Outsourcing HR

A good friend of mine has worked in Human Resources all her professional life. At the company where we worked together for a couple years, she was taking night time college courses to get her Master’s Degree in HR and the company was helping her with the tuition for the classes. She was so proud to finally graduate with her Master’s and I must say that it was quite an accomplishment, as she not only had a very demanding job at the company, with long hours there, but she was also mother to three children in school and wife of a musician who traveled quite a bit and because of his touring schedule he would leave her alone at home with the kids for weeks at a time.

We were all shocked and amazed when our company made the announcement that the Board of Directors had decided to eliminate the Human Resources department and outsource those tasks as part of our staff reduction and reorganization plans. My friend was laid off and we were all instructed on the new processes for HR support within our departments. After the initial shock of losing a friend and co-worker, I must say that the new processes are not bad.

My company found that most HR functions can be easily standardized, and outsourcing makes financial sense. There are good companies who can step up and take over the HR processes, like payroll services, handbooks, insurance forms, etc. by using computer programs and the internet.

If you are not familiar with outsourcing HR, you might be interested in reading the website of a Professional Employer Organization (PEO) to learn what they can do for your company or organization. Of particular concern to a lot of employers is compliance with the new immigration laws and hiring requirements. National PEO has a great program to E Verify new hires and rehires, including follow-up on discrepancies, auditing the required forms, and being available to answer questions.

There’s a lot of responsibility with administering Human Resources. My friend has found another position and is very happy with her new company as VP of HR, and our company is happy with the move to outsourcing their HR. So it was a win-win change for all.

Family Photos

The kids came home from their first day of school full of chatter and excitement about their new classes, their new teachers, and all the friends they haven’t seen over the summer. They brought a pile of paperwork that needs to be filled out and signed and sent back in, often with a check attached. One of the things I wanted to see right away was the school calendar with all the holidays and vacation dates. Sorry to say, here it is August and I’m already thinking about December and Christmas vacation.

This year we won’t be seeing much of the family as we are going to go to the Bahamas for Christmas. Usually we all get together at my mother’s home for a dinner and gift exchange, and I’m sure they will all be disappointed that we aren’t coming, but I have a great deal on the Bahamas trips and that’s what my kids want to do, so that’s the plan. I just needed to know the dates of their school holidays so they don’t miss any school when I book the trip.

Since we won’t be seeing all the family this Christmas, I thought it would be nice to see out Christmas Photo Cards to everyone. That at least puts our face in front of them over the holidays, even though we won’t be there in person. Found a great web site to order the cards and they have two options for the types of cards you can order. One option is a designed frame and they print your photo right on the card frame. The other option is a photo holder where they printed the inside of the card and you insert your own photos right into the frame using double sided stickers or sliding the photo into the cut corners of the frame.

I have some snapshots of the family from our company picnic and our trip to the amusement park to look through for using on the photo cards, and if none of those work out well for a photo Christmas card, I can take some more with my digital camera until I get the right pose and the right shot. The web site has a link with tips on taking photographs using digital cameras and even cell phones. It’s always good to read through photo card taking tips - you never know when you’ll learn something new and useful.

Internationally Yours

When you work for an international company you must develop an increased awareness for the holidays and celebrations in other countries. As American’s we are used to the banking-type holidays, when the banks, the post office, government buildings and sometimes school will all be closed for the day. Then there are the cultural holidays, like Mother’s Day, Flag Day, even Thanksgiving, that are celebrated in America on certain dates but perhaps not observed in other countries on the same dates, if at all.

A good example is Father’s Day. In America, Canada, and the U.K. we all honor our fathers by celebrating Father’s Day on the third Sunday in June, every year. However, in Australia, Fathers Day is celebrated on the first Sunday in September.

With Father’s Day just a little over a month away, our friends in Australia are already shopping for gifts and planning their celebrations. A great site to shop for Fathers Day Gifts is DadShop.com.au and it’s not bad for ideas for Christmas gifts, either. Check it out. I can be Australian for the day if the urge to buy me something overcomes you!

Camping or Not?

We’ve been making an annual camping trip to Jackson Hole every since my junior year of college. We always go over Labor Day Weekend and we rent the same cabin and hire the same fishing guide every year.

But some of the guys are saying that they can’t get there this year. The price of gas, the mortgage crisis, the plant closings - all the bad economy things that have been going on these past 5-6 months are catching us all short on money.

I know I’ve had to cut back on spending and try to find ways to make my money go farther. I’ve never been a big fan of coupons, but now if I can save a decent amount of money it’s really worth it to look for coupons and deals on the things you plan to buy and save the money with very little effort. Got a honey-do list? Check for deals at Home Depot before tackling those jobs around the house. Saving money takes a little of the sting out of spending your premium weekend days on chores.

One of the best coupon websites is always putting deals on their page for the top stores. I just saved some cool cash on a pair of Nike’s from Footlocker. I wanted to get some new cargo pants and shorts for the camping trip and found some good deals at L L Bean.

The very best store with online catalog shopping for camping, hunting and fishing gear had some great deals at Cabelas. I was just about to get some new fishing gear when my buddy Jasper called to say he wasn’t going to make it. Now Jasper I can understand - he’s going back to school to finish up some classes and actually graduate this year. So you KNOW his budget is tight plus he goes back to class next week, so Labor Day doesn’t even work into a good schedule for him to take the days off. But the rest of the guys had better not let me down. This is a tradition - it must be honored!

Credit Card Search

With everything getting so much more expensive, especially gas and all things related to travel, it occurred to me this morning that I might be smart to apply for one more credit card before we go on vacation next month. I’ve got plenty of money in the budget for the trip, but I would be more comfortable if I knew I had an extra credit card on deck in case of an emergency. I mean, you never know. And if we are 600 miles away from home, I can’t just run on home to get help from my local resources.

So I did a little checking on the internet to see if there’s a smart way to get a third credit card and if there’s even a chance that I can apply for it online and get approved quickly so that I have it in hand and activated before our trip to Gulf Shores.

Come to find out, there’s a web site called Card Hub that has all the different types of Credit Cards gathered up on their site for an easy comparison. When I checked out their site, I saw a very cool feature where you can select you own personal preferences from the left sidebar and after you click through the different settings that are important to you, the site searches through their database of available credit cards and displays the best ones that meet your needs.

Then they have a little profile on each of the cards that should match up with your preferences. The profile details things like interest rate, annual fee, etc. and if you find more than one card that looks good, you click on the checkbox of each one and then run a comparison for you.

I also spent a little time on their education center page and read up on the credit card fine print. I’m pretty careful with my money and if there are any little tricks or traps hidden in the fine print, I want to know what to look for and know if it’s something I’m OK with.

I read up on this site from their press release, and that in itself was very informative:

Press Release:

Arlington, VA – July 15, 2008 – At a time when every penny counts, finding the right credit card, with the right terms, has never been more important. However, according to the Government Accountability Office, understanding these terms has gotten even more difficult. In its 2006 report, the GAO found that the practices of credit card companies to inform consumers of the costs and terms associated with credit “have serious weaknesses that likely reduced consumers’ ability to understand the costs of using credit cards.” With better tools and information, consumers can better manage this credit environment.

Today, Evolution Finance launched CardHub.com, a first-of-its-kind credit card search tool that redefines the way people search, compare and apply for credit cards. Founded by Capital One veteran, Odysseas Papadimitriou, Card Hub is designed to put financial control back into consumers’ hands by clearly and easily displaying the terms and benefits of major credit cards, including Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover.

Finding Credit Cards Becomes Simpler with Dynamic Searching

Today’s credit card sites provide information in silos. For example, for consumers who want to find airline rewards cards that also have a 0% introductory rate, most sites will not allow them to customize and view these cards on one page. Instead, consumers have to visit separate pages about airline rewards cards and 0% introductory rate cards. The information is difficult to customize and often too complex to understand.

Card Hub provides a search tool that lets users find and compare all major credit cards in a dynamic and highly interactive way. In one search, users can customize their results by indicating their credit history, personal or business needs, interest rate limitations, reward preferences, and more. With every click, the search results update on their own to display credit cards that meet the user’s preferences. Rather than making a choice, clicking a search button, waiting to see results, and then doing it over again for multiple searches, users of Card Hub see their results automatically as they refine their search criteria.

In addition, the same technology that produces the highly customizable search results offers the ability to conduct simple side-by-side card comparisons by only focusing on the features that are the most important to them. After consumers select a credit card, they are directed immediately to the credit card company’s secure web site where they can easily apply for the card they have chosen.

“Consumers deserve a better experience when they make financial decisions,” said Odysseas Papadimitriou, CEO and founder of Evolution Finance. “The hidden fees and penalties in the credit card market have caused serious problems for both borrowers and lenders. We built CardHub.com to do something that doesn’t exist in the market today: make it easy for people to find the card that will truly save them the most money and offer them the best rewards.”

Exposing the Fine Print of Credit Cards

In addition to providing a simpler and more interactive search experience, Card Hub also makes the fine print of credit cards more transparent. Visitors to the site can view detailed information about the terms and conditions in an easy-to-understand format. Hidden rates, such as Default APRs (Annual Percentage Rates) that can be 20% higher than Introductory APRs, become easy to see as the user browses through the results of their custom tailored credit card search.

Furthermore, a detailed page about each card provides unbiased information about the card, including most of its fine print. Rather than having to click through several pages to learn about a card’s hidden fees, the information is apparent on one page. Complicated fine print is also broken down into simple explanations that give users the ability to make educated financial decisions.

Providing Credit Card Education from Industry Veterans

Card Hub’s Credit Card Education Center further empowers consumers with the knowledge they need to make better financial decisions. The center is written by industry insiders with consumers’ best interests in mind. Users can find comprehensive information on a number of credit card topics, from the basic, such as how credit cards work, to the more complicated, such as how to avoid getting trapped with balances at high interest rates. The center is organized to help users easily browse information, and search for specific answers to questions. It also provides tips and warnings.

“When it comes to managing credit card spending and debt, the process has become overly complex and confusing for consumers,” added Papadimitriou. “Now, more than ever, we need to shed more light on this industry. By giving consumers the tools to make better financial decisions, we are giving them more power in the process.”

About Evolution Finance and CardHub.com

Founded by Capital One veteran, Odysseas Papadimitriou, Evolution Finance was created out of a passion to give more financial control to everyday people. Card Hub, its first site, is a first-of-its-kind credit card search tool that redefines the way people search, compare and apply for credit cards. More information can be found at www.evolutionfinance.com and www.cardhub.com.

Evolution Finance Media Contact

Lynn Johnson

703.722.0601

media@evolutionfinance.com