The Con Edison Energy Efficiency Summit 2012 will be held at Hilton New York on May 1 and some of the top commercial and industrial building owners will be present at the event to make sure that they are among the first to know how they can improve the performance of their buildings. Many of the researchers now believe that buildings have to be green so that they can perform better in the future. The Green Team is already working with various companies and organizations to make things possible and therefore they are hosting this event that will allow researchers to get what they really can do with the help of new technologies.

David Pospisil, Program Manager for the C&I Energy Efficiency Program said that this program is going to bring out the best results with many companies that have joined hands. The company also said that this program will bring in various technologies from around the world and will make sure that they come up with better results that can allow commercial and industrial building owners to improve the performance of their building. The summit will cover some interesting topics like emerging gas technologies, lighting and LED advancements, energy measurement and control and sustainability trends around the world. The summit will be attended by commercial and industrial building owners, engineers, facility managers and energy managers.

You can turn volatility to your advantage with CBOE VIX Options and Futures. Although, there are many programs and software available in the market it is better that you look for simple tools that can guide you in a better direction. With CBOE – Capitalize on Volatility with CBOE VIX Options and Futures you can really make things better for your stock market portfolio because you can plans things in the right direction and ensure that you get better benefits from it. If you are dealing in S&P 500 stock indexes you will need this because it is a powerful tool that can provide you with great information that you will need.

Many business owners and stock market investors feel that volatility index is the best option that can provide you with information that can allow you to diversify the portfolio and also provide you with the information that can allow you to make better decisions. If you are not sure about how you need to handle your stock market shares and investments you can always look at the volatility index that can provide you with predictions on how the market will behave in the next 30 days.

All over the world, Natural Catastrophes and economic recession have badly affected the seafood industry. The Boston Seafood Show is a blessing in disguise for buyers and sellers because it enables them to grow their business and represent themselves uniquely on an international platform. More than 900 suppliers take part in in this international event and showcase diverse portfolio of seafood products, equipment and services.

The International Boston Seafood Show is the largest event that takes place in North America every year. It is also the largest seafood event, in other words you can say that it is must to attend event that come up with the hottest products, solutions and lots of opportunities which facilitate the businessmen to grow international links with vendors. Moreover, broad  educational programs are also part of the Boston Seafood Show which guide businessmen about the ways and means to fulfill customers’ need more efficiently.

If you are interested to attend this international event you can register yourself online and take part in largest seafood event which will happen from 11th-13th March 2012. It’s been 30 years, the International Boston Seafood Show is facilitating people with innovative solutions and business connections.

Inspite the inflation, unemployment which is increasing at high rates, this news of Surplus Funds was really a breather for the government. According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) this has been possible, simply because of the fall in the government borrowings and a fair rise in the corporate tax receipts. Generally the finances tend to be surplus in the month of January because of the rise in the tax receipts. If we go by figures then to be precise the government has borrowed £93.5bn in the tax year till date as compared to £109.14bn in 2010/11.

The chief economist at Markit Mr Chris Williamson, also has interesting facts to give. According to him this keeps the government very much on track to meet its borrowing need or may maximum go up to £127bn for this year as compared to £136bn which was the government borrowing for 2010-11. And there is still two more months to go which makes the target even more achievable.

Surplus Does Not change UK Economy.

Normally such situations are really favorable conditions for growing economy but not in UK. Inspite of the fact that the borrowing rates are good and improving, it does little to change the shaky ground UK is in right now.

With other factors like the growing unemployment, inflation and volatile market the official data confirms a dip in the economy. According to Bank of England the UK economy is going zigzag in and out of growth. Whether the economy will be really favourable we will have to wait for the months to come. The surplus will definitely not increase the burden of borrowing funds but might just compensate the costs of the economic failure with respect to growth and increase in unemployment.

With almost a month pending to declare the upcoming annual budget by the Chancellor, George Osborne, chief economist at the British Chambers of Commerce, David Kern, said the January borrowing figures gave him scope to help the economy grow and by doing so this give some room for flexibility in his upcoming Budget to implement measures to support growth and help companies create jobs, invest and export,” he said.

Let’s hope for the best.

Unemployment rate

Yes unemployment has sunk deep in UK. The office for National Statistics has said that the level of unemployment is rated as close to 8.4%, the highest ever in almost 16 years. From a mere 48, 000 to go to an alarming 2.67 million unemployed is really a reason to worry. The worst affected being women which made up to 2/3 rds and then were the young jobless youth in the age group of 16 to 24 years.

The jobseekers allowance which is given to unemployed youth showed a significant rise of claimant from 6, 900 to 1.04 million. There is also a rise in reliance on part time job seekers. The no of part time jobs have increased to 70000 in the past quarter which is the high.

That by itself shows the glooming scenario of this issue and we find UK unemployment which continues to edge up.

Hopes for growth revival

Though the situation seems grim, there is nothing to panic and as Graeme Leahch, chief economist at the Institute of Directors, said: “The labour market isn’t signalling recession but it’s hardly suggesting recovery either.”

With the level of inflation going up the UK economy will be shaky and zigzag all through year dipping in and out of growth but will slowly and modestly grow. The Prime Minister David Cameron describes this rise in unemployment as disappointing but with full hope for a better revival and has assured of faster growth in economy.

The hope for growth seems to be relevant due to the increase and rise in the job vacancies in the last three months which means there is hope for revival and the worst is eased out.

What is Mutual fund?

Mutual fund in simple words is just a mode of investment by an investor through a collection of stocks, bonds and other securities and he owns shares which actually represent a portion of the holdings of the funds. Doesn’t that give one the feeling of ownership? They are easy to buy and sell and preferred by investors.

Some of the reasons Mutual funds are preferred are:-

• Professional Management:-

They are professionally managed and since we don’t have time and expertise to check on our portfolio, a great way is to have a manager managing your portfolio and manage investments.

• Safe play:-

Investing in individual shares or bonds is risky as the markets can turn bullish or bearish leaving shareholders completely at their mercy. By investing in a Mutual fund, your risk is spread over. There is diversification as your mutual fund covers a number of stocks and shares from other industries. One can gain and balance or rather minimise the loss of another.

• Economical:-

Since it deals with buying and selling of group of stock or shares at a time it really turns around to be economical on the scale as the transaction cost as compared to individual buy and sell of shares will be much lower.

• Liquidate into cash:-

Just like your other stocks your mutual fund on your request can be converted into cash at anytime. Having a mutual fund is cash on hand.

Types of Mutual Fund:-

A) Fixed income funds

• Monthly Income Plans
• Floating Rate Funds
• Money Market Mutual Fund
• Gilt Funds
• Debt Funds

B) Equity Funds

• Growth Funds
• Speciality Funds like Mid Cap funds or Small Cap funds
• Index funds

As we go ahead to invest in a mutual fund scheme, certain criteria we need to consider while selecting a scheme.

• Objective of Investment:-

Simple and most important what is your objective of investment? The market is flooded with different scheme at various levels from monthly income, systematic investment plan to growth plans, income plans. Are you looking for a stable income on a regular basis or a huge one while selling of the investment or a consistent growth plan?

• Tenure of Investment:-

Is your investment for short tern or long term? If short term then money market funds are advisable and if long term like 5 years or so then equity funds.

• Allocation of Assets:-

Important yet difficult to decide is the asset allocation. This depends on how much of regular income would you like to earn. If you have invested safely in PPF or other fixed income then opt for equity funds, if not and have hugely invested in shares then play safe and invest in debt or money market funds. If it’s high risk sectors which are volatile then go for sectoral funds. If it’s large cap stocks then invest in large cap funds. The allocation of these assets depends on you and on the type of fund you would like to invest.

• Fund Management:-

The hard earned money you are investing should generate good returns and definitely in good hands. So please do a thorough verification about your fund management team, your fund manager, the performance of the fund, at governance level issues, controversies, the fund house, stability of the staff working there, are they experienced and skilled. This is necessary because it is our money which we put at risk, it should be managed well.

• Schemes risk profile:-

As they advertise all investments are subject to market risk. In fact risks differ from scheme to scheme, so how much can you risk is what you need to evaluate.

• Don’t rely completely on Past performance:-

We generally look at past performance but cannot completely rely on past performance for consistent returns as markets do not always remain the same.

• Fund size:-

Normally large size funds face the problem of underperformance, and small size funds costs higher, so play safe and invest in medium size funds.

• Cost Factor:-

Cost is definitely a factor as you are giving your portfolio to professionals to be managed so again wise thinking helps and investing in those funds whose cost can be recovered if you have invested in fixed income fund.

The age old and safe method of investment way back in 1774 by a Dutch Merchant is now the word on which many of us rely on for our investments. Investing in mutual fund is kind of the new mantra reeling in everybody’s mind. Simply because it is able to achieve the required amount of diversification and there is earnings. To conclude be wise, play safe and invest in Mutual fund to secure your investments.

In this era of recession and unemployment, to find a job is a tough task and if you have got one then you are lucky enough. However, to retain a job in an organization or to get promoted is not easy. You have to work hard, be professional, meet deadlines for assignments, and sometimes do extra work to win your boss. Our easy job secrets will let you impress your boss in 13 easy ways.

1. Be Punctual and Competent

Coming to office at time is the first step to be in the good books of your boss. You should come early if there is a pending assignment deadline to meet. Moreover, competency at work is also necessary. Hard work and struggle is essential. There is a great competition in any job. You should struggle to take the initiatives and do projects which will not only improve your experience but also will help you increase your importance among other employees.

2. Communicate and Converse

Communication with your boss is essential. Converse and get your work issues discussed with your boss. Asking questions regarding work will increase your potential and impress your boss.

3. Be Confident and Well organized

Be confident in what you do whether it is a business plan, report or presentation in a seminar. Also, be well organized, keep your office cubicle clean, keep the documents well arranged and use a white board to highlight different issues during important meetings.

4. Respect is what your Boss desires

Respect is important for any person, however in the case of your job it is the boss who demands respect. Being having experience, he has the right to desire it. Don’t argue with him and consider your boss opinion top rated while you are in the job.

5. Positivity is necessary

Positivity at your job is necessary. Come to office rested, prepared and positive. Not only you should be positive about your work with your boss but also exhibit positive energy in you office to keep your office environment calmer.

6. Come up with productive business solutions and original ideas

Originality and creativity at job is what your boss requires. Come up with productive business solutions. Share ideas which are fruitful for your organization. It will help in making an impact on your boss.

7. Assumptions are not good for your Job health

Don’t assume anything at your work place. Your boss is the head of organization and he also has some responsibilities. Keep him informed about the work issues. Surprises and assumptions are not good for your job health.

8. Groom up

Groom up yourself before going to your work place. Your personality has an immediate effect on anybody as soon as you enter the office. You should look good, dress up good and smell good and make an impression on your boss.

9. Get informed and opinionated

To impress your boss with your work you should be well informed about all the things going around in the office. Don’t involve in the office politics. You should also be aware of the market and business trends. Be knowledgeable and opinionated and don’t try to argue on the matters which you don’t know.

10. Stay away from stress?

Stay away from stress and also don’t give tension to your boss. Be cool and calm whether you are meeting strict assignment deadlines or doing complex presentations.

11. Be a team player

Learn to work in a team and be a team player to make an impact on your boss.

12. Be Professional

Professionalism is required at your job. Leave all your personal matters and life issues at home because your boss would be least interested to hear them

13. Work with passion

Work is what is required at your job. Your boss has hired you to work. So, work with passion. There are no shortcuts to get promotion. Success comes with hard work. And you get promoted when your boss is happy with your work.

So, peek in our job secrets and make your job easy with our 13 ways to impress your boss.

Social Media is  flourishing like anything and it is simply because of growing interest of people in different social networking sites.That’s why social media is attractive t0 investors as well because they see their huge profit in it, more or less Social media has taken the shape of a strong business and it is good enough from investment point of view.

In the past, investors used to invest in stocks, shares and other import and export kind of businesses but since 10 years trends have been changing and most of them view social media as mode of safe, reliable and profit oriented field to invest capital.

Following are the Top 5 Investors in Social Media;

1.Digital Sky Technologies

Digital Sky Technologies also known as DST is an investment firm based in Russia, a billionaire Yuri Milner founded it in 2005 and since then it invested heavily in different social networking websites like Facebook, Groupon, Zynga and many other internet firm of China. When the value of Facebook was US$50 billion, DST along with Goldman in a joint venture deal invested US$500 million. It is said that Goldman also invested in DST and some of the partners of DST were member of Goldman, this association offered them a reason to bind in business relationship.

In 2009, Digital Sky Technologies invested in Facebook and it is expected that it will further invest above US$ 1 billion in upcoming years.

2.Elevation Partners

Elevation Partners as reflected from its name is a private equity firm which offers huge capital investments for the growth of companies basically a private equity firm associate with management to improve expansion and prosperity through the blend of planned capital and operational approach. It was founded in 2004 and Facebook is among its portfolio companies and it possess 1 percent stake for worth US$ 90 million in Facebook.

Elevation Partners invested round about US$95 million in shares and preferred stocks of Yelp in April of 2010. At present, it operates portfolio in Asset under Management (AUM) with projected US $1.9 billion.

3.Sequoia Capital

Sequoia Capital is most renowned and thriving Venture Capital Firm, it is quite old firm founded in 1972 and made huge investment in famous global companies like Google, Apple, YouTube, PayPal, Cisco, Yahoo and Electronic Arts and this investment helped these firms to grow their businesses. At present, its portfolio is quite cosmic and it id doing lots of investment in social media which includes LinkedIn, YouTube and Tumblr.

Additionally it is also doing investments in many “Baby Firms” for instance Blippy, Airbnb, Blippy and ChurnLab. Hopefully its investment in these firms will provide them an edge to grow.

4.Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers

Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers also known as KPCB came into existence in 1972, its motive is to develop close relationship with the corporations in which it make investment. KPCB claims of having 150 IPOs in the vast portfolio of corporations since it founded.

Former CEO of eBay, Meg Whitman has recently joined KPCB as its strategic advisor, KPCB recently publicized that it has intentions to invest in social media with US $250 million. You will be surprised to know that Facebook the leading social media firm has patronage the fund just like Zynga, Amazon, Comcast, Allen & Co and Liberty Media.

Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers recently invested in Cafebots, Flipboard, Jive and Lockerz; all of these have been qualified as early set ups in the field of social media.

5.Andreessen Horowitz

Andreessen Horowitz is among the most recent Venture Capital firms and it was founded in 2009. Andreessen Horowitz is the co-founder of Netscape and he developed Opsware in collaboration with Ben Horowitz. Later on, Hewlett-Packard acquired the Opsware for US $1.6 billion.

Andreessen Horowitz instigated the business with US $300 million raised it to US $650 million in the later half of 2010. Initially investments in social media started with Skype and with the passage of time investments were made in Twitter, Group on Digg, Zynga, Foursquare,and Facebook.

Craze of people for social networking sites is inclining the investors especially Venture Capital firms to add their heavy investments and earn maximum pie.

Apart from the worth of a house you have to pay there are some other costs that are considerable in your budget. Be prepared for that. To guide you 20 hidden costs of home ownership are as below:

1. Your Heart….First Cost

Although you fix a budget for being spent on your new house, but you come across something eye catching that you can’t resist you are ready to break the limits of your budget no matter its twice or even thrice of what you decided to spend. Most of the times your decision of purchasing a house; stems from your heart instead from your mind; that is of course a hidden cost for you. Financial decisions must be head with your head keeping your heart aside.

2. Property Taxes

At times one feels the amount I am paying as rent might be paid as mortgage and; I can own my personal property. But interest and principal amount are not the only two costs that you have to pay after getting a house against mortgage. Then what you are missing? You are missing a major expense the “tax”. Check out the prevailing tax rates and add up it in your total monthly expense. If you come to know about yearly tax rate that is the most probable case then dividing this yearly expense by 12 and accumulating to your monthly expense of mortgage will give you the true picture of your expense.
Taxes are sticky upward making themselves rising more and more with the passage of time so you must have some flexibility in your budget to afford if taxes get inflated.

3. Insurance

What adds more to your house expense budget? That’s insurance. Numerous factors effect insurance. F you think purchasing an old house can save tour money you are absolutely wrong. Insurance cost is high for older houses because poor electrical wiring and other aged things make old houses more vulnerable to disaster consequently increasing your risk rating. On more things to increase your insurance expense is your inability to make credit card payments. Insurance companies keep an eye on your credit rating.
If your house is in some danger zone like earthquake, flood or volcano you will be paying extra cost for hazard insurance.

4. Appearance

You have to do some homework on the outlook and appearance of your house as it reflects your taste. Making your house looking attractive on the lane, a neat walkway to the house, outside lawn and flowering is another hidden cost for you that you will come to know after buying the house. Keep some space for this expense in your budget.

5. The Lawn

Growing and maintaining a lawn costs you comprising of $100 for the person hired to cut down the lawn, equally more dollars for weed killers, fertilizers and pest killers plus any extensions needed. Even in case you yourself are doing all above things still you need some equipment like weed whacker, hedge trimmers, sprinkler, rake, gloves, bucket and many more things. Decorating and maintaining your lawn has many hidden costs that don’t click your mind when you initially think of buying a house.

6. Renovation and Improvements

Don’t forget an important point while making decision concerning any enhancements or improvements in your house like deck, room renovation etc. that all these things contribute in pushing up your tax rates imposed. Keep in mind this hidden cost apart form your labor and material expense. These taxes bump up your house expenses.

7. Maintenance

Once you buy a house million unanticipated maintenance costs arise like you come to know after buying that fireplace is not working, outside chimney is not in workable condition, tube lights fans electric boxes are not performing up to the mark, cracks on floor or walls etc. need to be repaired, paint is deteriorated, doors, windows, roof needs to be fixed, toilets need to be replaced. So it’s always more and more to be done leaving homeowners grumpy.

8. Cleaning

In an apartment a single vacuum cleaner and a set of cleaning appliances is more than enough but for a house you need multiple. Gain an additional cost probably unknown to you. Further than this cost cleaning off the house consumes one more worth mentioning resource. What’s could be that? It’s your precious time especially for working people. Hiring someone to clean the house daily accumulates to your monthly and yearly budget.

9. Time

You might be thinking how time is a cost being a homeowner. Yes it is. When you realize that you’re loosing too much in paying rents and start your home search it takes a lot of time.

Once you are owner now the time reserved for your family is now used up for maintain a lawn fixing electric appliances, repairing kitchen etc. You unconsciously pay a cost for being a homeowner that is hidden.

10. The Furnace and Air-Conditioning

Before buying a house make sure that furnace and air-conditioning system is upgraded and works for all the sections of a house. If the system is not properly working or if remaining useful life of furnace and air condition is short you will be replacing them in near future. So make a space for this expenditure in your budget. Fixing an old furnace becomes expensive than its actual worth. So write it off and go for a new one is the best option.

11. Wiring, Cable, Phone and Internet

When you are on your house hunting trip you visit home for few times and spend hardly 2-3 hours in that before purchasing. However once you’re done with the purchase you come to know that TV cable is out of order. Upon testing you come to know further that the reason of this disorder is because of improper size wiring or wrongly connected wires. Now you have to call an electrician and may need new wire or cable even.

It’s also possible that phone and internet are not working properly and you have to put a complaint for that. So be prepared for such costs apparently hidden.

12. DIY

We all think do-it-yourself is accost effective to do the things. But the opposite side of the picture depicts that when we save cost of labor by doing tasks ourselves, we pay this cost when you ruin the stuffs like machinery or materials we purchased.

13. Extra Stuff the Man Finds

Your eye catches kitchen shelf doors need to be fixed. When you call up a professional to fix it he tells you that your terrace wood is round dead and your kids may fall and so on. The more and more defaults his professional catches the more and more it increases your cost.

14. Safety

Extra expenses increase when you have to add certain things for certain purposes like alarm system, motion detector and lighting stuff.

15. Pest Control

Once you start living in a house you will start looking cockroaches, mice, termites, bed bugs or pest craze. Definitely you have to pest controls otherwise your furniture or kitchen boxes will be ruined forcing you to be replaced.

16. Savings

Mostly people think they are saving money through energy savers and programmable thermostat. But to save you have to spend even more on buying these things as they are not necessarily installed when you buy the house.

17. Emergency

To cope with power outages you need generators. Once you are done with buying it there is a probability that it needs refueling again and again. Be ready for such expenses.

18. Kids

Your kids may become a cause of your damage. Amazed how can they? Yes they can. Over the time period they will crash down the window, filth the walls and ruin the paint of doors.

19. Nearby Construction

Zoning laws of neighboring land should be known before building a house. The resale value of a real estate property decreases if a wonderful house is built in front of your house that damages the look of your house or hides your house.

20. Buyer Demands

Knowing all 19 point you can imagine that you can afford a house or not. Last valuable piece of advice is to spend a limited amount of money on discretionary items such as food clothing travelling etc.

Are you worried about your tax obligation payment??? Many of us get attracted with these kinds of luring options:

• Pay your yearly tax with late fee that is hardly 1%,  in some cases
• Avail the facility of credit card

Sounds good…but wait before taking any final decision look into some of the dark sides of paying taxes by credit card as “Paying taxes by credit card can cost you”.

1. Interest expense

There is an interest expense associated with the amount of tax you are indebted with. This amount of interest is directly proportional with time taken by the tax payer to pay his credit card balance. It means if a taxpayer takes a longer time to make payment, the more he will be indebted in interest. Via a low interest rate credit card monthly interest charges can be reduced but such cards are almost rare.

2. Convenience fee

You must have definitely heard this famous quotation “There is no gain without pain”. Paying taxes by credit cards truly depicts the meaning of it. As credit cards welcome you with flexibility, there is a convenience fee associated with such facilitation. This convenience fee is charged by authorities accountable for tax collection. Like 2.49% of your total tax liability is deducted by the IRS as convenience fee. So if $ 100 is your tax bill, $ 249 is an extra cost being paid by you to the IRS or any other tax collection organization and this convenience fee increases as your tax bill amount increases. Hence higher tax amount plus higher the convenience fee makes paying taxes by credit card to cost you more.

3. No choice in case of insolvency

Keep in mind insolvency can’t even liberate you from the credit card balance outstanding due to your tax liabilities. No one can bankrupt on credit card debts incurred via your income tax. In the future if you anticipate having financial troubles it’s a guide to avoid paying taxes by credit card.

4. Risky credit rating of the card holder

Paying taxes through credit card may make you riskier in the eyes of card issuer body. The service provider of credit card constructs your image as being troubled by financial crises because if anyone can afford his tax liabilities then there is no reason for using credit card. This risky assessment pushes the issuer to charge heavy interest rate (the more the risky borrower, the more the rent of money), decrease his borrowing limit or astonishingly sometimes terminate your credit card. Paying taxes by credit card will cost you is indisputably justified.

Paying taxes by credit cards enables you to make the tax payment in an extended time period but, it’s exactly the same as any other credit card purchase along with additional costs associated with it. You are liable to pay your credit balance, interests, convenience fee and delayed installments are fined and negatively impact your credit rating. All these things can deteriorate your credit history leaving you unable to get credits down the road. Hence the cost aligned with paying taxes through credit card is substantially high as compared to benefits associated with it.