By Andrs Cardenal - May 31, 2012 | Tickers: ITW, KMT, NUE, TKR, X | 0 Comments

Andrs is a member of The Motley Fool Blog Network -- entries represent the personal opinions of our bloggers and are not formally edited.

These are not easy times for companies in the industrial or steel sector. The economic crisis in Europe and the slowdown in China are producing lackluster demand for many firms in the industry. However, you couldnt tell that by looking at the financial and operating performance of The Timken Company (NYSE: TKR) which reported better than expected results over the last quarters.

The company supplies anti-friction and power transmission components to an ample variety of industrial clients. Its products are used to reduce frictions in planes, trains and automobiles. Timken is also in the steel business, manufacturing specialty alloy steel bars, tubes and precision components. Although the company is quite diversified, we could say that its markets are also very exposed to the economic cycle, and for that reason it sounds reasonable to expect some weakness in times of economic uncertainty.

But that is not the case at all: In fact, Timken reported record earnings per share for the last quarter, and also increased guidance for the rest of the year. Management sounds quite optimistic about performance in the following months, form the press release:

Our record performance, as well as our confidence in our improved full-year earnings outlook, stand as further testimony to the companys ability to execute at a structurally higher level of performance, said James W. Griffith, Timken president and chief executive officer. Around the globe, our company is operating very well, leveraging momentum we see in our target markets, earning new business through our expanded product and services portfolio, and successfully driving those gains to the bottom line.

The last quarter was not an isolated event; Timken has a solid track record at performing better than estimated by Wall Street analysts and last year was another historical record in terms of sales and earnings, fully recovering from the last recession and challenging the adverse economic scenario.

Management has been moving away from low margin operations and into businesses with higher profitability. In 2009 for example, Timken sold its needle roller bearings business to JTEKT for $330 million reducing its presence in the light vehicle market. From 2007 to 2011 Timken has made several acquisitions in the aerospace and industrial sectors, and those deals have provided the basis for above average performance in the current environment.

Read the original:
A High Quality Industrial Company

MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

The following interview appeared in the June-July edition of The New Europe magazine:

In the current economic climate the importance of working with a financial advisor has taken renewed importance.

Davos Financial Group is an independent advisor offering clients a universal range of products and services to make safe and transparent investment. The New Europe spoke to the Wealth Management team, David Osio (CEO), Gustavo Rivas (VP Asset Management) and Leopoldo Martinez (Davos Consulting), to find out more about the Davos methodology and strategic approach.

The New Europe: How can the risk management strategies Davos Financial Group provides enable clients to mitigate risk in their investment choices?

Davos Financial: The risk management model provided by Davos Financial Group guarantees transparency and a differentiating factor based on diversification and optimisation of investment strategies. This model evaluates return on investment expectations in terms of customers' interests. Based on different portfolio limitations, placement of financial assets can be made either with the highest return expectations or with the minimum risk levels, utilising a universal range of products and services available in the current financial market. Additional to this main advantage, Davos Financial Group, also enables clients to consolidate the appraisals of multiple investment portfolios, providing a unique, complete and exact understanding of the current financial summary of the placement of their financial assets. The diversifications, optimisation and consolidation factors also assist our clients in structuring a professional decision-making platform including: 1) Advise in the preparation of strategic investment models by using structured scenarios with the widest range of asset types. 2) Assistance in the active/passive decision-making process as well as in the definition of protection policies for currency fluctuations.

TNE: Davos Financial Group has a well-established international presence. How can the service you provide benefit high-net worth clients who wish to expand their business operations internationally?

DF: The international presence allows our customers to network in different jurisdictions, structuring their business under a legal and financial umbrella that ensures the efficiency of its results according to the different locations where we are providing all our services. Davos Financial Group assists to take a step forward toward what may be the international expansion of the business of any client.

TNE: How can the Trust services Davos Financial Group provides, enable more efficient estate and tax planning for clients?

DF: Davos Financial Group, through its subsidiary company Davos Trust Limited, can provide Trustee Services under New Zealand Foreign Trust Law. Among several tax and estate planning advantages, these services allow our clients to control assets or companies situated in different jurisdictions around the world while providing a tax efficient asset protection and planned succession mechanism, with all the advantages offered by New Zealand favourable tax treatment of foreign trusts, and its Tax Treaties Network. According to New Zealand Law, a foreign trust will not be taxed on income or gains of foreign source, nor will it be subject to estate taxes. On the other hand, with appropriate structuring, the trustee will qualify under most limitations of benefit provisions provided by the OECD Model Tax Treaties.

See more here:
Davos Financial: The Personal Touch – Interview in The New Europe Magazine

The Texas Space Alliance proudly congratulates SpaceX and their partners at NASA for achieving a true first in the history of the space program over the past seven days. The successful launch on May 25, 2012 will forever mark entry into a brave new world, and the evolution of the private commercial space world into the workings of US and government space activities.

"With the subsequent successful capture and mating of the Dragon vehicle to the ISS, the U.S. once again leads the world in space, by showing how the commercial space world can be a reliable partner, beyond the traditional government contractor mold, to deliver goods and services in space that government paid efforts alone can no longer easily fund," said Wayne Rast, TXA Policy Director. "Today's successful reentry and return of the Dragon vehicle showcases SpaceX as a proven leader of this new industry."

But the benefits to taxpayers and the public at large are much greater. With limited funds for government programs for the foreseeable future, routine operations can longer be the province of government only spending, else NASA and other government space programs will never have the funds available to do what government's role should always be: to push the frontier in space, and spend limited funds to go boldly, explore, and discover. Except for the ISS and some unique satellites, government province in space should now routinely look out beyond LEO.

All this was made possible beginning today with SpaceX, and this new model for business. "It won't end there, but it was a remarkable beginning, and we should be proud, especially those of us that have worked at NASA and its contractor community for many years," said Rast. "This brave new world will likely also have its hiccups somewhere down the line. But all of us alive today can say that we were all there for the beginning. And what a beginning it was."

"Thank you, SpaceX, from all of us here in Texas. The Texas Space Alliance looks forward to your remarkable success becoming routine success as quickly as possible, and to having you become an integral part of the state which owns so much human spaceflight knowledge," said Bob Lancaster, TXA President.

The TXA also looks forward to building on the great work done by Gov. Perry and his team, helping SpaceX in their efforts to expand operations here with a commercial space launch facility. SpaceX and Texas; a pairing that destiny demands.

The Texas Space Alliance is a non-profit 501(c)(4) organization of Texans who are fighting for Texas to move urgently and decisively to become a Space State, home to a new space industry including manufacturing, research and space flight, with Texas as a center of space exploration and science for the world. For more information on this issue, the TXA, our Texas Space Plan, or to become a personal or corporate member, please see the Texas Space Alliance website - TexasSpaceAlliance.org

Please follow SpaceRef on Twitter and Like us on Facebook.

See original here:
Mission Accomplished! - Congratulations to SpaceX for Historic Success Opens New Door to the Future

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire -05/31/12)- In a keynote luncheon speech to the Vancouver Board of Trade, Canadian Bankers Association (CBA) president Terry Campbell today discussed how banks have contributed to B.C.'s economic success.

He highlighted the central role that banks have played in financing some of B.C.'s growth: "Last year in B.C. alone, banks authorized $12 billion to the construction industry, almost $7.4 billion to manufacturing, $4.4 billion to mining, quarrying and oil wells, and $3.4 billion to agriculture. If you take small and medium-sized enterprises as a whole, bank lending totalled almost $12 billion in this province alone."

"Put simply, banking customers in British Columbia and across Canada are best served by strong and profitable banks, and that is best achieved when we get the balance right between regulation on the one hand and innovation and competitiveness on the other," said Mr. Campbell.

Maintain B.C.'s Competitive Taxation Regime

Mr. Campbell commended the B.C. government's decision in recent years to eliminate capital taxes and reduce corporate and personal income tax rates to make B.C. more attractive to businesses, which helps strengthen B.C.'s economy. He cautioned against any changes to B.C.'s competitive taxation regime that could hurt the province's productivity.

"Unfortunately, we're seeing some troubling trends in some provinces, and calls from some people in B.C., when it comes to taxing the capital of financial institutions - something that is both perverse and counter-productive for the growth of the economy," said Mr. Campbell. "Perverse because banks are required to have large amounts of capital for safety and soundness reasons, and it doesn't make sense to tax what is needed for prudential reasons. Counter-productive because capital supports lending and when you tax away capital you are reducing the availability of credit to other sectors of the economy."

The Continued Need for a National Securities Regulator

Mr. Campbell also discussed the continued need for a national securities regulator and Ottawa's evolving approach to securities regulation following the Supreme Court of Canada ruling last December.

"Ottawa's approach to securities regulation is evolving given the Supreme Court of Canada's opinion of last December," he noted. "We know that your government has been an active participant in the project, and we commend the government for that. We encourage them, along with all other provincial and territorial governments, to continue to work with the federal government to develop a common securities regulatory regime that has the capacity to support fair and competitive markets for all Canadians."

Strong Banks, Effective Regulation and Supervision

Read more from the original source:
CBA President Praises B.C.'s Economic Success and How Strong Banks Contribute to the Economy

OMAHA, Neb., May 31, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Social networking, both online and off, as well as personal branding, are two actions that just may help you stay employed or land that next gig. "Most professionals are familiar with the phrase, 'It's not what you know, it's who you know,' but then fail to perform any follow-up after meeting an important contact," says April Kelly, author of "Spaghetti on the Wall: Branding and Networking Methods that Stick!" "Something as simple as sending an email to your newly made contact thanking them for their time could mean the difference between getting the job or not."

"By following up with a new contact and connecting with them online on sites such as LinkedIn, you are making yourself more memorable, which in a nutshell is personal branding," according to Kelly. "The goal is to make yourself the person they think of when they need problem X solved."

In her new book, "Spaghetti on the Wall," Kelly offers time-tested advice and practical tools that will help you build a personal brand and real networking connections that deliver results. She illustrates things such as identifying key strengths, unique values, and passions; creating realistic, specific goals; enhancing and defining a personal brand; applying the four paramount rules of networking and using social networking sites to build a valuable network. Taking control of your career now is essential, and the advice Kelly shares will help you effectively manage and develop the kind of personal brand that sticks.

Kelly held senior management positions and leadership roles for both PayPal and LinkedIn from their start-up years through their rapid growth to industry powerhouses. She is currently a senior consultant at Luma Services and is also the author of "Gratitude at Work: How to Say Thank You, Give Kudos, and Get the Best From Those You Lead."

To book an interview with April Kelly or request a review copy of "Spaghetti on the Wall," contact Erin Pankowski at erin@conciergermarketing.com or at 402-884-5995. For more information or to download a press kit, please visit http://www.AuthorAprilKelly.com.

This press release was issued through eReleases Press Release Distribution. For more information, visit http://www.ereleases.com.

See the rest here:
Networking and Personal Branding Are Key to Longtime Career Success

How can business owners use LinkedIn to grow their companies vs. their personal brands?

The following answers are provided by theYoung Entrepreneur Council(YEC), an invite-only nonprofit organization comprised of the world's most promising young entrepreneurs. The YEC promotes entrepreneurship as a solution to unemployment and underemployment and provides entrepreneurs with access to tools, mentorship, and resources that support each stage of their businesss development and growth.E-mail your questions about best practices for starting up and/or managing a small businesstosmbs@foxbusiness.com.

No.1: What Do You Recommend? From Logan Lenz of Endagon

Not enough companies take advantage of the recommendation feature on LinkedIn. Plenty of personal brand accounts know about it and ask for endorsements proactively, but the same feature is underutilized for businesses. Send out an email to all of your current clients and ask them to recommend your business to their network. Rarely will you get a rejection; happy clients will gladly do it.

No.2: Tell Me a Story! From Michael Margolis of Get Storied

Company profile pages on LinkedIn are one of the first places that job candidates go when researching your company. Use this space to tell a story of what your company stands for. Let your personality shine and describe key elements of your work culture. What makes your company an exciting place to work? This will go a long way to recruiting top-tier talent.

No.3: Become a Groupie From Elizabeth Saunders of Real Life E

By either participating in existing LinkedIn Groups related to your business area or starting a group that will draw people interested in the topic, you can add value, enhance your brand and potentially draw new customers though Groups. Just be sure that if you're participating in an existing group that you follow their guidelines in terms of permissible business promotion.

No.4: Create Consistency From Ash Kumra of DesiYou

Your personal brand and where you work need to be aligned. Brands are all about people and the people are what make the brands.

Read more:
Using LinkedIn to Grow Your Business

LOS ANGELES, CA--(Marketwire -05/31/12)- MMRGlobal, Inc. (MMRF) ("MMR") today announced that it has entered into an amended services agreement with E-Mail Frequency (www.emailfrequency.com) to offer the Company's MyMedicalRecords Personal Health Record (PHR) products and services exclusively to a consortium of wholesale affinity and employee benefit Telemedicine Providers starting this July. The providers deliver services connecting patients to physicians online for consults and treatment from the privacy of their home or office. The agreement calls for E-mail Frequency to offer embedded PHRs to more than one million wholesale benefit recipients in the first year of service. E-mail Frequency clients already include AmeriDoc (www.ameridoc.com), a nationwide telemedicine service provider of 24/7 access to licensed physicians via telephone, video and secure e-mail, and National Benefit Builders, Inc. (www.nbbicard.com), an industry leader in marketing and distributing discount health, dental, vision and prescription drug networks headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey with Regional Offices in New York, Texas, Florida, and elsewhere.

The American Medical Association Council on Medical Service recently issued a report emphasizing the importance and value of telemedicine services similar to those offered by the E-mail Frequency providers. The report also encourages reimbursement by private insurers for similar doctor on-call telemedicine services, which are currently covered under Medicaid in nearly half the country. As more employers and private insurers adopt similar policies, the market for this type of telemedicine services in the U.S. is expected to generate $3.6 billion in annual revenue over the next five years, according to a study by research firm Pike & Fischer.

David Loftus, CEO of E-mail Frequency, said, "It has taken over two years for E-Mail Frequency clients to understand what a Personal Health Record is, the importance of having one and why and when they need it. As a result, we are now embedding MyMedicalRecords in a bundled benefit offering surrounding telemedicine services on a wholesale level."

Because a Personal Health Record is the optimum way for a physician providing telemedicine services to document the history of a patient's visit and complete the continuum of patient care, MyMedicalRecords is uniquely positioned to benefit. MMR's patented Personal Health Record is the only PHR that allows patients to receive their records from any doctor or healthcare professional by fax, voice or file upload consistent with HIPAA guidelines in an easy to access image form. The affinity and employee benefit telemedicine program includes MyMedicalRecords as a fully integrated patient portal that enables employees and their family members to securely manage and maintain their Personal Health Record after a telemedicine visit or with any family member's existing medical records.

About MMRGlobal, Inc.

MMRGlobal, Inc., through its wholly-owned operating subsidiary, MyMedicalRecords, Inc., provides secure and easy-to-use online Personal Health Records ("PHRs") and electronic safe deposit box storage solutions, serving consumers, healthcare professionals, employers, insurance companies, financial institutions, and professional organizations and affinity groups. The MyMedicalRecords PHR enables individuals and families to access their medical records and other important documents, such as birth certificates, passports, insurance policies and wills, anytime from anywhere using the Internet. MyMedicalRecords is built on proprietary, patented technologies to allow documents, images and voicemail messages to be transmitted and stored in the system using a variety of methods, including fax, phone, or file upload without relying on any specific electronic medical record platform to populate a user's account. The Company's professional offering, MMRPro, is designed to give physicians' offices an easy and cost-effective solution to digitizing paper-based medical records and sharing them with patients in real time through an integrated patient portal. MMR is an Independent Software Vendor Partner with Kodak to deliver an integrated turnkey EMR solution for healthcare professionals. Through its merger with Favrille, Inc. in January 2009, the Company acquired intellectual property biotech assets that include anti-CD20 antibodies and data and samples from its FavId/Specifid vaccine clinical trials for the treatment of B-Cell Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. To learn more about MMRGlobal, Inc. visit http://www.mmrglobal.com. View demos and video tutorials of the Company's products and services at http://www.mmrtheater.com.

David Loftus is a shareholder of MMRGlobal, Inc.

Forward-Looking Statements

All statements in this press release that are not strictly historical in nature, including future performance, management's expectations, beliefs, intentions, estimates or projections, constitute "forward-looking statements." Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the Company's actual results to be materially different from historical results or from any results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Some can be identified by the use of words (and their derivations) such as "need," "possibility," "intend," "offer," "development," "if," "negotiate," "when," "begun," "believe," "achieve," "will," "estimate," "expect," "maintain," "plan," and "continue," or the negative of these words. Actual results and the timing of selected events may differ materially from the results predicted, and reported results should not be considered as an indication of future performance. Such statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to those discussed or incorporated by reference herein. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, the risk the Company's products are not adopted or viewed favorably by the healthcare community and consumer retail market; business prospects, results of operations or financial condition; success of new distribution channels and personal health records adoption; timing and volume of sales and installations; length of sales cycles and the installation process; market acceptance of new product introductions; ability to establish and maintain strategic relationships; relationships with licensees; competitive product offerings and promotions; changes in government laws and regulations and future changes in tax legislation and initiatives in the healthcare industry; undetected errors in our products; possibility of interruption at our data centers; risks related to third party vendors; risks related to obtaining and integrating third-party licensed technology; risks related to a security breach by third parties; maintaining, developing and defending our intellectual property rights; marketing and exploitation of our patent portfolio both in the U.S. and internationally; and additional risks discussed in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company is providing this information as of the date of this release and, except as required by law, does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this release as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Read the original here:
MMRGlobal to Launch Embedded MyMedicalRecords Personal Health Record to Consortium of Telemedicine Portals

Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LycoJGNA_0U

30-05-2012 16:09 UWF Master's Degree Online Program: Video proFile: Welcome to the University of West Florida and thank you for your interest in our Master of Education in Education Leadership online degree program. We're a leader in Masters degree online programs, and we're experiencing record growth with students just like you, who love the idea of completing their Master's in Education Leadership degree, online, at a convenient and personal pace. You already know that educators are much more marketable with advanced degrees, certifications, and training. So whether you desire to become a stronger teacher, a school administrator, or just to increase your earning potential, we have the right Master of Education in Education Leadership degree online program for you. As practicing educators ourselves, we understand how hard it is to balance family, work and school, so we've adapted our traditional Master's of Education degree to an accelerated online format to match your active lifestyle. You'll earn the exact same degree as a student who follows a traditional fixed academic calendar and takes classes on campus. There are several convenient start dates per year to meet your busy schedule. All courses in the program are only 5 to several weeks long and 100% online. You'll learn from the very same distinguished professors who teach on campus and around the country, but unlike traditional students, you'll have the option to complete your coursework in the ...

Read more:
University of West Florida Online Master's in Educational Leadership - Video

Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bceK-dpM_c8

31-05-2012 09:10 Thousands of high school students around the country need an alternative to traditional high school. And, this is not an easy way out. At least 80 percent go on to college. Thanks to a partnership between the National Network of Digital Schools and the education and technology company Pearson, students have access to quality education online.

See the rest here:
Access to Quality Education for All: The Power of K-12 Online Learning - Video

Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2nOY63XzWY

31-05-2012 09:17 Hear how online high school has changed the lives of Courtney, Ty and Coral. View the full video here:

Read the original here:
PREVIEW: Access to Quality Education for All - Video