Crain's Chicago Business back issues from March 2009:
Why perks still matter-even IN A DOWNTURN; WORKPLACE WINNERS.(Focus: Best Places to Work)
Mar 02, 2009 ... Byline: Matthew Carmichael With layoffs rippling through the economy, a steady paycheck might be considered a pretty good job perk these days. Several companies on Crain's list of the Best Places to Work, most notably Microsoft Corp. and Google Inc., announced job ...
Pension bombs going off; Boeing, Cat must plug multibillion-dollar gaps.
Mar 02, 2009; ... Byline: PAUL MERRION Exploding pension fund shortfalls are blowing billion-dollar holes in the balance sheets of some of the Chicago area's biggest companies, forcing them to make huge contributions to retirement plans at a time when cash flow and credit are already under ...
On the Move.(BMO Capital Markets)(Advocate Lutheran General hospital )(Howard Ecker & Co)
Mar 02, 2009 ... ARTS/ ENTERTAINMENT PEGGY NOTEBAERT NATURE MUSEUM, Chicago: Rafael Rosa, 44, to vice-president of education, from director of education. Also, Doug Taron, 51, to vice-president of research and conservation, and continuing as curator of biology. FINANCIAL SERVICES ...
5. STRESS- BUSTERS digitas.(Focus: Best Places to Work)
Mar 02, 2009 ... Byline: Matthew Carmichael Why it's a Best Place to Work: To get a sense of what working for Digitas Chicago is like, check out its channel on YouTube, where employees post videos of company parties and office hijinks. Whether it's decorating the lobby for Halloween or getting ...
11. talk about job security: Clune.
Mar 02, 2009 ... Byline: Matthew Carmichael Why it's a Best Place to Work: Fully funded health care, a free company trip each January to someplace warm-this year it was the Atlantis resort in the Bahamas-and a liberal leave policy are probably enough reasons Clune Construction made the list ....
13. Show 'em the money: Sentinel technologies.(Brief article)
Mar 02, 2009 ... Byline: Matthew Carmichael Why it's a Best Place to Work: The office is fairly Spartan, with not a pool table to be found. The most recent holiday party was held in the break room. Yet the same management team has been in place for nearly 25 years. Company founder, President and ...
A hot-stove market for utility players; A conversation with money manager Alvin Marley.(Lombardia Capital Partners LLC)(Interview)(Brief article)
Mar 02, 2009; ... Byline: Mike Colias Alvin Marley, 61, managing director and head of small-cap investments, Lombardia Capital Partners LLC, Chicago Experience: 35 years Assets under management: $350 million CRAIN'S: What are you hearing from your clients? ...
Olympic list: clout city; Donors include major city contractors, favor seekers.
Mar 02, 2009; ... Byline: JOHN PLETZ A newly released list of donors to Chicago's Olympics bid includes many with more than just a rooting interest in the city's quest for the games. Along with the usual businesses and civic luminaries are city contractors and other contributors with ...
Kraft holds off on new products; Bad economy forces Rosenfeld to rethink innovation strategy.(News)
Mar 02, 2009 ... Byline: DAVID STERRETT Irene Rosenfeld is turning down the flame on innovation at Kraft Foods Inc. New products have been a big part of the CEO's plan to boost sales, a strategy that over the past couple of years has produced hits in the form of a cake version of ...
FALLING FORTUNES; Chicago's wealthiest take lumps . . . as market turns billions into millions.
Mar 02, 2009; ... Byline: ANN SAPHIR From old money to new, the wealthiest Chicagoans are suffering in the stock market collapse. Losses of a billion dollars or more have hammered the portfolios of establishment families like the Pritzkers and Crowns, as well as the self-made fortunes ...
Back to basics at Midwest Banc Holdings.(People)
Mar 02, 2009 ... Byline: Steve Daniels Job: President and CEO, Melrose Park-based Midwest Banc Holdings Inc., since Jan. 29. Vitals: 60 years old; bachelor's degree in business administration, Loyola University, 1970; MBA, DePaul University, 1973; auditor, U.S. General Accounting ...
FBOP's waiting game; In line for federal bailout, local bank also seeks private help.(News)
Mar 02, 2009 ... Byline: STEVE DANIELS FBOP Corp., awaiting word on whether it will receive federal bailout funds, is looking for money elsewhere, too. While FBOP, Chicago's third-largest bank holding company, expects to receive the funds, it is "also pursuing other capital ...
Free-for-all; DEMOCRACY RUNS AMOK IN 5TH DISTRICT, SHOWING OPEN POLITICS HAS DRAWBACKS, TOO.
Mar 02, 2009; ... Byline: Greg Hinz When a candidate arrived late for a 5th Congressional District debate a few days ago, the other 15 contenders on stage had to stand up to let the guy squeeze in and then make room for yet one more chair. So it goes in the race to succeed White House ...
17: Still into gadgets: Avanade.(Avanade Inc. )(Brief article)
Mar 02, 2009 ... Byline: Matthew Carmichael Why it's a Best Place to Work: Since last year's survey, Avanade has seen a 40% increase in human resources-related programs after a new CEO, new vice-president of human resources and new three-year business plan were put in place. One such program, ...
15: Where staffers want to stay: James Hotel.(James Hotel)(Brief article)
Mar 02, 2009; ... Byline: Matthew Carmichael Why it's a Best Place to Work: Like most hotels, the James has the unenviable task of creating a workplace that appeals to everyone from building engineers to accountants to vegetable peelers to marketing executives who work in shifts 24 hours a day ....
THE FINE PRINT.(Brief article)
Mar 02, 2009 ... Who was eligible? Any business with more than 100 employees as of Sept. 30, 2008, in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will counties. More than 150 applied. What criteria were used? Valtera Corp., a Rolling Meadows-based employee and human resources ...
MEDICAL EVOLUTION; Recession, reform will spur consolidation and a new focus on quality and cost for docs, hospitals, drugmakers.(NorthShore University HealthSystem)
Mar 02, 2009; ... Byline: Mike Colias Meira Schur, a mother of six, often pops into her Evanston pediatrician's office unannounced-sometimes at night, or even on Sunday-toting a kid with an ear infection or high fever. A doctor's nightmare? NorthShore University HealthSystem gladly ...
Parties hosted by the mayor, in name only.(Brief article)
Mar 02, 2009; ... Byline: Shia Kapos Mayor Richard M. Daley has taken his economic paring knife to the Commission on Human Relations. The eight groups under the umbrella organization were told to come up with their own money for annual receptions celebrating diversity. Of ...
Wal-Mart's push runs out of gas; Daley has no stomach for big-box rematch.(News)
Mar 02, 2009; ... Byline: MONEE FIELDS-WHITE Opposition to Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is stiffening at City Hall even as the retailer pitches its expansion as an antidote to recession. The Arkansas-based discount giant, which operates a single Chicago store, says it can bring thousands of ...
'High speed'? Not with local freight system.(high-speed rail lines)
Mar 02, 2009 ... Chicago's men in Washington showed misplaced priorities last week on a transportation issue that's critical to our region. White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and Sen. Richard Durbin swung their considerable clout behind high-speed passenger train service for Chicago but ...
3. INVESTING IN BRAINPOWER: McTIGUE FINANCIAL.(Focus: Best Places to Work)
Mar 02, 2009 ... Byline: Allison Riggio ***** Correction: A March 2 Focus story misstated the number of McTigue Financial employees. McTigue has 170 employees locally and worldwide. ***** Why it's a Best Place to Work: Lifelong learning is the philosophy at ...
Power pairs climb ladder together; They may part, but only briefly; how do colleagues see it?
Mar 09, 2009; ... Byline: SHIA KAPOS Norman Bobins and Larry Richman had worked at American National Bank & Trust Co. for six years when, over a drink at the Metropolitan Club one evening, Mr. Bobins dropped the news that he was leaving to join Exchange Bank, and he wanted his protege to follow ...
Research cutbacks anger docs at U of C; Another controversy for S. Side med center.(University of Chicago Medical Center)
Mar 09, 2009; ... Byline: MIKE COLIAS The budget ax at the University of Chicago Medical Center is falling on a sacred cow: research. U of C officials are withholding funds that were used to recruit top researchers, a move that is creating ill will among faculty and threatening ...
Restaurant business strains Segal family.(Brief article)
Mar 09, 2009; ... Byline: Shia Kapos Michael "Mickey'' Segal went to prison three years ago for taking $30 million from insurance clients-small potatoes in this multibillion-dollar Bernie Madoff era. Now his family is trying to make ends meet in the restaurant business during tough ...
Wrecking ball hits local office building sales; Volume plummets 78%; '09 outlook 'not pretty'.(News)
Mar 09, 2009; ... Byline: EDDIE BAEB Chicago office building sales plunged to their lowest in at least six years in 2008 amid the credit freeze and deepening recession. The combined transaction price for 18 downtown and suburban properties sold last year totaled $1.57 billion, down 78% ...
Stock buybacks backfire; Allstate, ITW among local firms curbing repurchase plans.(News)
Mar 09, 2009 ... Byline: ANN SAPHIR After spending billions in futile efforts to prop up their stock prices, some of Chicago's biggest companies are feeling buyer's remorse. Allstate Corp., CME Group Inc., Illinois Tool Works Inc., Sara Lee Corp. and Sears Holdings Corp. collectively ...
Tax plan hits home; Obama budget would squeeze local companies.(News)
Mar 09, 2009 ... Byline: PAUL MERRION President Barack Obama's oft-repeated campaign promise to end corporate tax breaks that "ship jobs overseas'' is hitting home for some of the largest local companies. It's now clear that he wasn't just talking about outsourcing to India or moving ...
Real estate innovator's charm fades; Tax-shelter pioneer Rob Hannah faces an investor revolt.(investor Wayne R. "Rob'' Hannah III accused of mismanaging properties and misleading investors and violating Illinois securities laws)
Mar 09, 2009; ... Byline: ALBY GALLUN Wayne R. "Rob'' Hannah III projected the image of a real estate innovator, pushing newfangled tax-shelter investments during the boom earlier this decade and later seeking to raise $1.5 billion for the nation's first green real estate investment trust. ...
Bond-aids for battered investors; A conversation with money manager David Pequet.(MPI Investment Management Inc.)(Interview)(Brief article)
Mar 09, 2009; ... Byline: David Sterrett David Pequet, 56, CEO and chief investment officer, MPI Investment Management Inc., Hinsdale Experience: 33 years Assets under management: $205 million CRAIN'S: What's the key to picking municipal bonds in a recession? ...
Jim Beam takes shot at cherry bourbon; Red Stag aims to broaden brand's appeal.(News)
Mar 09, 2009; ... Byline: DAVID STERRETT Jim Beam is sending over a new drink. The unit of Deerfield-based Fortune Brands Inc. hopes Red Stag, a black cherry-infused version of its famous bourbon, will win over cocktail drinkers, broadening the 214-year-old label's appeal beyond ...
`Great hiring opportunity' works for Sagent.(People)
Mar 09, 2009 ... Byline: Ann Saphir Job: Managing director and head of automotive group in Chicago at New York-based investment bank Sagent Advisors Inc., since Feb. 19. Vitals: 44 years old; bachelor's degree in political science, Northwestern University, 1986; MBA, Kellogg School of ...
Spice House vs. Penzeys: It's all in the family.(Spice House)(Brief article)
Mar 09, 2009; ... Byline: H. Lee Murphy When Thomas Johnson needs a garlic rub for his ribs, he heads to the Spice House in Geneva. Other times, the St. Charles resident might drive to Penzeys Spices in Naperville. The herb and spice specialists have expanded around Chicago in recent ...
on the move.(David Johanneson appoints Navistar Financial Corp)(Peter Cherecwich joins Northern Trust Corp)(Beermann Swerdlove LLP)
Mar 09, 2009 ... FINANCIAL SERVICES NAVISTAR FINANCIAL CORP., Schaumburg: David Johanneson, 58, to president and CEO, from group vice-president of global sales, marketing and distribution at Navistar Inc. NORTHERN TRUST CORP., Chicago: Peter Cherecwich, 44, to executive ...
Debt sparks interest; Real estate investors are offering to buy commercial loans.(News)
Mar 09, 2009; ... Byline: EDDIE BAEB The "toxic assets'' clogging the balance sheets of real estate lenders are starting to smell like opportunity to some investors. Chicago developer John Buck and a group backed by executives of local private-equity firm Madison Dearborn Partners LLC ...
TOM WILSON'S WAR; CEO soldiers on as market batters Allstate's push into financial services.(News)
Mar 09, 2009; ... Byline: STEVE DANIELS Tom Wilson's plan to turn auto insurer Allstate Corp. into Middle America's financial adviser has collided with the economic crisis. But Mr. Wilson isn't giving up-even in the face of some big setbacks and the skepticism of Allstate investors. ...
Porkers protest; ILLINOIS' D.C. DELEGATES DEFEND THEIR RIGHT TO SEND HOME THE BACON WE WANT.(News)
Mar 09, 2009; ... Byline: Greg Hinz One of the media's favorite targets is back in the news, thankfully. I'm talking about congressional earmarks, those delightfully tasty morsels of public largesse that obviously constitute pure pork and waste-unless, of course, the road, bridge, scientific ...
THE SECRET LIFE OF SEARS SHORT-SELLERS; Lampert wants to pull back curtain on those targeting his company's stock, but ailing retailer offers plenty of reasons to be bearish.(Markets)
Mar 09, 2009 ... Byline: MONEE FIELDS-WHITE Edward Lampert's effort to lift Sears Holdings Corp.'s shares by flushing out short- sellers faces long odds. In his annual letter to shareholders last month, the Sears chairman called for scaled-up disclosure rules on short sales, which are ...
Illinois needs campaign finance reform.(Viewpoint essay)
Mar 09, 2009 ... Prospects for political reform in Illinois have never looked better. That's not the same as saying it will happen, but we can hope. The scandal of Gov. Rod Blagojevich auctioning off a U.S. Senate seat exposed Illinois to national ridicule. Illinoisans now realize just how far ...
Failing grade; ILLINOIS CAN NO LONGER AFFORD TO SUPPORT 869 SCHOOL DISTRICTS.(News)
Mar 16, 2009; ... Byline: Greg Hinz When it comes to taking care of the kids, we all drop our guard. What's a few bucks compared to the welfare of the next generation? Such feelings perhaps explain why, even as the state budget began to drown in red ink, spending by the Illinois State ...
Calorie counts stir legislative food fight; In a preemptive strike, chains back federal bill.(News)
Mar 16, 2009 ... Byline: DAVID STERRETT McDonald's Corp. and its chain-restaurant peers swear they want to help you count calories. They just don't want to tell you the damage while you're staring at colorful pictures of food on their menu boards. With health advocates and consumer ...
Debt bomb for First Industrial; Short on cash, big warehouse REIT faces June bond deadline.(Real estate investment trusts)
Mar 16, 2009; ... Byline: EDDIE BAEB First Industrial Realty Trust Inc., one of the nation's biggest warehouse owners, is getting boxed in by its debt. The company has $125 million in bonds coming due in June. That might seem like packing peanuts to a company with $2.9 billion in ...
Olympian fundraising task for Ryan; Big-bucks sponsors scarce amid bank crisis.
Mar 16, 2009; ... Byline: JOHN PLETZ Chicago's Olympics fundraising ambitions target some of the industries hardest hit by the financial crisis. The city is counting on a major bank, a home-improvement firm and companies in nine other categories to pony up an average of $100 million ...
On the Move.
Mar 16, 2009 ... FINANCIAL SERVICES DELAWARE PLACE BANK, Chicago: Kevin A. Hughes, 50, to executive vice-president of commercial lending and senior lender, from group senior vice-president of commercial banking at Cole Taylor Bank. FOX VALLEY MICRO LOAN FUND, Elgin: Harry Semerjian, ...
Blues brass grabs green; McCaskey and Boudreaux collect $26 mil. as they exit.(News)
Mar 16, 2009 ... Byline: MIKE COLIAS Passed up for the top spot at Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Illinois' parent company, Gail Boudreaux got something to ease the sting after deciding to leave last year: $15.3 million. The payout from Chicago-based Health Care Service Corp. included a ...
MOTO'S BLACK HOLE; Analyst's rating upgrade rouses Motorola's moribund shares, but stock could get even bigger boost if cut loose from company's cash-draining cell phone business.(Markets)
Mar 16, 2009 ... Byline: JOHN PLETZ Motorola Inc. shares are winning back a few fans on Wall Street. Pulling the plug on the cell phone business would make the stock even more popular, some analysts say. The Schaumburg-based company's shares jumped 21% last week, ending Friday at ...
Looking for a growth spurt? grab a pepsi; A conversation with money manager John Cregan.(Hotchkiss Associates LLC)(Interview)(Brief article)
Mar 16, 2009; ... Byline: Bruce Blythe John Cregan, 54, president, Hotchkiss Associates LLC, Chicago Experience: 32 years Assets under advisement: $1.1 billion CRAIN'S: You see the tide turning in favor of the growth stocks you like? Mr. Cregan: ...
Quinn's pension proposal a step in the right direction.(Pat Quinn adopted a two-tiered structure for public employee pensions )(Brief article)
Mar 16, 2009 ... Gov. Pat Quinn's proposal last week to adopt a two-tiered structure for public employee pensions in Illinois is an important first step toward addressing the state's budget woes. Unfunded pension obligations of more than $50 billion are one of the biggest contributors to ...
Springfield takes aim at nuke ban; Bills to allow new plants pick up steam in Legislature.(News)
Mar 16, 2009 ... Byline: STEVE DANIELS Lawmakers are moving to lift the two-decade ban on new nuclear power plants in Illinois, as the desire to create jobs trumps worries about storing radioactive waste. Committees in both legislative houses passed bills in recent weeks that would ...
Residential specialist regroups; REBUILDING A CAREER.(Brief article)
Mar 16, 2009; ... Byline: Andrew Schroedter Since losing her job last year at a small architecture firm, Bonnie Rosenberg has surfed the Web for leads, networked at industry events and even posted an ad on Craigslist. None of it has worked so far. "There's not a lot out ...
SUBPRIME MILLIONAIRE; He made $70 million on the way up; can he do it again?(online payday loan business CashNet USA )
Mar 16, 2009; ... Byline: ANN SAPHIR Al Goldstein made a killing on the subprime-debt boom. Now he's parlaying his winnings on the bust. Mr. Goldstein and his brother Alex started an online payday loan business called CashNet USA in 1994, sold it to Cash America International Inc. in ...
City's real Irish keep shenanigans in check.(Saint Patrick's Day)(Brief article)
Mar 16, 2009 ... Changing demographics give new meaning to the saying, "Everyone's Irish on St. Patrick's Day.'' Chicago's once-cliquey Irish community now opens its arms year-round to anyone who wants to support its causes. "You don't have to be Irish to qualify. We don't do a ...
Home cooking hurts Kraft, Sara Lee; Prepared foods suffer while consumers save.
Mar 23, 2009; ... Byline: DAVID STERRETT Monica Jones is fighting the recession by learning to cook. The longtime devotee of frozen dinners figures she'll cut her grocery bill by making her own meals. "You need to make cuts where you can,'' says Ms. Jones, who owns a Chicago-based ...
Spotlight Jeff Levick; Selling the Google brand inside and out.(Brief article)
Mar 23, 2009; ... Byline: John Pletz Selling the Google brand inside and out Job: Chicago-based vice-president of marketing for the Americas at Google Inc. since Dec. 1. Vitals: 38 years old; bachelor's degree, New York University, 1993; account executive, Nike ...
ALLSCRIPTS WAITING ON DOCS, UNCLE SAM; Medical software supplier, investors hope billions in stimulus money will spur new business.(Allscripts-Misys Healthcare Solutions Inc)
Mar 23, 2009 ... The federal stimulus package is potent medicine for shares of a Chicago-based maker of clinical software. Allscripts-Misys Healthcare Solutions Inc.'s stock price has surged 85% since late October, to $8.99, as details emerged about the billions of dollars in federal incentives ...
Guv's budget proposal takes the easy road.(Pat Quinn states government spending policy)
Mar 23, 2009 ... For a man willing to risk his political future on a 50% income tax increase, Gov. Pat Quinn shows remarkably little stomach for the politically risky work of budget-cutting. Mr. Quinn's proposed budget for fiscal 2010 reduces spending by just $1.3 billion, a cut of less than 5% ....
Stein, Jenner in clash over River North tower; At issue: sloping floors in law firm's future HQ.(Developer Richard Stein contracts with tenant Jenner & Block LLP)
Mar 23, 2009; ... Byline: THOMAS A. CORFMAN Developer Richard Stein and anchor tenant Jenner & Block LLP are jousting over costs in a 45-story tower going up in River North. The building, at 353 N. Clark St., is being developed by the real estate arm of Mesirow Financial Holdings Inc., ...
Loan troubles hit local developers; Delinquency rate is triple last year's, and "we're not done yet'.
Mar 23, 2009; ... Byline: ALBY GALLUN More Chicago-area real estate developers ran into loan trouble in the fourth quarter as the delinquency rate for local construction and land loans shot up to 15%, nearly triple the rate just a year earlier. The global financial crisis and deepening ...
One big slice to try to heat up interest.
Mar 23, 2009 ... The cost of long-distance living helped push Jack and Martha Gruber to pare the price of their one-of-a-kind Lincoln Park home by 20%, to $1.9 million from $2.5 million, in December. Mr. Gruber, 62, an executive with Tacoma, Wash.-based Russell Investments, was transferred ...
Common Threads World Festival.
Mar 23, 2009 ... When: 6 p.m. Monday Where: Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago Ave. How much: $250 general admission; $500 for VIP ticket that includes after-party at the James Hotel with a ...
An "awakening' on price.
Mar 23, 2009 ... Owen Deutsch had already knocked down the price of his Gold Coast penthouse twice in a year, dropping it from $4.2 million to $3.75 million. But when he hired a new broker last month, she refused to take the listing without slicing off a quarter-million more. "I told him, `If we ...
Exec pay defies slide; CEOs keep collecting even as stock prices and profits plummet.
Mar 23, 2009 ... Byline: PAUL MERRION Despite plunging stock values and shrinking profits, most CEOs of Chicago's biggest companies got substantial raises and many pocketed seven-figure bonuses in 2008, plus hefty stock incentives to cash in big time when business turns around. Local ...
Red ahead for UAL; CEO Tilton's choice: preserve profit or the flight network.
Mar 23, 2009 ... Byline: JOHN PLETZ Deep declines in business travel will cancel United Airlines' return to profitability this year unless CEO Glenn Tilton is willing to slash flights again. "Business travel appears to have all but vanished,'' Baltimore-based analyst Hunter Keay of ...
On the move.(McGuire Engineers Inc appoints Bill Stangeland)(Cole Taylor Bank appoints David Ide)(Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association appoints Robert J. Kolodgy)
Mar 23, 2009 ... ARCHITECTURE/ENGINEERING McGUIRE ENGINEERS INC., Chicago: Bill Stangeland, 52, to president, from senior vice-president. Also, David Brooks, 37, to vice-president, from principal. PACKER ENGINEERING INC., Naperville: Michael Koehler, 49, to CEO, from director of ...
Housing fallout: brokers brawl; Tensions boil over as market reels, agents falter; mergers coming.
Mar 23, 2009 ... Byline: EDDIE BAEB AND ANDREW SCHROEDTER This is how high tensions are running in the residential real estate business: When brokerage executives fight, even Chicago cops keep their distance. That's what happened last month during a shouting match between Sergio ...
Tax trick bag; GOV. QUINN'S ATTEMPT AT A FAIR TAX INCREASE PRODUCES SOME UNFAIR RESULTS.
Mar 23, 2009 ... Consider two Chicago households. The first is a married couple with two kids, one about to graduate from high school and enlist in the Air Force. The husband works in a tool and die shop and will make about $45,000 this year. Household two is a single woman, perhaps a ...