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New Labor Department regulations — intended to complement the Pension Protection Act and expected mid-February — may lead some employers to move to equity-based funds when acting on behalf of employees who do not make investment selections.

Watson Wyatt Worldwide says that although automatic enrollment and default investment programs can help more Americans realize higher retirement savings, employers still need to consider the impact on contributions and administrative costs, and to assess whether any plan design changes are needed.

For example, many corporations like that automatic enrollment aids employees’ retirement savings, but when employees take loans from their 401(k)s, it drives down retirement savings and increases administration costs.

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There is little doubt that employment branding is one of the hottest topics in recruiting these days. Unfortunately, what a lot of firms implement in the name of branding really has nothing to do with employment branding.

Defining Employment Branding

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Michigan was hit hard this week after Pfizer announced its plan to cut 10,000 jobs globally and close at least five facilities as part of an effort to trim annual costs by up to $2 billion by the end of next year.

Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm has said publicly that Pfizer’s plans to slash nearly 2,400 jobs in her state is like “a punch to the gut.”

Pfizer will close its research site in Ann Arbor (2,100 workers) and eliminate all scientific research jobs in Kalamazoo (250 workers).

However, the company says it will continue its manufacturing and animal health presence in Michigan.

Efforts are already underway to keep the workers in Michigan.

For example, in Kalamazoo, some economic officials started what they call the “Boomerang Campaign” to retain the 250 workers. These skilled workers, who will be phased out of Pfizer by 2008, test second-stage human-healthcare drug compounds.

Trying to convince the Kalamazoo workers to stay employed in the area, the regional economic-development organization Southwest Michigan First plans to meet Friday with representatives of local life-science companies and other businesses to recruit the affected Pfizer workers or persuade them to start local businesses in the area.

“We are meeting with about 50 representatives from about 30 companies,” says Southwest Michigan First’s CEO Ronald Kitchens.

“The most important thing is our people. The goal is to say, ‘Who do you know?’ to colleagues and associates. It’s going to be a long campaign but worth it, since those services are still needed in the area. The next 90 days are the most critical in that component,” says Kitchens.

He points out that Pfizer didn’t say the life-sciences services are no longer needed, but rather that the company would no longer be doing it.

“If we are going to be globally competitive, we need key scientific minds in our community,” he says.

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New methods for attracting the largely untapped baby boomer demographic are sprouting up around the country.

A growing number of companies, being served by niche job boards and staffing agencies, are trying to penetrate the boomer demographic to fill key staffing shortages and maintain a competitive edge.

In the past few years, more and more companies are realizing that by the year 2010, almost one in three workers will be at least 50 years old.

For example, the Home Depot has partnered with the AARP to recruit mature workers, even offering benefits for part-time employees.

The Refirement Group is working to help redefine the attitudes and expectations of the boomer workforce. Through workshops and consulting to both employers and employees, the organization’s mission is to “retire the concept of retirement [that is] not even as old as television. It was created for a male industrial workforce that literally needed to rest after 65.”

Reinventing Retirement

Boomers, those born between 1946 and 1964, “have reinvented just about everything in our society, and they will continue to reinvent retirement, too,” says Lisa Coppinger, owner of Continuing Careers.com.

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Many a column on ERE and other staffing forums advise companies on how to increase their presence in the employment market space. Companies spend mega-dollars on advertising agencies and public relations consultants in the name of employment branding to increase name recognition, position themselves as employers of choice, and develop glossy detail pieces that help differentiate their companies from others.

I take this opportunity to highlight the hands-down greatest source of employment branding, a source so powerful it can reach millions of people worldwide, without a single print advertisement, brochure, radio ad, or dollar spent.

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Approximately 70% of major retailers accept hourly applications on their corporate website, up from 41% in 2004.

In addition, 16% currently accept applications on their corporate website only, according to a new survey by Taleo Research.

The study, entitled “Trends in Hourly Job Application Methods at Top 100 Retailers,” also shows that in-store computer-based applications have become more prevalent.

For example, in 2006, 37% of the top 100 retailers provided a kiosk or computer station to accept hourly job applications versus 22% in 2004.

However, Taleo notes that 44% of stores still accept in-store paper applications for hourly positions, with 22 stores only accepting paper applications.

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How have third-party agencies fared over the past five years with the rise of Internet recruiting? Are there more of them or fewer? Are they doing what they did five years ago? How have they changed? What is going to happen to employment agencies over the next few years?

Agency owners and users, from Europe to Australia, constantly ask me such questions during my travels. Everyone agrees that times are changing and the role of agencies along with them. While there will always be a handful of agencies that remain similar to those we have today, most will undergo major evolution.

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Amid an increasingly global world but tempered by the realities of an evolving system for sharing and disseminating breaking news around the world, The Boston Globe said Tuesday that it will close three foreign bureaus as part of efforts to trim costs.

Four reporters — in Berlin, Bogota, and Jerusalem — will be no longer reporting from overseas, a move that the newspaper says will prevent a “dozen or so” additional newsroom layoffs.

The reporters in those bureaus will be offered other jobs, editor Martin Baron said in a memo.

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Almost every sales applicant experiences interviews and tests. Is this good or bad? It’s hard to tell. Although it would take dynamite to separate most hiring managers from their favorite test, few organizations have conducted studies showing whether its scores predict performance.

High production takes more than just “selling the pencil.” It takes a combination of skills and motivation. How can an organization use this information to identify sales winners? Let’s dissect the human element of the sales hiring process piece by piece.

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According to a new survey on attitudes and action in the workplace, 19% of workers say they know someone who they believe was denied a job, promotion, or pay increase because of that individual’s race or ethnicity.

That figure more than doubles to 46% for African-American workers, the survey shows.

Another 22% of employees know someone who they think was denied a job, promotion, or pay increase because of their gender, according to the survey by recruitment company Hudson Highland.

Of the 4,825 workers polled, 47% say their company has a formal diversity initiative and 43% indicate that there is racial, ethnic, and gender diversity on their company’s executive team.

The Hudson survey shows that just 31% of workers believe the initiatives are working effectively, 35% think they do not work effectively, and 33% are unsure.

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Some years back I was made to realize that even the highest-level corporate chieftains can find themselves at a loss when it comes to knowing which questions they should ask a recruiting firm.

There I was, sitting face to face with a well-known chairman of a significant public corporation seated behind his expensive mahogany desk. The CFO was to my right; the HR executive vice president to my left. The conversation was going well until I was thrown a curve ball.

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Unlike Fortune’s 2007 list of the 100 best employers in the United States, the list of the 50 best companies in Canada includes Wal-Mart as a best employer.

In fact, this is the fifth time in six years that the company has been identified as one of Canada’s best employers.

For example, the list cites Wal-Mart Canada’s “Tell Mario” program, designed to allow any associate to communicate ideas to Wal-Mart Canada’s president and CEO Mario Pilozzi.

So far, the company says the program has generated nearly 1,000 tangible suggestions to improve the business.

In addition, senior executives conducted a cross-country tour of “listening sessions” with in-store associates to gain direct feedback for enhancement and improvement of in-store roles.

The company has created more than 55,000 new jobs since it was established in Canada in 1996.

Women hold more than 30% of Wal-Mart Canada’s senior executive roles. Wal-Mart Canada’s chief operating officer and the heads of human resources, IT, financial services, audit, Eastern-Canada operations, home and seasonal merchandise, logistics, and supply-chain management are all women.

Women hold 15% of Wal-Mart’s senior executive roles in the United States.

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Somewhat overshadowed by Fortune’s list of the 100 Best Companies to Work For released earlier this month is a smaller survey that took place among our neighbors to the north.

Hewitt Associates says the companies named to its 50 Best Employers in Canada list earned their spots because of high employee engagement.

Hewitt says 77% of employees are engaged at a typical Best Employer, compared with 55% at other organizations that participated in the study.

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Tampa Armature Works, Inc., founded in 1921 to serve the phosphate industry, is in the business of making sure you have electricity.

However, recruiters in this highly technical field are facing the same harsh realities brought about by the mass exodus of retiring baby boomers as in many other fields.

“People don’t realize that if we don’t fill these technical jobs, the electro/mechanical companies like ours may not have the capability of repairing electric motors for our customers,” says Ellen Donegan, the company’s recruiting specialist.

The company’s service technicians assist any company that has an industrial motor (i.e., the phosphate industry, utility companies, servicing motors for plant shutdowns, municipalities, repairing pumps, blowers, and compressors, and selling and repairing residential and commercial generators).

“We are in the same position as any of the utility companies. If they have an electric motor that has to conduct electricity, they have to have someone come fix it — and that is one of the largest parts of our business. If lightening strikes and that motor goes down, they call our company to repair their motors,” she says.

The company now employs 624 employees in 15 locations throughout Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina.

The company says it may expand, but its hunt for quality workers is stalled because “we have folks who have been here 40 or 50 years. It seems people are not encouraged to pursue these types of jobs anymore; the focus seems to be on other career paths,” says Donegan.

From Baby Boomers to Military Members

To combat staffing shortages and train younger workers, the company has found some relief from retired workers who are returning on a part-time basis.

“When they retire, we ask them whether they would consider coming back part time or on a contract basis,” she says.

Donegan says she has also hired “quite a bit” directly from online postings that are being read by the American military stationed in the Middle East.

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When you really think about it, there are only two major hiring mistakes that companies make on an ongoing basis.

The first big mistake is hiring someone who underperforms. More times than not, these are people who are competent to do the work, but not motivated to do it for any number of reasons.

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Employers say they want to hire a diverse workforce, and employees say they want to work for companies that value diversity.

Previous Monster research has indicated that 85% of diverse online job seekers want to work for an employer who values diversity, and 95% of hiring managers view diversity among employees as being very important.

Yet for many reasons, diverse online job seekers are sometimes reluctant to disclose their backgrounds and unique histories because they fear it may be a hindrance to getting a job.

Now, Monster has launched a new feature that it hopes will bridge the gap. Customers can now add a “diverse candidate status” box as part of the online application flow. This means applicants can signify — by checking a box — whether they would like to be regarded as a diverse candidate when they apply for a job.

Monster says employers opting to use the “diverse candidate status” feature increase their visibility as diversity-friendly companies and are able to tap into the richness of Monster’s job seeker audience in a measurable way.

Asian Diversity.com, which helps organizations in incorporating Asian Americans into their diversity initiatives, thinks Monster’s diversity initiatives will make diverse candidate become more of a frontrunner.

“Obviously, with us being proponents for diversity, anything that furthers the dialogue is great. This puts action into Monster’s stance on diversity and signifies they are committed and want job seekers to notice how committed they are,” says Won Kim, the company’s vice president of business strategy.

He points out that many companies see diversity as a compliance issue, but diversity shows the public that companies are inclusive.

“Also, companies increase their opportunity to be more innovative, because they are trying to eliminate candidates who beforehand used to be a little tentative about saying whether they were a diverse candidate,” he adds.

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Is there a shortage or a surplus of engineers in China? Some sources report hundreds of recent engineering graduates being turned away from job fairs because all the open positions have been filled.

Yet, in another article, the author bemoans the lack of electrical engineers. Other confusing facts cloud the picture. Is India running out of English-speaking professionals to fill the outsourcing positions that have grown so rapidly over the past decade? Does the Philippines have the quality of English speakers American and British firms need?

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Pharmaceutical company Pfizer says it is likely to cut thousands of jobs under a strategic restructuring plan it will announce next week.

The company’s new chief executive officer, Jeffrey B. Kindler, is expected to present his new plans Monday.

The cuts might affect the Pfizer European sales force the hardest, following a 20% reduction in the U.S. sales team in November 2006. The company may also close some facilities.

According to John Austin, an author, business professor, and management Ph.D. blogger, if the layoffs reach a threshold of greater than 5% of the Pfizer workforce, investors should look carefully at how the company is carrying them out.

“In general, layoffs that involve complete facility closures or are limited to specific job functions, such as sales force, are much easier to manage and are less damaging to employee morale,” says Austin.

Is This It?

A Pfizer statement that “more restructuring may be needed in the near future” given as part of the layoff announcement could be a large red flag.

“Already Pfizer has begun to move along this dangerous route by announcing layoffs two months ago. The empirical evidence is absolutely clear about one thing. Multiple layoff announcements spread over a period of months or even years is far worse for future company health than is a single large painful layoff,” he says.

Austin notes that multiple layoffs freeze the company stock price as investors wait for the other shoe to drop. Multiple layoffs also poison the internal company culture, sparking rampant rumors, increasing employee economic fear, and prompting the best employees to look elsewhere for work.

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Vurv announced today that it has acquired People Business Network, a provider of on-demand workforce optimization solutions.

As part of its new structure, Vurv has also laid off certain non-essential and redundant positions ranging from middle management to senior executives.

“It’s a savvy move by Vurv,” says Yankee Group analyst Jason Corsello.

“One, there is really no one out there doing what PBN is doing with offboarding; second, and this is where it changes the game, PBN is a CFO sell for merger and acquisition deals; and third, companies are going to look at business and realign to shift costs,” he says.

Corsello says the Vurv headcount was growing very quickly, “and they lost that focus and touch as they grew, but are going back and saying, ‘This is who we were and still want to be.’ I think the layoffs were actually necessary.”

The fate of current People Business Network employees remains a mystery at this point. In fact, whether they stay intact in their corporate offices in New Jersey or suffer a round of layoffs are still unknown.

“All those things are to be decided,” says Russ Clarke, People Business Network’s founder, who is now responsible for investor relations.

Vurv spokeswoman Jaime Spuhler agrees, noting that, “There are no immediate plans to relocate PBN employees to Jacksonville.”

As for Vurv’s own round of layoffs, Spuhler says, “We restructured some things and took a hard look over the past month or so. We did eliminate a few positions, but it’s not a huge situation,” she says.

“We didn’t chop off a whole department; it was more of getting rid of redundancies but not eliminating one chunk or group of employees,” she adds.

Layoffs ‘Renew Innovation’

However, Vurv’s layoffs have resulted in “a renewed focus on innovation and customer delight,” that will increase “the pace of solution innovation and development,” the company wrote in a client letter last week.

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Remember back in the early days of the Internet era, when the term “virtual reality” was applied to just about anything that had to do with a computerized representation of some aspect of reality? Everyone was abuzz about the idea of creating virtual representations of almost any situation.

While most of the ideas related to virtual reality seemed to be mostly within the realm of recreation, there were certainly those (myself included) who began to think about how this use of technology could be leveraged for use within organizations.

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