Retail Link training experts 8th & Walton have developed a new course to teach the fundamentals of doing business with Walmart in Mexico & Central America. The full-day course is taught by former buyers and current suppliers sharing best practices. Learn from experienced managers how to develop a plan, conserve resources, and mitigate the risks of doing business with Walmart in Mexico and Central America. 

You can register now to attend a class in Miami or Bentonville. Click this link to learn more about these and other courses at 8th & Walton:

http://www.8thandwalton.com#oid=1042_3

Social Network Suicide

by Paul Gatling

Northwest Arkansas Business Journal - 7/11/2011

There was a time when job seekers need only concern themselves with a sharp resume, neat appearance and fresh breath.
 

Looking good on paper and in person are still requirements of the job hunt, but more and more candidates are being viewed through an additional lens - social media.

The practice, referred to as online vetting or cybervetting, involves obtaining information through social networking sites (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace, et al.), blogs or search engines (Google, Yahoo!).
It is not illegal, but is not widely held as acceptable. But because of the wealth of information that's available just a mouse-click away, it isn't hard to imagine the first thing a hiring boss does when receiving an application or resume is to search for the applicant's name on the Internet.

"Without a doubt, there are companies that do that," said Mike Whittington, a partner with the executive recruiting firm Cameron Smith & Associates in Rogers.

"Social networking is really playing such a big part in all communication, and it's something that recruiters as well as hiring managers use as an additional tool."

Because of the rapid growth of technology, it would seem foolish for employers to ignore it as an additional resource.

According to a recent Econsultancy report, LinkedIn has more than 100 million professionals using its platform. Facebook has around 640 million users worldwide and Twitter reports 175 million registered users.

When it's in the best interests of their company to do so, why wouldn't an employer take advantage of that kind of reach to find out as much as possible about the person who wants to work there?

For the jobseeker, depending on the information that's mined, it could mean the difference between landing and losing a job. Social media gaffes and digital photo trails that live forever can end the careers of the most powerful, (i.e. Weiner, Anthony). 

They can certainly keep a beginner from getting a foot in the door.
For the employer, the bottom line is determining what type of judgment a potential employee would use.

The average Facebook user creates 90 pieces of content every month, according to CareerBuilder.com. That's a lot of indicators that potentially can be used to judge - fairly or unfairly.

If seen by people who are making important decisions about your future, posting pictures or information that could be viewed in a negative light can be a dangerous proposition.

Call it social network suicide. 
 
Wanted: Additional Information

According to a 2009 survey of more than 2,600 hiring managers conducted by CareerBuilder.com, 45 percent of employers said they use social networking sites to screen employees.

Eleven percent of employers plan to begin using social networking sites for the screening process. Consider that a reflection of the ever-growing technology age.

"That doesn't surprise me," said Sara Staley. "The generations that are coming into the workforce are more technologically oriented than previous generations and the Internet and social media sites are where [hiring managers] and recruiters will source their candidates moving forward."

Staley is the Bentonville and Rogers branch manager for Staffmark Investment LLC, an employment staffing company with more than 300 locations in 31 states.

The company's aim is to act as a matchmaker between jobseekers and employers and as such, sees a large share of paper applications and conducts countless interviews.

From her perspective, Staley says the kind of personal information found on Facebook, Twitter or MySpace is irrelevant.

"I don't think that whatever somebody puts on [his or her] Facebook page should affect [his or her] skill set or whether or not [he or she] is capable of doing a job," she said. "It's not a practice we use. I can't speak for all Staffmark offices. Everybody is different in the way they source candidates, but I don't think that technique would be something we would utilize."

Staley did add that she would feel comfortable going to a job applicant's LinkedIn profile because it's not as much personal as it is business oriented. Others agree.

"In the past, you used to meet someone and exchange business cards," Whittington said. "That's LinkedIn. That's your card now. It's not necessarily [only for] a job seeker, but it says, ‘This is who I am and this is what I do.'"

Whittington said he believes companies aren't mining social networking sites necessarily for negative or positive information. They just want additional information.

Or, when prompt processing is a plus, a recruiter may turn to cybervetting to get the ball rolling on the screening process.

"Sometimes as we are recruiting we may not have their resume yet and we just want to get a jumpstart on it," he said. "I don't think you make a decision based on that information. It's not something we review or put any weight on.

"But, with Facebook being something that hiring managers are looking at, or at least have that option, if you're someone looking to make a career change, you should make sure you've got everything buttoned up, so to speak." 
 
A Sticky Wicket

On the Staffmark website is the following disclaimer: Staffmark is committed to providing equal employment opportunity for all persons regardless of race, color, religion, sex, age, marital status, national origin, citizenship status, disability or veteran status.

Does that sound like information that might be readily viewable on a social networking page? Depending on a user's privacy settings, it well could be.

The disclaimer is, of course, a reminder of federal and state laws that prohibit prospective employers from asking certain questions that are not related to the job they are hiring for.

Judging a job applicant - and ultimately disqualifying him or her based on racy findings - is one thing.

Discovering information that is legally prohibited is another.

"Technology is making our personal [lives] and our private hard to separate," said Cyndi Nance, professor of law at the University of Arkansas. "So much is unsettled. Privacy laws in the states differ and the distinction between the public and private sector is quite a mish mash."

One thing that overrides everything else for HR professionals is that hiring decisions must be reached on unbiased, legal considerations.
"It can be a sticky wicket," said Kris DeLano, the HR director for Marshalltown Co. in Fayetteville. She has more than 25 years of HR experience and serves on the board of the Northwest Arkansas Human Resources Association.

"Unless you protect that stuff, it is out there in a public domain. If you have Facebook and don't have the right privacy settings, an employer can go get that without repercussion. But, once you know it, the onus is on the employer to prove that the information wasn't used as the reason for hiring and not hiring."

To date, these issues haven't been addressed by the legal system, though that seems inevitable considering the legal risks involved. There are numerous unanswered questions involving discrimination, invasion of privacy, First Amendment rights and authenticity of information.
Nance said it's a "pretty hot topic" among the American Bar Association set and will be a central topic at the ABA national meeting in Toronto in August.

Additionally, an article published recently in the Employment Screening Resources News reported that ESR - a nationwide background screening provider accredited by The National Association of Professional Background Screeners - will soon offer the white paper Managing the Risks of Using the Internet for Employment Screening Background Checks to provide an informative introduction to using Internet search engines and social network sites for employment background checks.

Melanie McClure, a partner at Cox, Sterling and McClure PLLC in North Little Rock, focuses on employment law and also maintains a blog about employment law issues at aremploymentlaw.com. In terms of vetting a candidate, McClure said she has yet to see a case arise from a candidate claiming to be denied employment because of social media.

"[Cybervetting] can create some risk," she said. "But personally, I don't think it's enough to not do it. The information you can gain is very valuable."

McClure did note the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the federal statute that requires employers to get consent from a job candidate before conducting a background check.

"Historically that's been a criminal background check or a credit check," she said. "I haven't seen a case that just reaches into Googling anybody."

The following article appeared in the business pages of the local edition of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette on Sunday, July 10, 2011.

Retailer To Open Buying Office
SMITH HELPS SPUR GROWTH OF INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
By Christie Swanson 
 
A Korean retailer will soon have an office in Northwest Arkansas.

The recruitment of international businesses to the area is the latest venture of Cameron Smith.

He helped spur the explosive growth of vendor offices for Walmart. When he started his executive search firm Cameron Smith & Associates in 1994 about 50 vendors had offices in the area. Today there are 1,246. His new vision has enticed E-Mart, South Korea’s largest discount retailer, into opening a 10-person buying office in the area.

Vendors and retailers benefit when offices are close by because it builds relationships between the companies and helps merchandise flow smoothly from manufacturer to customer.

Walmart’s Northwest Arkansas vendor community is composed of companies of all sizes and specialties, including Procter & Gamble, Revlon, LG and DreamWorks.

Smith said as new retailers arrive, vendor offices will need to adjust and bring in additional workers.

“Walmart doesn’t want any insights being discussed with any other retailers. They are uncomfortable with other retailers working with their buyers,” he said.

But the extra selling power afforded by international growth will be an easy sell to suppliers, he said.

Smith said E-Mart is the second international retailer he has helped move to Northwest Arkansas. The first was a Philippine retailer that placed a buyer in the area.

E-Mart declined to comment on the move until the office is ready to open, but Smith said that should be soon.

“They loved the idea, they’ve researched it and are now ready to do it,” Smith said.

E-Mart has 128 stores in South Korea and China, and opening a local buying office will open the doors to small to mid-size American companies they would otherwise not be able to reach, Smith said.

E-Mart is the retail brand of South Korea’s Shinsegae Group and says on its website it opened the first discount store in Korea in 1993.

Walmart and E-Mart have crossed paths before. Walmart pulled out of South Korea in 2006, selling all 16 stores to Shinsegae for $882 million. Those Walmart stores switched to the E-Mart brand.
Smith said he is in talks with about five other global retailers.

Drawing new international retailers into the area not only helps Smith grow his business, it helps the Northwest Arkansas Council meet goals established in its January report, Greater Northwest Arkansas Development Strategy.

Mike Malone, executive director of the Northwest Arkansas Council, said the report identified retail as one of the region’s eight key job growth sectors.

“Why wouldn’t they want to set up shop here and benefit from what is already here,” he asked. “I would argue there are no two other counties in the country that have the level of retail expertise you will find here.”

Malone said it is important to recruit new businesses while continuing to support the retailers responsible for the growth.
The Arkansas World Trade Center in Rogers also plays a part in new international trade.

Dan Hendrix, trade center CEO, said the group hosted the team from E-Mart in January and more than 20 companies presented products. Hendrix said he would not disclose the companies involved because of confidentiality agreements.

Trade with Korea became a statewide topic in late June when the U.S. Department of Commerce International Trade Administration held a seminar in Little Rock on the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement that awaits Congressional ratification.
The agreement would eliminate tariffs within five years for more than 95 percent of U.S. exports of consumer and industrial products, and tariffs would be eliminated for nearly two-thirds of U.S. agricultural exports immediately.

The meeting’s goal was to show how the trade agreement could help U.S. companies be more competitive in the Korean market, Hendrix said. He said South Korea is a huge market for U.S. and Arkansas products.

Korea is the seventh largest U.S. trading partner and fifth largest U.S. market for agriculture goods, according to the U.S.-Korea Business Council.

Full implementation of the Korea trade agreement could generate nearly 280,000 jobs, including 2,556 in Arkansas, according to the U.S. International Trade Commission. More than 52,000 Arkansas jobs are supported by good exports, representing 5 percent of the state’s private industry, according to the commission.

“We really promote two-way trade, because that is important,” he said. “They want to trade with each other in both buying and selling.”

Hendrix said if Congress ratifies the trade agreement it could have a big impact on Arkansas manufacturing, innovative technology and agriculture.

“About 96 percent of the world’s population lives outside the border of the U.S. and all these countries are passing free trade agreements with each other,” Hendrix said. “That’s why it’s important to move forward.”
 

Looking for the Reception at Osage Creek Amphitheater this Thursday, June 16th, from 5pm to 7?

Please dress very comfortably as this will be on the outdoor stage (tented).

There are two sets of directions below and you will see directional signs along each route. FYI The road leading into the Amphitheater is unpaved.

• Directions from Highway 264 from Cave Springs out past the XNA Airport. As you pass the entrance to the airport you will stay on Hwy 264 until you reach Highfill. You will see a gas station on your left. Turn left at the gas station onto Hwy 12. You will be making another left about a ½ mile up. Turn left on Gailey Hollow Road. You will be on Gailey Hollow Road for approx 4 miles. The road will T and you will turn left (unpaved road) on Logan Cave Road. The Amphitheater will be on the left.

• Directions from I-540 and US-412. Take 412 West 9 miles to Robinson Road. (Look for signs.) Turn right. After you turn right you will go left onto Old 68 Highway. Drive 1.2 miles and turn right on Logan Road. Drive 1 mile to Logan Cave Road. Turn right (unpaved). The Amphitheater will be on your left.

Both routes will have plenty of directional signs.

See you there.

Cameron

Here are my final tips for finding a summer job:

• Do not bring your mother to the interview with you.
• Do not be afraid to ask for help, ask for leads or ask for a job.
• Follow up with leads people give you . . . you never know what can happen.
• Whatever you do, stay professional and know that your job search is a building block for you. You are creating your “brand” for the future.
• Build your resume by being thoughtful about what you do.
• See impressive resumes from young people coming out of college because they planned their summer jobs.
• A survey of 1,000 hiring managers revealed that 65% of the summer workforce will be people returning from previous year.
• Always learn from your experiences.
• Learn from the experiences of others. Ask people what was your best summer job? Worst? Most creative?

Summer is short and sweet. In a couple of months at a summer job, you’ll have new friends, added contacts, sharpened skills, and (let’s hope) some money in the bank. You can return to school in the fall and tackle your studies with a deeper understanding of what you want in a job and what you can contribute.