11th Annual Call Center Week
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LAS VEGAS–(V-Newswire/March 16, 2010)–IQPC and Customer Management IQ announced details for the 11th Annual Call Center Week, taking place June 14-18, 2010 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, NV.

“Now that we made it to 2010, we can look back at some positive results. We’ll hear story after story of companies that excelled and grew, even an adverse economy – all because of the customer experience.”

Call Center Week focuses on growing the top line by enhancing customer experience through employee development and engagement, leveraging tools and technology, and preparing the call center to become the focal point in Voice of the Customer initiatives. IQPC has gathered more than 35 practitioner experts involved with contact centers and customer service, including:

* Richard Cox, Vice President Customer Experience, Orbitz Worldwide (2008 Extra Mile Award)
* Karen Vaughn, VP Vendor Management, Guthy-Renker LLC (2010 SOCAP Board of Directors)
* Melissa O’Keefe, Director, Customer Service, Netflix (#1 Retail Website, ForeSee Results)
* Tish Whitcraft, SVP of Customer Experience and Operations, MySpace
* Darrell Robertson, Vice President, New York Life (’09 Fortune World’s Most Admired Companies)
* Brian Mullaney, SVP of Contact Center Operations, The SCOOTER Store (’10 Fortune Best Companies to Work for)
* Steve Kaay, VP of Call Center Operations, US Auto Parts (’09 Information Management’s Innovation Solution Award) …..Click here to read more

OLDWICK, N.J.–(March 16, 2010/V-Newswire)..A.M. Best Co. has withdrawn the financial strength ratings (FSR) of B (Fair) and issuer credit rating (ICR) of “bb” of University Health Plans, Inc. (Edison, NJ) and assigned a category of NR-3 (Rating Procedure Inapplicable) to the FSR and “nr” to the ICR.

The rating actions follow the March 1, 2010 announcement by Centene Corporation [NYSE: CNC], the parent of University Health Plans, Inc., that it had completed the sale of the Medicaid assets of University Health Plans, Inc. to AMERIGROUP New Jersey Inc.

For Best’s Credit Ratings, an overview of the rating process and rating methodologies, please visit www.ambest.com/ratings.

The principal methodologies used in determining these ratings, including any additional methodologies and factors that may have been considered, can be found at www.ambest.com/ratings/methodology.

Founded in 1899, A.M. Best Company is a global full-service credit rating organization dedicated to serving the financial and health care service industries, including insurance companies, banks, hospitals and health care system providers. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Pam Young
Phone: (612) 821-2396
Email: pyoung@sabathani.org

Sabathani Community Center still in the business of helping the Community

Sabathani Community Center will be preparing free tax returns every Saturday through the end of the tax season for people with low to moderate incomes. (MAP) Generally, service is available to families with an annual income of $45,000 or less and individuals with $30,000 or less.  This is a walk in service .

The building opens at 8 am, registration begins at 8:30 am. in room 129 and tax  services are provided from 9 am until Noon.

Tax preparers are IRS-certified volunteers from across the Twin Cities.  Sabathani is partnering with Accountability Minnesota a nonprofit organization that provides volunteer tax preparers and financial services to individuals with limited means.   Staff from Wells Fargo Bank will be present to open checking accounts for direct deposit of refunds and assist with other banking needs for those interested.  Free credit reports will also be available.

Sabathani encourages those taking advantage of this free service to arrive prepared –be sure to bring all documentation applicable to your situation.

* Minimum requirements are:
* Photo ID
* Social Security Card or Individual Tax Identification Number
* Birthdates and social security numbers for all persons listed on tax return
* Income statements or W2s for each job
* All 1099 forms received
* Year-end income for MFIP, SSI, MSA, GA, Veterans benefits, Workers Comp

Additional items to maximize your refund include:

* Previous year’s tax return
* Direct Deposit Information: voided check or savings account number
* Education expenses
* Homeowners statements
* Renters statements
* Charitable donations
* Child care expenses
* Tuition or other expenses you wish to deduct. …..Click here to read more

BOSTON, March 11 / V-Newswire/ — Dozens of consumers, repossession agents and bystanders have been killed, injured or traumatized in self-help repossessions done under state laws that allow automobile dealers and lenders to take cars without court action or the involvement of law enforcement.

That is the key finding of a report issued today by the National Consumer Law Center, which compiles and analyzes existing state laws and regulations on automobile repossessions, and catalogues recent repossessions that resulted in violence, fatalities, injuries, arrests or trauma. In four of the incidents, repo agents took cars with children under the age of eight inside.

“Not a single state guarantees automobile owners a day in court before a repossession,” said John Van Alst, a lawyer for NCLC and principal author of the report. “Only a handful of states have even minimal consumer protections such as requiring that repo agents have licenses, bonds or insurance.” …..Click here to read more

BMW's Electric Car

NORTHBROOK, Ill., March 10 / V-Newswire/ — Underwriters Laboratories (UL), a global leader in safety testing and certification, has recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the non-profit Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) to support Project Get Ready, an initiative to aid U.S. cities preparing for widespread adoption and use of electric vehicles (EVs) in their communities.

As a technical advisor, UL will contribute its technical judgment and expertise to the on-going process of sharing information, lessons learned and best practices among the various project’s stakeholders.  UL’s engineers will answer questions about EVs and EV infrastructure as well as review and provide feedback on drafts of key documents RMI distributes to project stakeholders.  These stakeholders represent at least 20 different U.S. cities that are pioneers in the adoption of cleaner transportation.  Project Get Ready leverages the Internet to share key learnings and experiences through an interactive database that captures the collective knowledge of participants.

According to RMI, the potential impact of the project promises to be enormous: by 2015, approximately 1 million EVs are expected on the road with five times that many expected by 2020. Use of EVs in Asia and Europe is expected to grow at a similar pace.  Being able to charge EVs safely is critical for the adoption and proliferation of EVs and EV infrastructure in the United States and around the globe.   …..Click here to read more

Among Women, Facebook Dominates and Twitter is Growing Rapidly; But Study Reveals Important Differences in Social Network Usage

NEW YORK, March 10/ V-Newswire/ — Women have truly integrated social media into every part of their lives, from friends and family, to networking, to shopping. A recent SheSpeaks study revealed 86% of women are now using popular social networks, a 48% increase compared to one year ago. In addition, social networks including Facebook, MySpace and Twitter, have emerged as key drivers of purchase intent among women, with one-half (50%) of social media users reporting they have purchased products because of information on social networking sites, and 40% reporting they have used coupon codes found on social networks.

The second annual Social Media Study of the national SheSpeaks membership, yielding more than 1,500 responses, revealed the most dramatic increase in social media use was among women 50+ years of age, whose participation grew from 31% in 2008 to 70% in 2009. Social media participation was up across all age groups this year, with participation among younger women up 10% compared to 2008. In addition, more women are frequently logging into social networking sites since 2008, with 36% more women reporting they log in at least once per day (73% vs. 53%). …..Click here to read more

– Consumers who’re eager to convert to solar energy, have found that they can use a good self-help guide to install the solar system themselves at far less cost. But how does a consumer determine which guide is any good? This study provides the answer

BROOKLYN, NY, March 10/ V-Newswire/ — A new research study by a major internet investigative organization, has uncovered an emerging new major trend in the source of the electric energy generation and usage by consumers in the United States and globally, which has now become even more accelerated since the current global economic recession, and that consumers are gradually but increasingly gravitating in their preference, and in their overall direction, to converting to solar energy for their electrical power source. …..Click here to read more

CHICAGO, March 10 / V-Newswire/ — With what appears to be the worst of the recession behind us, many corporate meeting planners are still challenged with delivering quality meetings on reduced budgets.  While companies recognize the importance of face to face interaction, everyone is looking to do meetings in a more cost effective way.  One company in Chicago may have some answers.  Cadence, Inc., a meeting planning and event production company based in Wheeling, Illinois has assembled the following top ten tips for cost reduction in 2010: …..Click here to read more

Rand Soellner Architect, a top custom home architect, discusses Green Home Architects strategies, the economy and providing reasonable energy efficient home design and recycling techniques

North Carolina, March 10 / V-Newswire/ – Rand Soellner Architect is promoting “Going Green 4 Less” : a strategy to help custom home architects be Green Home Architects, selling the idea of using energy efficient home architects design systems, materials and methods, as well as recycling choices for sustainable home architecture. People are having a hard time staying afloat these days. In this trying economy, Green Home Architects have to present reasonable “Green” solutions, or clients won’t pay for them. Being politically correct can’t compare with paying one’s mortgage and putting food on the table. …..Click here to read more