in short time frames while in a place like America embracing change is second nature. A situation like this may be far away for India, as we are a growing economy, where mortgage levels are not comparable to developed economies.

We also have strict regulatory bodies like the Reserve Bank of India, which ensures that loan products that could produce systemic risk never make it to the market. Besides this aspect, a favourable market does not exist in India for similar loan products like the Option ARM. The psyche of the Indian consumer does not easily accept debt instruments and a loan is usually high priority and the focus is usually on closing it as early as possible.

What are mutual funds? Where do they invest?

It is almost always assumed that anyone reading an analysis on mutual funds (or the fund management industry) knows the intricacies of the same. This is not universally true and, at all times, there are a) new people trying to understand the basics, and b) people who want to brush up their knowledge of the fundamentals.

We will use this 6-part series to understand mutual funds from their very basic concepts. Here is the first part.

What are mutual funds?

If we break the phrase 'mutual funds' and analyze the words, we realize that it refers to funds that are raised and invested mutually, i.e. on behalf of everyone participating in the scheme. If you and your friend both pool your money and invest it jointly, you have created your own mutual fund.

When the concept of companies initially formed, people who knew each other and were willing to take the risk of the venture used to put in the share capital of the company. Slowly, entrepreneurs realized that many are interested in investing financially in the company but do not want to take the day-to-day hassle of managing the company. Thus began the concept of passive investing in companies: with shareholders and executives separated.

Similarly, in the case of mutual funds, people are not interested in the day-to-day management of the funds but are interested in the final outcome of the investment. Hence, they pool their money together, hire an investment manager who manages funds for them and expect to earn a return on them.

Interestingly, while the process started from the point of view of the investor and the fund was the outcome, in today's time, it is hard to see the reality this way. With rampant (mis?)marketing of the mutual funds, it seems as if the funds came in first and they want the investor money to increase their assets under management.

How do the funds raise money?

The asset management companies (AMCs) that manage the mutual funds define avenues where they think profitable opportunities exist. For example, currently many AMCs believe that small and medium cap stocks will yield significant return over the medium to long term. Hence, they launch a 'fund' (called a new fund offer: NFO) which seeks to bring all those investors together who believe similarly.

The AMC releases a prospectus wherein it details the objective of the fund, the credentials of the company and the fund manager and the avenues where the money will be invested. Based on this information, the investor needs to decide whether this fund meets his objective or not. If the investor (or his advisor) believes that the new fund fits his required risk-return profile, the investor invests in the fund.

You might wonder that you have never seen a prospectus but only an application form for investing. Well, sometimes you give the authority to your financial advisor to choose what is best for you (and sometimes, when you lose control, s/he just chooses on your behalf!)

Where do mutual funds invest?

Mutual funds, unlike companies do not take the risk of a business directly. For example, Reliance faces the risk of change in refining margins and Hindalco faces the risk of fall in aluminum prices. Companies take the risk head-on and craft strategies to maximize their competitive position and profits.

Mutual funds, however, take one step back and invest in the companies which take on business risks. Funds which invest in the shares (or equity) of the company are called 'equity mutual funds.' Funds like PruICICI Power or Reliance Growth are examples of such funds.

Similarly, funds can invest in government securities (bonds issued by central or state governments, PSUs or other government entities) or corporate debt (issued by companies and banks). These funds are called 'debt funds.' Funds like Reliance Income Fund invest primarily in medium and long-tenor debt. Again, there are funds that invest in very short term loans (typically overnight to up to three months): these funds are called money market mutual funds. Examples include HDFC Cash Management - savings plan.

While the above three are the basic avenues for the funds to invest, many funds combine the three types in various proportions and produce 'hybrid or balanced funds.' HDFC Prudence and SBI Magnum Balanced are examples.

Based on where the funds invest, they expect returns and have corresponding risks. Equity funds are the most risky followed by debt funds; cash funds are considered almost risk less. Based on the standard theory of finance, the riskiest funds are expected to deliver the highest returns over the long run.

Directory of Recruiting and Placement


 A-Plus Domestic Services - Staffing service for maids, butlers, bodyguards, housekeepers, chauffeurs, and more.


ABBA Personnel Services, Inc. - Provides Filipino manpower to the world.

  ABC Consultants - Offers recruitment and employee hire consultancy services in multinational corporations and Indian business houses. Site features job openings and contact information.


Academy Employment and Job Search - Helps you find jobs on the upper, management, or executive level.


Account Pros - Provides executive search, staffing division, and more.


Achievement Tec - Offering a variety of human resource services to assist and strengthen the selection and management of the most important asset - people.


ACSYS - Provider of accounting, finance and information technology temporary staffing and permanent placement services.


Adanced Internet Recruitment Strategies (AIRS) - Provider of Internet recruitment information services.


Adecco International - International personnel service corporation.


AEC Japan - Places qualified professionals into high paying jobs with Fortune 500 companies in Japan.


Aerotek: Commercial Labor Jobs & Staffing - Fills general labour jobs and provides commercial labour staffing throughout the U.S. and Canada.


AerotekCareers. com - Find recruiting jobs and sales jobs among various disciplines within Aerotek.


Ajilon - Provider of managed services, consulting, and speciality staffing.


Albuquerque Staff Augmentation Providers (ASAP) - Provides professional, technical, and administrative support services.


Allstates Design and Development Co., Inc. - Nationwide services.


Alternative Staffing, Inc. - Handles applicants for temporary, trial-for-hire, and permanent positions.


America at Work - Specialises in services for bilingual and bicultural professionals.


American Home Workers Association - Providing certified home-based employment opportunities.


American Resource Staffing Network - Allows users to build and post resumes and recruits for businesses.


Analytic Recruiting - Placement of quantitative, technical and analytical professionals nationwide.


Applied Resources - National placement in energy, HVAC, building automation, and power industries.


Asia Partnership Philippines, Inc. - Career opportunities for high caliber professionals.


Ask The Headhunter - Offering an inside edge on job search and hiring.


At Your Service Agency - Domestic placements, including nannies, couples, governnesses, housekeepers, butlers, chauffeurs, and chefs.


Atwork - A personnel staffing franchise opportunity.


Aviant - Offers contract and staffing services including vendor-on-premise and managed service programmes for engineering, IT, and technical staffing needs.


Aztech Professional Services, Inc. - Employee leasing, contract to hire and permanent placement.


Beckham Group - Professional search firm representing a number of companies nationally which provide products and services to the legal, medical, and corporate markets.


Beresford Blake Thomas Recruitment - International recruitment agency specialising in health care and technical recruitment.


Bernard Hodes Group - Provides recruitment, communications, and staffing solutions.


Bill Reber & Associates, Inc. - Offering recruiting and placement services to southwest Ohio and nationwide.


Bowdoin Group, Inc. - Job placement in the software engineering, information technology , pharmaceutical, medical, and biotech industries.


BPR Personnel - Provides staffing services and complete human resources assistance.


Brannon Professionals - Full-time, part-time, temporary, and permanent staffing service.


BrokerHunter. Com - Offers services for securities firms and professionals in the investment field.


Btsn, Inc. - Offers recruiting and executive searches in the biotechnology, telecommunications, semiconductor, and network sectors.


Buff and Associates - Furniture industry personnel search.


Burke Group, The - Provider of human resources services for the public and private sectors.


Burnett Personnel - Placement and training company with officies in Houston, Austin, and El Paso.


Burns Personnel, Inc - Staffing firm, providing placement services in technical, administrative, secretarial, clerical, sales and industrial areas located in Rochester, New York.


Busybodies Housekeeping - Domestic cleaning, housekeeping, and maid service


Butler International, Inc. - Provider of consultants in the technical, project management and outsourcing services.


CallCenterJobs. com - Customer service, telemarketing, and telesales job postings and resume submission service.


Callos Companies, The - Professional recruiting and employment agency to assist with staffing for large and small companies in Ohio and nationwide.


Cambridge Professional Group - Provides staffing services and career opportunities for legal, financial, technical, and general office professionals.


Capitol Staffing - Staffing positions in office support, MIS/IT, sales, accounting, and management.


Cardiff Group, Inc. - Specialising in IT, financial and accounting placement in the Northeast.


Career Blazers - Provides full-time and part-time staffing, computer training, and franchise opportunities.


Career Consultants Inc. - Sales and technical recruiting firm.


Career Consulting Services, Inc. - Providing career opportunities for employee benefits professionals, benefits networking, and career counselling.

   Career Enrich - Recruiting for domestic and overseas positions.


Career Group, Ltd. - Placement of software, hardware, marketing professionals, and managers in these fields.


Career Resources, Inc. - Full-service recruiting and contract employment.


Career Solutions, Inc. - Providing staffing in administrative/ office support, accounting, sales, marketing, technical and entry level college graduates.


CareerShift - Organise and manage your job search by using research tools, techniques, and online applications. Features job listings, discussion forums, and contact information for companies.


CareersPro - Career management portal. Provides strategic staffing and career transition services to employers and jobseekers.


Carrcroft Consulting - Recruiting project managers, ERP, manufacturing and supply chain consultants.


Carter/MacKay - Specialises in sales, marketing, and support positions in the healthcare, information technology, and business to business sectors.


Catterton Inc. - Accounting, finance and data processing recruiting and placement service.


CDI Corporation@


Central Human Resource Consultant Co., Ltd - Includes manufacturing, hospitality, construction, and medical occupations.


Centre People - Recruitment specialists for international personnel in import and export, logistics, shipping, supply chain, and support roles. Also offers Japanese speaking roles in the U.K.


CEO, Inc. - Employment solution specialists, helping companies and individuals.


Challenger's USA Guide - Browse jobs by category or keyword for free, or advertise jobs at a monthly rate.


Chris Hamilton and Associates, LLC - Specialises in restaurant career employment placement.


Clear Point Consultants - Placement of information design and delivery professionals (technical writers, trainers, course developers, instructional designers, user interface designers).


Computerized Internet Resume Search - Offers resume database search engine and executive recruiter staffing service for employers.


Comrise Technology - A state-of-the- art business and technology consulting company which provides a complete spectrum of integrated services and solutions.


Consumer Connection - Specialises in the consumer packaged goods industry in all facets of sales and sales management recruiting.


Contacteam - Specialises in customised employment solutions for the contact centre industry including assessment, training, management, and administration.

   Continental Manpower


Convergenz - Specialising in permanent placement consulting for business, finance, and IT professionals, contract recruiting, and executive search staffing.


COR Management Systems - Executive search and technical consulting firm placing programmers, quantitative analysts and other technical professionals in the Northeast.


Corporate Leads, Inc - Offers career transition and placement for junior military and non-commissioned officers.


Corporate Resources - Technical placement firm for engineering, software and MIS personnel.


Corporate Search Associates - Professional placement and temporary staffing agency specialising in supporting industry with Spanish speaking candidates.


Corporate Search Consultants - Entry level to executive placement service. All fees are employer paid. Serving both employees and employers.

  Datamatics Staffing Services - Specialises in placing management personnel for a variety of industries.


David Anthony Consultants (DAC) - Search firm specialising in technical and high level executive positions worldwide.


David Perry Associates Corp. - National recruiting firm that specialises in the consumer packaged goods, hardware/houseware, sporting goods, telecommunications and consumer durables industries.


Debbie's Staffing Services - Temporary, contract, and direct-hire employment and job staffing in North Carolina and Virginia.


Demetrio & Associates - Placing engineers, software developers, marketing and sales professionals, and human resource managers in careers across the U.S.


Disco International Inc. - Offers job fairs and career forums, direct placement, publications, consulting, and Internet job sites for both mid-career and graduating students.


DiscoverMe - Personality- based recruiting service. Find a job that fits your personality. Free registration.


Domestic Placement Network - Employment agency for placement of personal assistants and chefs, estate managers, butlers, and other domestic services.


Donnelson & Bond Recruiting - Features jobs in manufacturing, engineering, purchasing, design, management, and more.


Donnoe & Associates, Inc. - Provides professional staffing and consulting services to government agencies, corporations, and business enterprises throughout the United States.


Drake International - Human resource solutions provider that delivers performance improvement through people, processes, and technologies. Contains job listings, resume builder, job tips, surveys, and forums.


eCruit Logistics, Inc. - Assists companies in developing their online recruiting strategies to attract qualified, interested employment candidates.


Eden Recruitment - Offers job listings for IT, technical, banking, finance, engineering, sales, marketing, HR, training, pharmaceutical, office, factory, and accountancy.


Elite Staffing & Resume Services - Professional placement and resume services. Elite specialises in temp, temp-hire, and direct hire, including clerical, medical, and professional positions.


EmployBridge - Agency providing temporary and permanent employment in the clerical, customer service, medical, light and skilled labour, logistics, and truck driving industries.


Employment Solution, The (TES) - Placing engineers, IT professionals, administrative and light-industrial workers in permanent or contract positions in Canada and the U.S.


Energy Placement, Inc. - Staffing experts in executive search, engineering recruitment, energy, oil, gas, petroleum, research, and other industry staff.


EntrepreneursForHir e - Offers resumes for individuals focused in marketing and PR consultants, graphic designers, business strategists, accountants, web developers, and sales experts.


Eximius Personnel - Personnel agency headquartered in Montreal, Canada, specialises in recruiting and placing sales professionals.


Express Personnel Services - International staffing firm.


Finders Seekers Inc. - corporate recruiting agency specialising in sales and category management for the consumer products industry.


First Interview Network - Providing staffing services for positions in sales, marketing, and management.


Firstcall Global Recrtuiment Specialists - Provides a recruitment service to the world's offshore finance sector specialising in all areas of banking, accountancy, and trust and company management.


firstPRO - Providing staffing services for clerical, information technology, financial and other industries in the Southeastern U.S.


Fox Ridge Services, Inc. - Offers continuously updated database of available engineering jobs in Connecticut and Westchester County, NY.


Fraser Advertising and Fraser Two - Recruitment advertising specialists in employment, posting jobs, career opportunities, ad placement, Internet recruiting, web site consulting, job fair planning, and employee referral programmes.


Global Careers - Online database and search tool for resumes and job postings; targeted recruitment in transportation, commerce, and finance.


Global Staffing Management - Consulting organistion assiting employers and staff connect in Australia and internationally.


Goldbeck Recruiting - Provides recruitment services for many industries in both North America and China.


Gould Group, The - Headhunters for sales professionals looking for jobs nationwide in the pharmaceutical, medical, industrial, software, advertisement, and business to business industries.


Grand Staffing Firm - Offering nanny and domestic household staffing worldwide and computer IT placements throughout the U.S.


Grasslands Group - Executive search, risk assessments, skill-based testing, and job board for employers and job seekers throughout Western Canada, with a focus on skilled tradespeople and white-collar workers.


Guidance Staffing - Offering nationwide temporary and permanent staffing solutions.


Hamilton & Sherwood - Places entry level, career changers and experienced professional, executive and administrative staff for human service agencies.


Hamilton Concord Consulting (HK) Ltd. - Provides executive search and recruitment consulting services for telecommunications, IT, financial management services, and project, investment, and feasibility studies.


Hays Banking Personnel - Pan-European banking recruitment services.


HeadFinders - Provides recruiting and candidate pre-screening solutions for biotechnology, pharmaceutical, medical device, and technology companies.

  HelloJobs.net - Recruitment firm in Delhi for BPO and IT companies within India, South East Asia, U.K., and Middle East.


Helping You Hire - Offers businesses customised recruiting solutions, hourly models, and e-recruiter packages.


Hire Dynamics - Provides temporary and permanent placement staffing services, focusing on light industrial, clerical, call centre, and medical staffing fields.


Hirefficiency - Internet recruiting service provides training, sourcing services, applicant tracking, strategy consulting, and more.


HireNet Employment Systems - Offers comprehensive recruiting and employment services for employers, professional recruiters, and job seekers, as well as recruiting systems and succession planning software.


HireTopTalent - Offers resumes of recently laid off technology talent, focusing on former Nortel employees.


Hobson Associates


Hoffman Recruiters - Electronic job search service matching resumes with available job openings.


Holland Group, The - Providing job candidate search and staffing services, as well as human resources consulting.


Hollander Horizon International - Recruits for scientific and engineering positions in the food and consumer products industries.


HotGigs Staffing Exchange - HotGigs streamlines communications between hiring companies and independent consultants looking for contract positions.


HR Advisors, Inc. - Consulting firm specialising in human resource and staffing consultation.


HR Interactive - Customise, purchase, and download HR forms. Site also provides tools and information for HR professionals.


HRU, Inc. - Assisting employers and employees with technical placements in the automotive, aerospace, plastics, information technology and other industries.


Human Dream International - Tokyo consultancy that provides executive search services to multinational clients which already have a presence in Japan or are planning to enter this market.

  Humanware-India - Offering jobs in information technology.


Hunter Marshal - Recruitment consultancy helping businesses find high quality employees in Ireland and overseas. Hunter Marshal also helps individual job seekers develop careers.


Huntswood Associates Ltd. - Specialist recruitment consultancy working exclusively in the area of management consultancy in the U.K. and Europe.


Instaffing Staffing Services - Offers staffing services to fill temporary, temp-to-hire, and permanent placement personnel needs.


InTelegy Corporation - Specialises in the placement of call centre personnel.

  Inter-Management Manpower Services - Offers head hunting, assessments, background reports, and other services.

  International Manpower Resources - Recruitment agency offering short term and permanent placements for positions in all fields. Also does import and export of various products.


International Skill Development - Specialising in the recruitment of skilled Filipino workers for overseas jobs.


IntroNet - Providing data management for employers and recruitment agencies.


ISG Recruitment - Consortium of European consultants specialising in international human resources and recruitment management.


Istaffsolution. com Job Listings - Canadian recruitment solution for job seekers, businesses, and organisations of all sizes.


ITS Technologies, Inc. - Full service technical staffing firm, offering job listings and recruitment for companies in the Midwest.


J. Trent Associates, Inc. - Provides Internet and job consulting services, resume posting, and job applications.

   Jobs R Us - Offers resume postings. Also provides professional and technical recruiting and staffing services.


Jobs2Web - Features search engine optimisation tools and internet marketing solutions focused on career based queries.


Jobsin.co.uk - Recruitment resource for U.K. vacancies and professional appointments.


Jobware International - International and polyglot recruitment site, offering jobs around the world on a net of 74 national careers markets.


John Michael Personnel Group, Inc., The - Personnel company hiring for management positions including careers in logistics, purchasing, distribution, traffic, and materials and warehouse management.


Judge Group - Provides consulting, software development, hardware/software integration, training, and network engineering services.


JWG Associates Inc. - Recruitment advertising agency providing human resources communications services.


JWT Specialized Communications - Formerly known as Thompson Recruitment Advertising; services recruitment ads, benefits brochures, and orientation videos.


Key Partners - Offers job placement services, including staffing, recruitment, career coaching, employee development, and assessment, as well as computer training in Excel, PowerPoint, and QuickBooks.


Keystone Partners - Provides tailored solutions to meet unique career-management needs.


Kforce.com - Web-based staffing firm with recruiters in local offices offering flexible and permanent jobs in IT, finance and accounting, healthcare, scientific, legal, and more.


Kopi�s Consulting - Searching for technicians and managers in areas of information specialists in various fields including engineering, economics, finance, and accounting.

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KRB Associates - Offers professional placement services.


Leaders Professional Recruiting, Inc. - Specialises in placing former military officers.

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Len Nelson and Associates - Pacing employees in high tech, manufacturing, welding, machine shop, and other positions.


Leonard Associates - Provides name, company, and other customised research lists for executive search firms.


LifeGuide Centers of America - Offers career counselling, consulting, testing, training, and job finding services to individuals and corporations in the pharmaceutical and medical sales, human resources, information technology, and engineering fields.

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LifeLine Consultancy - Offering recruiting, interview, and administrative services to human resources departments.

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Lloyd Staffing - Full service search firm specialising in sales, marketing, support, technical, imaging, workflow, helpdesk, and telemarketing.


LM Hurley & Associates - Provides on-site recruiting, permanent placement, temporary/contracti ng, resume analysis and career guidance for most disciplines.


Lucas Group - Nationwide firm specialising in management and executive searches.

  Ma Foi Management Consultants - Services include outsourcing, hr consulting, recruitment, and career portals.


Management Recruiters International, Inc. (MRI)
(3)

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Management Recruiters of Melbourne, Inc. - Nationwide recruiters specialising in jobs for engineering, manufacturing, information technology, commercial finance, broadcast media, and healthcare.

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Management Resources International - Offering executive search, recruitment and selection and interim management services. Offices in Holland, Belgium and Italy.

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Maritime International Limited (MIL) - Offers consulting services, job bank for head hunters, and specialises in middle-management, skilled, and semi-skilled level recruitments.


Mayhall Search Group - Providing promotable candidates to our corporate clients for $50,000 to $150,000 positions.

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Mc Ashley - Executive search firm based in Singapore that specialises in search and recruitment of executives and professionals from a range of industries. Post a resume or a job listing.


McCarthy Associates National BancSearch - Conducts search assignments across the range of disciplines within the banking and financial services industries.


MEDA Group - Listings of permanent and contract jobs in engineering, communications, computers, electronics, automotive, aviation, medical and other technical areas. Offices in Canada, the U.S. & U.K.


Micro Tech Professionals, Inc. - New England authority on contract, temporary, and permanent placement of documentation, training, and software professionals.

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Midland Consultants - Offering recruiting services for data processing, technical, sales and other positions.

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Midwest Military Recruiters - Private-sector job preparation and search provider to America's men and women of the armed services.

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Military Job Zone - Online career site helping transitioning military members and recently seperated veterans in finding civilian careers.

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MindWorks World Careers - International recruiting agency matching multinational companies with qualified candidates.


Modis Professional Services, Inc.
(6)

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Monster for Employers - Job posting, resume search tools, and recruiting solutions from Monster for employers with hiring needs. Post a job or search through resumes to find the right employee to fill an opening.

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Monster Worldwide - Provides advertising services, including development of content, media planning, market research, marketing, and other services and products.


Move Up - Information on how to get the right job in Belgium and Europe with tips, salaries, employers, job offers, postgraduate studies, languages and a great forum.


Multec Canada Ltd. - Specialise in the placement of engineering, manufacturing, scientific, and managerial personnel in Ontario, Quebec, and worldwide.

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Myers Group Inc - Search and recruitment services in the engineering, finance, information technology, and household goods industry.

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National Network for Services - Specialising in permanent and contract/temporary personnel placement for Middle East corporations.

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National Register Columbus Inc - Contingency recruiting firm specialising in finding sales and sales management talent.

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Nationwide Career Network, Inc. - Nationwide career placement for allied health, managerial, sales, technical, engineering, and software professionals.

  Naukri - Jobs, employment, careers, manpower and placement.

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Nelson - Human resource solutions.

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Nelson Personnel Online - Employment services for Western Montana. Search for job listings and apply online. employers may submit jobs online.

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Nesco Resource - Offers nationwide service in clerical, industrial, engineering, information technology, and outsourcing services fields.

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Network Overseas - Recruits qualified professionals in engineering and construction, teaching, medical, nursing and ancilliary hospital services for clients across the world.

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New England Personnel of Hartford, LLC - Fills management and administrative positions in legal, medical, financial, and other fields.

   Nitin International - Manpower consultants for overseas recruitment.

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no-recruitment- consultants. com - Provides online recruitment services and consulting.

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Nunneley Management - High paying job openings for Visual Basic, C++, COBOL programmers; technical writers, OO, project managers, and UNIX system admins. Focusing on openings in the South.

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Ojour - Online recruiting company working for both job seekers and employers.

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Olsten Staffing Services - Provider of strategic, cost-effective staffing solutions to businesses and government agencies throughout the United States.

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OMNIpartners - Offers candidate research services.

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Onetest - Candidate screening, assessment, and consulting service provider.

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OPUS International, Incorporated - An executive search firm focusing solely on the food science industry. Includes listings, resume forms, job hunt tips, links, and contact information.

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OPUS Marketing - Staffing consultancy specialising in retained search, personality profiling, team building, reference checking, and management advisory services.

  Orange City Management Consultants - Offers recruitment, personnel selection, and training services with specialisation in automobile, IT, pharmaceutical, and textile.

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Oriental Sari Mahkota - Providing Indonesian labour and skilled workers.

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Orion International - Military recruitment firm serving leaders, engineers, and technicians seeking career employment as well as military personnel looking for job transition.


Pacific Bridge, Inc. - Asia-focused recruiting and human resource consulting firm that specialises in recruiting Asian returnees.

   Pages Consultancy Pvt. Ltd. - Recruitment consultancy service provider agency based in Kolkata, India. Also provides career counselling, human resource planning, and training and development services. Branch office is located in Mumbai.

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Paladin Companies - Placing marketing, advertising, communications, and creative professionals nationwide.

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People Mining - Uses measureable dimensions of personality to help in selecting high quality candidates for employment, identifying strengths and weaknesses.

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Perry Clayman Employment Agency - Staffing global positions in the fields of patents and trademarks, shipping, IT, secretarial and general office, accountancy, and law.

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PersoNet - Providing human resource and client/employment services.


Personnel Department

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Personnel Services Bureau - Provides manpower throughout the Middle East including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Laos, Malaysia, and South Korea.

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Petersen Global Associates - Specialised in international career opportunities for professionals in fields such as consulting, engineering, shipping, avionics, petroleum, and pharmaceutical. Petersen Global Associates provides opportunities for qualified and self-motivated individuals.

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Petro Middle East - Consultancy and placement services, particularly in the UAE market. Specialises in oil field engineers, offshore, banking, and IT professionals. Liaison offices worldwide.

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Phillips and Associates - Retained search firm that specialises in the engineering, manufacturing, architectural, managerial, and financial/accountin g areas.

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Phoenix Partners, Inc. - Recruiting firm specialising in the placement of professionals in the information systems, networking, and telecommunications industries.

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Planet Personnel - Placement service offers employees in a variety of fields for work in Russian and throughout the world.


Pomerantz Staffing Services - Matching employers and employees, creating solutions to staffing problems and providing steady sources of employment nationwide.

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Post Better - Internet job posting specialists. Post Better provides a range of services, from writing ad copy designed to attract ideal candidates to strategically posting on niche employment boards.

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Powerhiring. com - Provides tools, training, and networking resources.

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Primary Resources - Specialises in telecommunications, engineering, and environmental jobs with full and part time options.

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Principal Technical Services - PTS is a regional provider of engineering and professional staffing outsource solutions.

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Pro Staff - A full service professional staffing firm specialising in Administrative, Finance and Accounting, IT, and Technical positions.

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Professional Recruiters, Inc. - Source for candidates in a wide array of industries; engineering and manufacturing areas are covered nationwide.

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Professional Systems & Services - Saudi Arabian job opportunities.

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ProLogistix - Employment service specialising in the logistics, fulfillment, and distribution industry.

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Prospective Management Overseas - Search and recruitment companies for overseas contracts and projects outside EEC.


PSD Group - International recruitment services organisation.

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Q.A. Enterprises - Recruitment agency for overseas employment.

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Qualifind Bilingual Careers - Recruiting firm that focuses on bilingual business leaders speaking both English and Spanish. Qualifind recruites and places candidates in manufacturing, engineering, accounting, finance, logistics, transportation, sales, marketing, IT, and other fields.

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QuietAgent - Anonymous resume listings to help facilitate connecting potential candiates with recruiters and employers.

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Radin, Bill - Offers tapes, books, and seminar information for recruiting professionals and search consultants.

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Randstad North America - Offers employment opportunities as well as strategic client related employment services.

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RD Recruitment - Offering temporary and contract work in the U.K. as well as permanent employment of professional managers and sales and production engineers.

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Recruit'n - Open marketplace dedicated to job candidate information and resumes, where recruiters can buy and sell candidate contact information and resumes. Employers can post a job opening and the amount they are willing to pay for each qualified candidate, and the network will begin delivering targeted results immediately.

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Recruiter Solutions International - Specialising in search and recruiting services for the financial, IT, packaging, plastics, and forest products industries.

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Recruiters World - For recruiters and those seeking them in all professions.

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Recruiting Options, Inc. - Providing human resources sourcing solutions.

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Recruiting Services Group, Inc. - Independent search firm specialising in seeking employment candidates for manufacturing and industrial corporations.

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RECRUITLogics - Streamlines the recruiting process by acting as an intermediary between job seekers, recruiters, and hiring companies.

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Remedy Intelligent Staffing - Handling both temporary and permanent staffing needs.

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RepLocate - A service that posts jobs available for manufacturers' reps, distributors, and sales reps.

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Resource Tek - Offering engineering and IT consulting positions.

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Resume Link - Merging technology with traditional recruiting methods, including resume databases, job posting services, career fairs, and more.

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ResuMMe Career Marketing Services - Offers employment matching services to corporations and potential employees.

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RG and Company - National recruiting search firm specialising in sales and marketing professionals.

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Right Move, The - Specialising in IT, management/sales, and administrative positions.

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RK Group - Provides recruitment services to organisations throughout the U.K. and in Europe. Includes executive search, supply chain personnel, finance, and accounts team solutions.


Robert Hanselman Domestic Services Agency, Inc. - Community for the domestic service industry featuring employment, information, and apparel for private chefs, butlers, maids, chauffeurs, and estate managers.

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Robert W. Hort & Associates - Job search services for job seekers relocating or emigrating to Canada or the United States.

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Robert Walters - International firm offering jobs in sectors including finance, banking, IT, management, and legal. Recruitment sections searchable by keyword or category.

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Robinson & Associates - Recruiting for sales and marketing professionals.

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Rolls Recruitment Services - Local and foreign recruitment for the domestic service, professional, and construction industries.


Rosen Group, The - Specialising in contract and permanent placement of human resource professionals nationwide and consulting on recruiting, employee handbooks, and other HR issues.

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RS Cooper Inc. - Offers permanent placements of qualified field personnel, engineers, and scientists to Department of Defence vendors.

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Russ Hadick & Associates, Inc. - Nationwide recruiting firm placing people in management positions in the technology, engineering, manufacturing, and banking industries.

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S&W Staffing - National staffing service that specialises in legal, mortgage, and insurance placements as well as IT, healthcare, accounting, administrative, and executive.

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SA International Medical Jobs - Finds medical and nursing jobs in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries for qualified health care professionals. Includes nurse, RLN, physician, respiratory, therapist, and other medical jobs.

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Sales Staffers International, Inc. - Specialises in sales force outsourcing including searching for, recruiting, hiring, and training of interim/contingent sales and marketing professionals.

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Search West - Filling management and profeesional positions across a broad spectrum of industries.

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Security Search and Consulting, Inc. - Staffing source to the security, life safety, and building controls industry.

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Select Appointments - Provider of temporary and contract staffing services and permanent placement services through offices in North America, Europe, Australasia and Asia.

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Shaker Advertising Agency, Inc. - Specialising in print, electronic, and alternative strategies to employee recruitment.

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Skurnik, Stecker & Wharton Enterprises - Services the computer, pharmaceutical, biotech, and robotics sectors.

  Skyline Manpower Consultants - Recruitment services for overseas appointments in computers, software, merchant navy, shipping, oil fields, educational, medical, transport and elevators industry.


Snap! - Offers temporary and direct hire career job placements in administrative, office specialities, technical, industrial, and manufacturing fields.


Snelling Personnel Services (2)

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Sourcer - Complete recruitment software designed for employment agencies and search firms -- resume scanning module available.


Southern Alps Recruitment - Offers employment opportunities in a variety of professions. Specialises in New Zealand, Australia, and the U.K. placement.


Southern Baptist Ministers Staffing Service - Facilitating an efficient flow of information between parties involved in meeting ministerial needs.

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Specialists Group, The - National staffing services in San Francisco, Denver, Wichita, and Houston.

  Spectrum Placement & Marketing Services - Provides job assistance and telemarketing services.

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Spencer Reed Group - Executive search and staffing resource for large and small companies within all business disciplines.


Spherion@

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Spring Group plc - Consultancy, recruitment, and training services.

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Staff Solutions - Specialises in temporary and full-time staffing for special projects and job vacancies.

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Staffing Now - Premier employment firm specialising in the placement of permanent and temporary accounting, office, financial, and legal professionals.

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Staffing Services of Michigan, Ltd. - Specialising in recruiting and placement for clerical, administrative, accounting, light industrial, and technical personnel.

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StaffPro America - Providing staffing services for a variety of industries.

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Sterling Staffing - Staffing services exclusively to the banking industry, including HR consulting.

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Strategic Staffing - Employees input resumes and employers input job openings.

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Strategic Staffing Solutions, Inc. - Provider of consulting services in technology-related fields in the Midwest and Southeaster U.S.

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Student Search System, Inc. - Placement firm specialising in finding job opportunities for college students, graduates, and executives in the U.S.

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Supply Chain Personnel - Specialises in positions related to purchasing, logistics, and supply chain marketplaces.

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SwiftHire - Utilizes distribution technology and a comprehensive recruiter database for job placements.

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Talents - Offering a system which matches career opportunities with candidates' profiles.

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Technifind International - Offers search, placement, and outplacement services. Offices in El Paso, San Diego, Virginia, and New Mexico.

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TechVenture, Inc. - Supplies early growth high-tech companies with executive, managerial, and technical staff.

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Terry Neese Personnel Services - Offering career evaluation and consulting, as well as human resources functions.


Teruko Weinberg Inc. - Employment agency specialised in English/Japanese, bilingual positions.


Thai Link - Specialises in linking Thai job seekers with Thai companies in United States and Thailand, and offers a resume service.


TheCareerMole. com - Pioneering concept in employee referral recruitment that enables talented candidates to introduce themselves to employees who can help them make informed decisions about companies and roles, before they apply.

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TheRecruiterNetwork - Matching job seekers with targeted recruiters.

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Thingamajob - Online career service featuring resume posting, job alerts, industry news, and more.


Thomas Staffing Services

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Top Echelon - Offers network for independent recruiting firms, split placements, contracting services and job listings.

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TradePals Business Network - Offers a directory of Business Professionals, entrepreneurs, and trades people.

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TRC Staffing Services - Provider of staffing and employment services.

  Trehan International Consultants and Engineers - Offering overseas manpower placement services. Located in New Delhi, India.


TriCom Quest

  Trust India Group - Manpower consultants for overseas recruitment.


TSI Group - Recruitment firm specialising in providing human resource solutions in Supply Chain Management.


United Human Resources (UHR) - Specialises in the recruitment and placement of Japanese bilingual employees for positions located in the San Francisco Bay Area region and in Japan.


Van Zeeland Associates - Permanent placement search firm specialising in the placement of sales and engineering professionals in the electrical, industrial and computing industries.


Vantage Personnel - Temporary and permanent staffing agency.


VCG Staffing Software - Software solutions for the staffing industry.


Venturi Partners - Information technology and professional staffing services company. Formerly Personnel Group of America.


Veritude
(2)


Vermillion Group - Placement opportunities in data and telecommunications, IT, finance, and sales.


Viscusi Group, Inc. - Retainer-based search practice dedicated to the recruitment of personnel in the interior furnishings industry.


Wanted Technologies - Developing Windows 95/NT job search software.


Will-Cox Executive Recruiters - Providing staffing for chemical, manufacturing, engineering and other industries.


William Bell & Associates Inc - Recruiting for cosmetics, chemical, health and beauty aids industries.

  Wilson Tours & Travels - Recruitment agency serving a diverse range of industries.


Winter Wyman Employment InfoCenter - Large listing of permanent & contract job opportunities.


Wise Men Consultants - Provides executive search and temporary staffing services.


WorkInPR.com - Specialises in public relations job recruitment.


Workmatics - International staffing and immigration solutions. Workmatics specialises in Canadian work visas and jobs.


X-Ray Interview - Offers training and a workshop for hiring and interviewing skills and techniques.


ZillionResumes - A searchable database containing resumes.