IBM Is Hiring

IBM has some questions for job seekers.Can you identify trends?Can you think strategically?Are you an innovator?Are you ready to make the world work smarter?Are you an IBMer?
IBM Global Business Services is holding an Invitational Hiring Event on Friday,September 7 from 10am to 4pm in Arlington,Virginia.For a list of openings and to apply to attend,please visit IBMexpo.com
International Business Machines(IBM)

Scrutinising Microsoft:Is The Future Promising

In its recent report to shareholders,Microsoft beat on the earnings estimate,but missed on revenue.The company will begin a new product cycle in October with the release of Windows 8.Brendan Barnacle of Pacific Crest Securities said we are a little concerned about the hype around Windows 8,so we might take a little off the table.
Microsoft experienced a net loss of 492 million dollars-the first in its 26 year history as a public corporation.That was mainly from a writedown it took in connection with its 2007 acquisition of online display ad company aQuantive,however.Excluding that,earnings were 0.73,versus the estimate of 0.62 a share.Microsoft's 2012 fiscal year revenue,or sales,was a record 743 billion dollars.
On 10-26,Microsoft will release its first tablet computer,the Surface.PC users on Windows 7,Vista or Windows XP will be able to upgrade to Windows 8 for the price of 40.00 until the end of January 2013.
The online services division,including the Bing search engine,lost about 472 million on the quarter.Revenue for the Windows PC division was down 58 million versus the year ago quarter.
The company's enterprise segment was up 7% as businesses placed multiyear orders for Office 15 and database software.This enterprise business helped make up for consumers deferring purchases until Windows 8 comes out or buying competitors' products.The deferred revenue number was pretty good,said Mr.Barnacle of Pacific Crest Securities.This number gives you an indication of future growth,so that's encouraging.He rates Microsoft as "sector perform."Given all that we know about the weakness in PCs,it's not surprising that the sales numbers came in a little light,particularly on the Windows side.
The company's revenue in Entertainment and Devices,including the Xbox gaming console,rose an outstanding 20% to 1.78 billion dollars.Sales and marketing costs were cut 3.5% to 3.78 billion.
All in all,the company has a good deal to look forward to as it gears up for the Windows 8 release and the Surface tablet,continuing to serve its enterprise customers and Xbox denizens in the meantime.It's doing a reasonable job for a mature corporation navigating the highly competitive environment it finds itself in.
Microsoft(MSFT)

Xerox Sales Jobs

Apex Communications Corp.,an Authorized Xerox Agency,needs Xerox Authorized Sales Agents.Sell digital office equipment and software B2B.Receive Xerox "Benchmark" training and earn salary plus commission 40k+.Previous sales experience preferred,and recent college graduates are encouraged to apply.Three positions are immediately available in Northern Virginia.To apply,email your resume to kwhitley@apexcom1.com Xerox(XRX)

A Changing Economy:Manufacturing,B2B on the Rise

To Steven Blitz,Chief Economist at ITG Investment Research,it seems like you're getting two separate sets of numbers in the recent economic data.The U.S. economy is really shifting to its traditional production from consumption.This is a long,slow process.Production doesn't grow as fast as finance and real estate.It's building the U.S. economy toward something more sustainable,a better manufacturing sector.
Manufacturing has been growing since the end of the recession in June 2009.Consumers are still in the process of deleveraging.It's going to be a long slog.
The U.S. economy will be 65% consumer spending-down from 70%.We have never had coming out of a recession with the stranglehold on the yield curve that we have today,with the Federal Reserve's low interest rates.
Nonetheless,business spending is headed up.That favors high tech,low tech,energy.I would think B2B spending is a boom area,Mr.Blitz observed.
Based in New York,ITG Investment Research relies on a vast amount of data mining to provide material for its analyses.It produces industry investment,economic and risk research for global portfolio managers and traders.ITG has 17 offices in 10 countries.

Xerox Delivering On B2B

With the acquisition of Affiliated Computer Services last year,50% of Xerox's revenue is now from services,CEO Ursula Burns points out.Although we are still strong in tech,we deliver core back office services,and that should enable us to deliver to shareholders.
We have a good business mix,from small to large enterprise to government.In Japan,the good news is there's stability with Fuji Xerox.We've been able to deliver a strong first quarter there.There will be some supply constraints in the second quarter from the earthquake and tsunami.
In the U.S.,we see improvement.We definitely are seeing the look-up.There's a little more stability and positive help from the government.People are feeling the improvement of '09 and '10.
We are affected by the swings of the yen on our cost basis and by commodities.As long as our clients who are multinationals in the U.S. do more business,anything that allows them to be more confident allows us to add to our employment,Ms.Burns explained.
The company strives to free businesses to focus on their customers by providing its signature office equipment as well as document production,management and business process solutions.
Xerox(XRX)