ADP Employment Report Data

Interesting new data was released today in the ADP Employment Report on data from August. 

According to the ADP Employment Report, created by ADP® Employer Services, the private sector saw a loss of 33,000 jobs in August.

The data for nonfarm, private employment, looks like this:

• Small businesses gained 20,000 jobs. (+20,000).
  
• Medium businesses lost 25,000 jobs. (-25,000).
  
• Large businesses lost 28,000 jobs. (-28,000).
  
• The “Goods Producing” sector lost 78,000 jobs.           (-78,000).
• The Service providing sector saw a gain of 45,000 jobs. (+45,000)
  
• The manufacturing industry saw a loss of 56,000 jobs. (-56,000)
  

A small business is defined as having payrolls with 1-49 people.

A medium business is defined as having payrolls with 50-499 people.

A large business is defined as having payrolls with 500+ people.

The growth shown in the Small Businesses sector breaks down as follows.

• The Goods Producing sector for Small Businesses saw a loss of 16,000 jobs. (-16,000)
  
• The Service Providing sector for Small Businesses saw a gain of 36,000 new jobs. (+36,000)
  

You can download the ADP Employment Report for free from the link below.

http://www.adpemploymentreport.com/pdf/FINAL_Release_August_08.pdf

Enjoy...

New Tricks

It's a cooling economy... sort of. It would be a stretch (though it's made everyday) to claim economic hardship across every industry. With these “troubled times” comes a series of booms and busts.

HR Vendors are booming. Why?

Employees are expensive (everybody knows that). But it is estimated that a new hire can cost around $5,000 in time and money spent. That's quite a bit of money and a lot of companies have decided that, given the way things look (with the fed estimating a stabilization of the markets sometime in the middle of 2009) they no longer want to throw that kind of cash around on straight gambles.

So, the old selection methods learn new tricks. Metrics and quantifiable analysis made possible by on-line reference checking systems (external 360's and the like) shave the “time spent” column down a hair while revamped internal performance assessments, employee and organizational engagement / climate assessments help manage, benchmark and improve existing “human capital investments”.

Firms are starting to see these methods not as new-fangled “techie” approaches, but as smart, cost conscious and effective reinvestments in their capital assets. The picture doesn't even have to look that sterile. When employers are viewed as caring about their employees, they are viewed as caring about their business just like when they take time to wash the windows and cut the grass, do the books, and send out their PR announcements.

How does your company reduce turnover, improve employee engagement, streamline performance reviews, etc.? To put it another way, what are your “new tricks”?