Bigger Monitors = Greater Productivity

File this as one of those things that seems counterintuitive at first, but make sense after thinking things through. Researchers at the University of Utah have determined* that office workers that use larger monitors are more productive. The gains seem to increase as monitor sizes gets larger -- tapping out at 24 inches. What do you think? Do you find yourself more productive when you are working at a larger workstation. I don't find myself particularly less productive when working on my laptop, but could see how a larger monitor could lead to less fatigue when working in front of the screen all day.

*It is important to note that the University of Utah study was funded by monitor maker NEC.

Image by sw_wetmonkey @ Flickr

Full Story @ WSJ Business Tech Blog.

Worst Companies to Work For

To be fair - I should clarify, this list if of the worst "big" companies to work for. Edugree has a hist of the five worst companies to work for. I'm not sure if there was a particularly strong methodology for picking these, but they seem to run along the lines of businesses that I hate dealing with in my personal life. If they threw Wal-Mart and AT&T Wireless into the mix they would have hit it spot on. I have an edited list of the companies below, for a full list head over to edugree.

1) The Home Depot

2) AOL

3) Best Buy

4) McDonalds

5) Verizon

Image: triplezero @ Flickr

Low Cost Employee Perks

Looking for a way to reward employees without breaking the bank? I recently came across a (somewhat dated) list of 20 ways to reward employees without breaking the bank on Entrepreneur.com. Below the Entrepreneur's list has been summarized, although I think some of them would end up costing a business more than expected. Would any of them appeal to you as an employee or manager?

1 - Work from home days
2 - Family days
3 - Yoga classes
4 - Community service days
5 - Pizza Fridays
6 - Movie days
7 - Reward a top employee with vacation days
8 - Pass discounts on to employees
9 - Bring your dog to work day
10 - Free car washes
11 - Give employees discounts on what your business does
12 - Swap services with another local business
13 - Games in the break room
14 - Health club discounts
15 - Flex hours
16 - Bonus for referring new hires
17 - Continental breakfasts
18 - Pass on company perks
19 - Free seminars
20 - Holiday family parties

Personally, for employees that have to stay at work until the work is done and can't clock out at 5:00 if it's not. I think that anything that keeps people at work and away from their desk will cause problems no matter how fun or beneficial it is (so #3, 4, 6, and 13 probably wouldn't work for my business). The bring your dog to work probably isn't practical for 99% of the workforce. So, we have food, free stuff, and vacation. All pretty good options.

While most of the working world has switched over to business casual, not everyone has. If you work in a formal setting, a dress down day or two is always a welcome change of pace for most people. I think the swapping services with another business is a very good and cost effective perk as well that every business can stand to benefit from. It exposes other people to your business and lets you offer a reward to your employees for pennies on the dollar.

Do you have any favorites or ones that should be added to the list?

Read the whole story at Entrepreneur.com

The Entrepreneur Urge

Sure the failure rate for new businesses is high, but that doesn't undermine the fact that starting a business is right up there with owning a home in living the "American Dream." So if you are thinking about striking off on your own what do you do so your dream doesn't go up in flames like so many other start-ups.

Well aside from ironing out a good business plan here are some things you can do to get yourself started.

• Don't Wait Till You Are Sure it Will Work: Nothing is guaranteed so might as well try. But, don't bet the farm unless you are willing to lose what you bet. This is the biggest reason people never start a company based on the great idea they have had for years -- individual risk tolerances and family issues prevent lots of people from ever trying.
  
  
• Weigh Your Risks: What is the worst thing that can happen? Running a business is a ton of work, but it also has a lot of reward and is less risky than many people make it out to be. Many young people will live their corporate lives without job security or a pension, not to mention social security. If your company might cut you free as soon as business slows down, why not take things into your own hands? Of course, you get to enjoy a lot more upside if you succeed and you are the guy in charge too.
  
  
• Pick a Name: It is important that you do some research to see if your business name has been taken. Search through your state's corporate records (most all of them have databases online) to see if your name is already in use. Check to see if your domain is already reserved (GoDaddy.com is great for this, especially if you Google for some coupons first). If your domain is taken you can run a Whois search to see who owns it and when it expires and try to have a firm like GoDaddy grab it if the expiration date is approaching for about $30.
  
  
• Get Some Legal Advice: Now if you are going it alone this might not be a big deal, you can form an L.L.C. for about $100 by filling out some paperwork online and receive a tax identification number. But, if you are going into business with a partner / family member / stranger you really need a buy-sell agreement. The agreement tells how the business will be wound up. If your partner leaves will they control the company even though they are absentee. What if a relationship sours and someone wants out. A buy-sell plans for those events that you can't envision while you are excited about your business prospects (kind of like a will or prenup).
  
  
• Choose Your Business Entity: Depending on your state you likely have plenty of options, whether it is an L.L.C. or L.L.P. that give you the tax advantages of a partnership (pass through taxes), but none of the pesky liability of a partnership.
  
  
• Test the Waters: You can start small. Most businesses start as side pet projects and run that way until the entrepreneur can gain some assurance that his or her idea won't be a total flop. A domain name costs $10 and hosting just a few more dollars per month. If you have an all-in-one printer, laptop, and phone you can replicate most of the modern conveniences that renting an office would provide... now if you want to manufacture widgets this might not apply to you.
  
  
• Get Some Credit For Your Company: Limited liability is great, but not if you have to personally sign for every document. Banks and other lenders won't extend credit to your new start-up without a personal guarantee because they know how risky a new business is. Head over to Staples and open up a business credit account. Buy some pens or something each month for about 6 months and ta da you have a credit history for your new baby.
  

Post your comments and any tips you have for aspiring entrepreneurs and I will incorporate them in the next draft of my musings.


Image: Jon Cage @ Flickr

America's Hottest Jobs

A new list of the top 50 hottest jobs has been circulating on the web lately, below are the top 50 (of jobs that make more than the U.S. median and are growing faster than average). Of course none of these lists are perfect. There are typically three reasons these lists are problematic
a) job demand varies tremendously depending on geography,
b) the lists has some general job titles like "lawyer" or "financial analyst" that can run the gamut from entry level workers making 30k to people on the top end making millions and everything in between,
c) "hot" occupations change faster than the lists can keep up with - so like everything they are outdated as soon as they are published. Take a look and see if your occupation is "hot."

1. Registered nurses: $52,330

2. Postsecondary teachers: $51,800

3. General and operations managers: $77,420

4. Elementary school teachers, except special education: $43,160

5. Accountants and auditors: $50,770

6. Business operation specialists, all other: $53,460

7. Computer software engineers, applications: $74,980

8. Maintenance and repair workers, general: $30,710

9. Carpenters: $34,900

10. Computer systems analysts: $66,460

11. Secondary school teachers, except special and vocational education: $45,650

12. Computer software engineers, systems software: $79,740

13. Physicians and surgeons: $145,600

14. Network systems and data communications analysts: $60,600

15. Automotive service technicians and mechanics: $32,450

16. Licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses: $33,970

17. Management analysts: $63,450

18. Computer support specialists: $40,430

19. Lawyers: $94,930

20. Network and computer systems administrators: $58,190

21. Police and sheriff's patrol officers: $45,210

22. Middle school teachers, except special and vocational education: $43,670

23. Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters: $41,290

24. Financial managers: $81,880

25. Computer and information systems managers: $92,570

26. Sales representatives, services, all other: $47,000

27. Fire fighters: $38,330

28. Dental hygienists: $58,350

29. Paralegals and legal assistants: $39,130

30. Sales managers: $84,220

31. Chief executives: $140,350

32. Self-enrichment education teachers: $30,880

33. Physical therapists: $60,180

34. Pharmacists: $84,900

35. Medical and health services managers: $67,430

36. Sales representatives, wholesale, manufacturing, techn, scientific: $58,580

37. Employment, recruitment, and placement specialists: $41,190

38. Property, real estate, and community association managers: $39,980

39. Child, family, and school social workers: $34,820

40. Heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers: $36,260

41. Real estate sales agents: $35,670

42. Special education teachers, preschool, kindergarten, and elementary school: $43,570

43. Legal secretaries: $36,720

44. Training and development specialists: $44,570

45. First-line supervisors/managers of housekeeping and janitorial workers: $29,510

46. Administrative services managers: $60,290

47. Public relations specialists: $43,830

48. Radiologic technologists and technicians: $43,350

49. Sales and related workers, all other: $31,380

50. Personal financial advisors: $62,700

The list was compiled based on stats from Bureau of Labor Statistics and published by MSN and Career Builder. You can check out the full article over at MSN.

List:
MSN Careers - American's Top 50 Jobs