From the category archives:

Business/Economy

TugLink job referral network

by macewan on February 15, 2008

Hey there I'm Robert MacEwan the author of Ideal Absolutes. If you're new to macewan.org, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed.

From a part-time number cruncher to an advertising executive to another warm body with janitorial experience to work on the plant floor, success in recruiting a qualified applicant can be a real pain. HR departments have limited resources in these tough economic times. It can be especially tough in the technology industry. Locating a social networking specialist qualified to handle the delicate art of juggling both advertisers and publishers - well, let’s just say it can’t be easy. If HR takes their chances on the wrong individual you could wind up with someone who selectively enforces the rules or bends them to suit their needs. That can make for some unhappy employees!

This is the delima growing companies face with explosive growth. How have they attracted qualified candidates? Blindly advertising in newspapers, online advertisements or word of mouth? Plenty of busy work is generated by HR “professionals” to justify their positions, BUT….is it necessary in the day and age of the internet?

There is an alternative path for employee referrals for qualified candidates. Why not let the internet do the work for you? Providing bonuses in the form financial incentives is certainly an attractive option and this is where TugLink.com surfaces, helping organizations expand recruitment teams with only a computer and an internet connection needed.

Press Release:

TugLink.com kicks off another year of helping people start a new career by increasing their chances of landing job interviews this New Year. As its name implies, the web site ‘links’ job-hunters with company insiders who provide a ‘tug’, or a helping hand, by referring the right candidates to their employers. Many resources exist today to inform job-seekers about open positions and teach them how to ace the interview process. Getting invited to that coveted job interview, however, remains a key challenge for many candidates.

TugLink is not yet another job board. It is not a traditional social network either. TugLink.com is a job referral network which works as a virtual job wish list whose main and only goal is to connect job candidates with company insiders. These days, information on thousands of vacancies can be easily found on the Internet. As a result, employers are flooded with resumes and even qualified candidates have trouble trying to stand out from the crowd.

TugLink’s goal is exactly to reduce this disconnect and provide the missing link to job-seekers. After a quick, no-cost registration on the web site, members set up a Candidate Profile and create their Job Wish List. Here, job-seekers indicate what kind of employment they are looking for in general. For example, ‘a full-time Marketing position with a financial services company in the Chicago area’.

Also, job-seekers can post specific jobs that they are interested in. Say, one wants a better job and finds a great career opportunity on a job board like Monster.com or on an admired employer’s web site. It can be, for instance, ‘a Product Manager at Citibank in New York City’ or ‘a Software Engineer at Google in Mountain View, California’. TugLink members include description of desired jobs in their Wish List and may get contacted by the target companies’ employees registered on TugLink.com. If they see a good match, Insiders refer the right candidate to their company which in most cases results in a job interview.

TugLink.com helps job-seekers get a shot at their dream job; the rest is up to the candidates.

About TugLink Inc.
Launched in late 2007, TugLink was started with the goal of making job search and recruitment a much more effective, satisfying and less costly process both for job hunters and employers. TugLink.com is the first job referral network which connects businesses with potential new hires leveraging the effectiveness of employee referrals. For more information, visit http://www.TugLink.com and watch a short video at http://www.YouTube.com/TugLink

Press Contacts:
Kevin Alemans
(888) 243-4609

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Identity Theft

by macewan on February 12, 2008

It’s important to have that secure feeling that comes with knowing someone is in your corner looking out for you. With the topic of identity theft the Lifelock stands out. You’ll find them in your corner working on your behalf to help protect brand you. They back up their ability to protect you with the guarantee to spend up to $1,000,000 to recover your good name should anything happen.

The service is a mere drop in the bucket at $10 a month, less than half the cost of a can of soda. The CEO of Lifelock is so confident of the companies ability to protect that he even has his Social Security Number listed on the page. How exactly do they go about setting this in motion? What are the steps they take to handle the monotonous processes of protecting what is rightfully ours to begin with?

  • First, we ask the credit bureaus to set fraud alerts on your behalf.
  • Second, unless your circumstances change and you tell us not to, every 90 days or so we ask the credit bureaus to do it again.
  • Third, we request that your name be removed from pre-approved credit card and junk mail lists and we keep making the requests as they expire.
  • Fourth, we order your free credit reports on your behalf from the major credit bureaus and they are sent directly to you.
  • Fifth, hassling with lost or stolen wallets is no longer a problem with WalletLock™.
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An entertainment industry review

by macewan on February 8, 2008

The inner workers of a sites back end fascinate me. Take the world of entertainment sites such as gambling and that surrounds it. Did you know that they use C++ and Java to produce those sites? Java I suspected because of Sun Microsystems media blitz of past emphasizing security. Admittedly my knowledge of Casinos or Casino Gambling period could best be summed up as zilch.

By now you’re probably thinking, “then how do you know it is written in Java?” Well, I’m glad you asked for I was just as clueless on this subject. Earlier this morning I stumbledupon a resource site. The funny part was how easy it was to track down. Hrm, how ever does one learn more on the online casino topic? Actually, it really wasn’t that difficult - Online Casino Topic dot com provided an understanding on the subject.

One of the more interesting features of the site are the reviews of 6-8 firms that produce the software used by those gambling sites. For no other reason than liking the name of the company I chose the Cryptologic software review. This is where I first heard of the Unlawful Gaming Act of 2006 which prevents sites from accepting wagers from U.S. residents. Who’d a thought…

The US government recently passed a bill that was signed into Law by George W. Bush on October 13, 2006 known as the UIGEA ( Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act).

I would have thought with all the more pressing issues we have in this country there wouldn’t be too much time to spend on cherry picked projects like that. Guess he’s a better time manager than I first assumed.

Besides providing news on the industry there’s game info, strategy, tips, free software, resources and a section to play game free of charge. Oh, on second review I see a section on game odds. On a side note… how many of the programmers are also players? =)

As mentioned earlier this form of entertainment may be fascinating from the back end perspective (yes, I have at one time dabbled in Java) however, the write-ups on well known games may pique your interest too. So if you find yourself curious about the inner working of this field then head over to see what’s being taught.

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Google on Microsoft’s Yahoo! hostile bid

by macewan on February 4, 2008

Mr. Drummond asks whether we can expect Microsoft Internet behavior to mirror their “inappropriate and illegal” influence on PCs.

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Fourteen thousand advertisers to ignore Google’s Page Rank?

by macewan on January 25, 2008

This will obviously cause quite a stir in the blogging world. Reading through the Izea townhall meeting transcript a few statements stuck in my mind as encouraging for everyone involved. First, Izea is a fast moving target not easily thrown off course by Google’s attempt at censoring bloggers through PR (pagerank) deletion (Google Smacking). Second, I got the impression Izea does listen to feedback from both the Posties and the advertisers. Speaking of advertisers there are now over fourteen thousand using the Izea platform. WOW.

Now for the good news. But before I go there I wanted to make a point of expressing my opinion that the honorable FTC Chairwoman Deborah Platt Majoras, seen here helping Jones Day celebrate their 20th year anniversary, doesn’t understand the power of Google and the possible danger posed by their acquisition of Double Click. OK, with that out of the way everyone should know that Izea will be dumping Google’s Page Rank - yeah boy - and that Social Spark is on track. Maybe not tomorrow, but it did like we’ll see it this calendar year.

*this is an evolving article - updates through the day with announcements from Izea

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Love a game?

by macewan on January 24, 2008

Overstock.com is rolling out their “Game O Love” from January 25th to February 11th. Register to win Valentine’s Day presents from your sweetheart. No muss, no fuss!!

I’ve been asked by the good folks at OverStock to check out their Game-O-Love. The very first thing that needs to take place before we begin is a disclaimer. I love Overstock.com. OK, with that said let’s start by letting you know that prizes may be in your future if you visit GameOLove dot com. They’re saying that you may win presents from your sweetheart. Guessing they meant “for your sweetheart”?

Starting Friday, January 25, 2008 Overstock’s Game O Love is unleashing their Valentine Contest. Claiming prizes, gifts and love in exchange for your name and email. A rouge cupid wages full scale war on love (we’re currently on level orange) and needs our help. Now it’s been years since I’ve come across a bow-n-arrow set. Guessing my cup-o-coffee is useless so my only weapon in this war of the willing is a computer mouse. Join me my coallision of willing clickers as we search for the meaning of life *void where prohibited*!

Seriously, everyone seems to love shopping Overstock. I noticed upon arriving at the site and area to sign up for omail. What’s omail you ask? Well, this isn’t some sorta vajay2 to text teleportation system. See this is where you sign up for updates on new products, special promotions, exclusive email omail offers and coupons! It’s safe from any sort of primetime dr. weirdo calls or guest appearances.


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Time saving find on this chilly Tuesday morning

by macewan on January 22, 2008

I don’t spend much time talking about my day job. Don’t get me wrong — I’m extremely proud of where I work and the job I’m tasked with completing. We’re (I say we because it’s only as a team that we succeed) a dedicated team of departments.Dry Shampoo by Salon Grafix It’s the type of job were one minute I’m coaching a client in a warehouse and the next I’ve been asked to sit in on a meeting.

Recently I’ve decided to move part-time as a I prep to retire at 40. So I’ve switched to part-time to help train and assist two new Job Coaches. In preparation for the big move to being home, I’ve started growing my hair out at my wife’s request. Now it’s been a long time since my hair was this long. Looking back it was probably the summer before I went into the Air Force. I just don’t have the desire right now to figure out how this whole long hair optimum care works. In the mean time I just am not going to shampoo, condition and dry every single day. Especially with the weather being so darn cold now.

While checking out a friend’s site, I noticed her talk about something called dry shampoo. Well that’s right up my alley! This would have been perfect this afternoon with an unexpected meeting I got dragged into.

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From Ubuntu Linux to Blog Coaching, Affiliate Marketing and Making Money Online. © 2000-2008 Robert MacEwan