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Why do we work so hard? Your success is our success. All seminars taken via Empowered Municipality will receive at 20% discount. New this week are:
Seminars:
Employment Law Update
Pittsburgh, PA - February 16, 2012
Prevent the financially crippling employee claims and lawsuits that plague employers in hard financial times. Register for this seminar and get the money-saving employment savvy your company has been looking for.
Let local experts teach you how to create compliant practices and bulletproof policies. With a slew of responsibilities already on your plate, how can you keep up with all the new developments? Easy - enroll today and discover the latest techniques to keep your company out of trouble.
Audio Conferences:
1099 Reporting of Payments to Attorneys and Other Third-Parties
January 9, 2012
Working With Challenging Parents: Strategies and Techniques
January 10, 2012
Dealing with challenging parents can be frustrating, stressful, exhausting and create feelings of failure. It's time to change that. This audio conference will provide strategies and tools not just to cope with parents but also to be more effective in making a difference. Find out what works and what does not work. Join us for specific tools and ideas to get out of troubled waters and into smooth sailing.
Industrial Building Design
January 11, 2012
Industrial buildings represent a significant portion of new construction in the United States and abroad. The architectural and engineering requirements for these facilities are unique and often times different than typical commercial buildings. This live audio conference will help you to become familiar with the unique nature of these buildings and the different methods used to procure these buildings. In addition, the presenter will discuss the increasing role and use of BIM technology in the design for these buildings.
Owner Construction Risk: How a Controlled Insurance Program Can Protect Your Assets
January 13, 2012
Owners and contractors have been subject to increased litigation arising from risks created by construction operations. However, due to changes in the insurance market, contractors are increasingly challenged to secure insurance coverage to meet owner insurance requirements. As a result, many owners have turned to incepting an owner-controlled insurance program or relying on a contractor-controlled insurance program to address the project risks.
This live audio conference will arm you with an overview of the types of risks typically addressed by insurance, and a review of the advantages and disadvantages of the three options of insuring those risks: traditional insurance, owner-controlled insurance or contractor-controlled insurance. Whether you have ongoing maintenance projects or you are planning to build a large project, this live audio conference will equip you with an understanding of your options for managing those project risks.
Performance Appraisals That Motivate and Limit Legal Liability
January 17, 2012
Do you feel like you are 'stuck' with employees who are not meeting the expectations of their jobs? Well, it is finally time to do something about it. Jeffrey A. Risch, Julie A. Proscia and Jonathon D. Hoag are attorneys who have assisted countless employers in tackling the tough problem of addressing employee performance and behavioral concerns.
Some of the live audio conference highlights are now to notify employees of the conduct and performance that the employer expects, strategies for encouraging employees to improve performance, and advice on how to avoid the legal pitfalls when terminating employees who do not improve their performance.
Do you feel like you are 'stuck' with employees who are not meeting the expectations of their jobs? Well, it is finally time to do something about it. Jeffrey A. Risch, Julie A. Proscia and Jonathon D. Hoag are attorneys who have assisted countless employers in tackling the tough problem of addressing employee performance and behavioral concerns.
Some of the live audio conference highlights are now to notify employees of the conduct and performance that the employer expects, strategies for encouraging employees to improve performance, and advice on how to avoid the legal pitfalls when terminating employees who do not improve their performance.
How to Set Up and Manage a Travel Program
January 23, 2012
Many companies have created formal travel management programs to improve traveler service, comply with legal duties of care, and reduce travel costs. This live audio conference will guide attendees through the creation of a successful travel agency relationship, and describe how to leverage that relationship to negotiate discounts with airline, hotel, and car rental suppliers. The speakers will describe the travel agency marketplace and guide listeners through the process of selecting and contracting with an agency. Then they will describe how to leverage that relationship to identify, secure, and support other preferred supplier relationships. This live audio conference will offer a valuable perspective, especially to non-travel specialists, on how to create a successful travel management partnership.
Strategies for Implementing Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports
January 24, 2012
This live audio conference will provide some evidence-based strategies that are effective at addressing classroom behavior issues. You will understand that these research validated approaches can result in a manageable and successful learning environment. Classroom-wide applications of positive behavior interventions and support (PBIS) is one level of an effective school-wide system that applies six critical components to teach appropriate student behavior:
Understanding the Apportionment Rules for Service-Based Businesses
January 24, 2012
Apportionment of income for state tax purposes is where the rubber meets the road. That is to say, the complex and varied rules for determining a taxpayer's state income tax apportionment percentage can provide opportunities, with careful planning, for state tax minimization or create traps, without such planning, that lead to multiple taxation. Service-based businesses face particular difficulties in identifying and analyzing the rules applicable to their operations for two reasons. First, state apportionment rules were written several decades ago, at a time when our economy was dominated by the manufacturing of tangible personal property. Thus, these rules focused on the manufacturing industry and were out of touch with service operations. Second, as our economy has shifted its focus to services and e-commerce, states are beginning to revise their apportionment rules to account for differences between the industries. These new rules lack clear guidance thus creating uncertainty for taxpayers. This live audio conference will provide a comprehensive look at particular apportionment issues facing service-based business in order to arm you with the information necessary to structure your operations to take advantage of the opportunities and avoid the traps.
Meeting Your Fiduciary Responsibilities Under ERISA
January 24, 2012
ERISA imposes fiduciary status and potential liability if a person either 'exercises discretionary authority, management of a benefits plan' or 'exercises any authority, respecting management or disposition of its assets.'
Persons serving as ERISA fiduciaries need to understand and comply with critical ERISA responsibilities and face personal liability for breaches of ERISA fiduciary duties. This live audio conference explains the fiduciary duties imposed by ERISA, including standards of conduct for fiduciaries, reporting and disclosure responsibilities, prohibited transactions, duties regarding plan assets and investments, and other fiduciary obligations.
We will also discuss the Department of Labor's proposed expanded definition of 'fiduciary' and expansion of the types of investment advice that may create ERISA fiduciary status.
This program is critical for employers to ensure compliance with complex ERISA rules and avoid litigation over alleged breaches of fiduciary duty and failures to timely and properly report and disclose benefit plan information and documents.
Measuring Inefficiency in Construction
January 24, 2012
Efficiency is often the key to profitability. Conversely, inefficiency boosts costs, busts budgets and kills profits. Given the consequences, understanding and managing the efficiency of construction is important to everyone on the project - from the contractors, subcontractors and suppliers that experience inefficiency to the owners and design consultants whose actions can lead to inefficiencies. The first step toward managing efficiency is to understand what it is and know how to measure it.
The benefits of being a part of this live audio conference includes an experienced instructor who will explain ways to enhance your ability to detect inefficiencies before it's too late to do anything about them, learn the best ways to measure inefficiencies and see how to price inefficiencies. The course materials will not only describe the most practical and proven analytical techniques, they will also teach you, through practical exercises and case studies, how to perform a measured-mile analysis.
Zoning and Planning for Urban Agriculture
January 25, 2012
How are cities producing flexible yet stable regulatory regimes generative of citizens desires to produce their own food and more generally partake in localizing or regionalizing their food system? Attendees of this live audio conference will acquire examples of urban agriculture related licensing, regulations, and zoning practices that advance the goals of individual households as well as those of cities and metropolitan areas advancing a comprehensive resilience and sustainability agenda. Metropolitan sustainability embraces multiple agendas, among them advancing the utility of urban agriculture to promote health, to support economic and community development and to improve the urban environment. Because there are many forms of urban agriculture and many different purposes that it can serve, charting a policy course can be complex. This live audio conference exemplifies how professionals are re-examining existing policy in light of opportunities, public goals, and relevant stakeholders. This program shows participants the outcomes associated with re-examination in cities around the country.
Storm-Resistant Safe Room Design and Construction
During this live audio conference, attendees will understand criteria for design of safe rooms for tornados and hurricanes (and differences between those). The differences between shelters and safe rooms will also be discussed. Safe room design for both new construction as well as for existing structures will be covered.
Attendees will be given plans for safe room designs as part of this live audio conference, and many different types of construction will be discussed and shown. Attendees will be able to properly ascertain criteria for proper design and should be able to understand key construction elements of a safe room upon completion of course.
Obtaining and Sustaining a Tax-Exempt Status
January 26, 2012
In today's environment, the pressure on tax-exempt organizations to comply with the tax rules is greater than ever. In this live audio conference, you will learn the difference between nonprofit and tax-exempt organizations, how an organization qualifies for 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status, how to distinguish between private foundation and public charities, how to understand the benefits of public charity status and how to avoid activities that can jeopardize an organization's 501(c)(3) status.
Utilizing Social Networks as a Litigation Tool
January 31, 2012
Social networking is here to stay, and growing rapidly. Computer users with near 24/7 availability of the Internet, with access to communications devices and channels nearly everywhere in the world, have come to see social networking as part of the normal social and business environment. Evidence from such activity can become vital information in the context of civil (and criminal) trials. But, there are challenges in obtaining and using such information. This live audio conference addresses the essential issues involved in using social networking information in litigation, and suggests best practices in light of developing law, technology and business norms.
Smoking Discrimination in the Workplace: On and Off the Clock
January 31, 2012
Driven by reports that smokers file more health insurance claims and are absent more frequently than nonsmokers, a growing number of employers have implemented programs to minimize the number of smokers in its workforce. These employer programs range from offering quit smoking programs to refusing to hire smokers and even terminating smokers. Privacy advocates argue an employer's interest in the smoking habits of applicants and employees ends at the employer's property line, and that an employer has no business regulating whether applicants or employees smoke off-duty, away from the employer's premises. They caution that if an employer can regulate an individual's off-duty smoking habits at home or even on vacation, the 'slippery slope' could lead to an employer's regulating employees' eating habits, exercise programs and other aspects of their lives.
In this live audio conference, we will discuss the legal considerations an employer must evaluate in determining whether to regulate its employees' tobacco use.
