Biotechnology, Engineering, Life Sciences, Manufacturing, Placement Annoucements

Shawn Barley & TRG Life Sciences Announce Successful Search

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The Life Sciences Division of The Richmond Group is pleased to announce the successful completion of a Senior Director, Immuno-Oncology search. Our client, a rapidly growing developer of DNA vaccines, was seeking a highly experienced in their field that could help them apply their proprietary platform to immuno-oncology products.

This was a challenging search due to the location of the role and limited candidate pool within the client’s area of immuno-oncology. The search was made even more difficult with relocation likely and the requirement of a highly sought after background.

Shawn Barley, President of the Life Sciences Division engaged a number of top candidates through the course of this difficult search.  The candidate hired by our client, who at the time was not actively seeking a new position, has extensive experience in immuno-oncology and exceeded their expectations.  With a background of having successfully developed two products from initial targets to licensure to pharma for over one billion dollars, our client is now poised for great success. This is truly a win-win as the selected candidate is stepping into her dream role with the opportunity to have an even greater impact within their field as well as improve her quality of life.

 

 

Aerospace & Aviation, US News

Arizona aerospace industry expected to bounce back from employment dip

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employment-figures-in-the-arizona-aerospace-industry-are-bouncing-back-after-a-postrecession-drop_61_40142517_0_14131165_300Following a post-recession drop in employment numbers, the space industry in Arizona is on the rebound.

Between 2010 and 2014, the aerospace manufacturing industry in the state lost close to 1,700 jobs, reported the Arizona Daily Star. Since last year however, the sector seems to be bouncing back and more jobs are expected to be added within the coming months.

Just last week Vector Space Systems announced plans to build a manufacturing plant in Tucson at the new aerospace that is continuing to be built up. It is projected that the new plant will employ 200 people.

According to Aviation Pros, industry leaders in Tucson are also working with eight other companies that could create upwards of 3,500 jobs.

Economist George Hammond of the University of Arizona told the source that as of August, the Tucson area had 11,400 aerospace employees according to the most recent figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics.

“Job growth in aerospace is a hopeful sign, and adding to what’s already a large cluster in Tucson is a good thing,” said Hammond.

Retail & Wholesale, US News

September retail sales in U.S. reach highest level since June

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retail-sales-in-september-increased-by-the-most-in-three-monthsOn the heels of a revised 0.2 percent decline in August, retail sales climbed up 0.6 percent in September, reported Bloomberg.

In a survey of 77 economists, estimates for retail growth varied from 0.2 percent to 1 percent advances. The median prediction however hit the nail on the head, at 0.6 percent. Figures released Friday by the Commerce Department also showed core sales, the number used to measure gross domestic product. These sales fell short of expectations, at 0.1 percent.

Of the 13 major retail categories, 10 showed gains for September including building supply outlets, restaurants, motor vehicle dealers and furniture stores.

Fueled by a surge in auto purchases, total retail sales were up 2.7 percent from this time last year, reported Reuters. After dropping in August, auto sales increased 1.1 percent last month.

There was also a pickup in discretionary spending last month, suggesting solid demand and confirming expectations of a December interest rate hike from the Federal Reserve.

“The consumer is spending and cost pressures are slowly building,” said Joel Naroff, chief economist at Naroff Economic Advisors in Holland, Pennsylvania. “The argument against a rate hike is getting weaker and weaker.”

Computers, Software, US News

IBM, Google and other tech giants unite to boost data transfers in computers

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imb-google-and-seven-other-tech-companies-have-joined-together-to-take-on-intel-to-increase-the-speeds-of-data-transfers_61_40142234_0_14129308_300Nine tech companies, including IBM Corp and Google, have teamed up to take on Intel Corp.

The newly formed group is set to unveil an open technical standard that can boost datacenter server performance by up to 10 times, reported Reuters. The open forum, known as Open Coherent Accelerator Processor Interface (OpenCAPI), will offer a high bandwidth and low latency open interface design specification.

Designed to speed up big data for cloud and corporate data centers, the new interface will also improve machine learning and analytic times.

“As artificial intelligence, machine learning and advanced analytics become the price of doing business in today’s digital era, huge volumes of data are now the norm,” said Doug Balog, general manager for IBM Power, in an interview with Reuters. “It’s clear that today’s datacenters can no longer rely on one company alone to drive innovation.”

OpenCAPI will provide data speeds of up to 150 gigabytes per second and link storage, memory, GPUs and CPUs, according to PC World. Even as storage and memory advance and continue to gain speed, OpenCAPI will keep computers ready for those technologies, an IBM fellow told the source.

The Power9 servers of IBM will be among the first to hold the OpenCAPI ports and are expected to come out next year. It will also be added to the Zaius Power9 server of Google and Rackspace.

Accounting, Financial Services, US News

Gig economy jobs growing faster than traditional employment, new study says

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Gig economy jobs growing faster than traditional employment, new study saysAccording to a new study from the Metropolitan Policy Program at The Brookings Institution, employment in the gig economy is growing faster than payroll employment, CNBC reported.

In the last two decades, gig employment – which includes independent contractors such as those working for ride-hailing services like Uber – has grown by 27 percent more than payroll employment, CNBC found. The source noted that the expansion is especially dramatic in the ground transportation industry, which has seen the number of gig economy employees grow 44 percent more than traditional employees.

CNBC also reported that 81 percent of the gig economy growth in the past four years occurred in the 25 largest metro areas in the country. Industry analysts believe that the shift may hint at the eventual replacement of payroll jobs with contractor positions.

To determine the figures, researchers at The Brookings Institution used the IRS classification for “nonemployer firms” as their  measure for gig economy employees, the Chicago Tribune explained. Businesses in this category are those with no employees who make $1,000 or more per year.

“This is, I think, a proxy measure that we’re very comfortable with, but it is a proxy,” said Mark Muro, co-author of the study and the director of policy at the Metropolitan Policy Program at The Brookings Institution, in an interview with the source. “We don’t have a specific measure of every single person using these platforms, and we are likely undercounting.”

Construction, US News

Construction employment reaches 8-year record

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ationwide-construction-employment-reached-its-highest-level-in-almost-eight-years-in-septemberNationwide construction employment reached its highest level in almost eight years in September, the Idaho Business Review reported, citing figures from the Associated General Contractors of America.

Employment reached 6.669 million in September, the largest workforce since December 2008, when 6.7 million workers were employed. Average hourly earnings also grew during the month, up 2.8 percent over the year.

In addition, 474,000 people who were previously employed in construction were searching for jobs in September, the lowest reading for September in 16 years.

The ADP Regional Employment Report, released Wednesday, showed that the South had the largest job growth in the construction industry. Of the 154,000 jobs added in September, 74,000 of those were in the South, marking 0.17 percent growth, Builder Online reported. The West also saw significant job gains, with 0.15 percent growth.

Texas had the most construction job growth of any state, adding 24,900 jobs during September, according to the source. Florida added 18,800 jobs, while California added 17,400 positions. Idaho led the pack in terms of growth rate, with construction jobs in Idaho increasing by 0.32 percent, ahead of Utah at 0.28 percent.