Business and Finance

Cox Communications is embracing its social media side with a contest that could give someone a free year of cable, Internet and phone service.

Cox in Arizona has developed a Digi’s Summer Vacation application on Facebook that allows users to upload their photos and place them where the company’s jump-suited and helmeted mascots took their summer trips.

The grand prize is a year of free cable, but there are weekly prizes as well. Each week the company is giving away a “staycaction” at the Loews Ventana Canyon resort in Tucson, 10 $100 Cox gift certificates and 100 plush Digi dolls.

Cox started the social media campaign after garnering 21,000 Facebook members who like the company’s site.

“Social media has become a very important piece of our marketing mix,” said Ivan Johnson, vice president of community relations and televideo for Cox Arizona.

For more: www.facebook.com/CoxArizona.

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General Motors is getting its fourth CEO in just under 18 months, as the company announced that Ed Whitacre will leave the post Sept. 1, to be succeeded by another auto industry outsider, former Nextel Communications CEO Dan Akerson.

The move comes on the same day the automaker reported its best quarterly profit in six years, and with a filing expected within days to detail plans to bring the company public again.

"This seems to be about the IPO. GM wants the issue of succession planning off the table," said Jeremy Anwyl, the head of Edmunds.com.

Whitacre, 68, will remain as chairman of GM until the end of the year, at which time Akerson will assume that title as well. He has held the top job only since the GM board asked for the resignation of then-CEO Fritz Henderson on Dec. 1.

Whitacre said he had always planned to give up the top job at GM as soon as possible, and that he’s confident in the choice of Akerson.

"It was my duty to help restore the company to greatness and I didn’t want to stay a day beyond that," said Whitacre. "Dan and I have been close for a number of months. He’s been on the board. He’s been very involved. I think this will be a very smooth transition."

Akerson, 61, who has been on the GM board for just over a year, is now managing director and head of global buyout for private equity firm Carlyle Group. He has been CEO of three other companies, although none in the auto industry.

He served as CEO and chairman of Nextel from 1996 to 1999, and stayed on as non-executive chairman until 2001. In 1999 he became chairman and CEO of XO Communications, helping to restructure that specialty communications company. He had previously served as chairman and CEO of General Instrument Co.

Whitacre has made widespread changes in GM senior management since taking office, and Akerson told reporters he didn’t anticipate making significant additional changes going forward.

"At this stage the biggest management transition is me," he said.

The U.S. Treasury Department, which owns 61% of GM’s common shares that it received in return for the taxpayer bailout of the company last year, issued a statement saying the decision was made by GM’s board and did not require Treasury’s approval. It praised both men, though.

"We are very grateful to Ed Whitacre, whose invaluable leadership and vision have helped position General Motors for a successful return to long-term viability and helped protect the taxpayers’ considerable investment in the company," it said. "Dan Akerson is proven and well-respected with a depth of experience as a CEO in a wide range of major companies."

Just a week ago Whitacre told reporters that he would like the Treasury Department to sell its entire 61% stake in GM at the time of its initial public offering later this year. He said the company was being hurt by the stigma of being known as "Government Motors."

But despite the Obama administration’s stated desire to try to sell its stake in GM as soon as possible, virtually no one expects Treasury to sell its entire stake at the outset for fears that flooding the market with that many shares would drive down the price.

Before Whitacre assumed the top job, GM was known as a behemoth that experienced management change at a near glacial pace.

Henderson, who had been GM employee his entire adult life, had only had the job since March 30, 2009, when the Obama administration asked for the resignation of Rick Wagoner as one of the conditions for the government’s bailout of the company. Wagoner had also been a GM-lifer.

But GM has brought in a number of top executives from outside the company and the industry since December, including chief financial officer Chris Liddell, who was recruited away from Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500). 

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Yet another claim is being made in court about how Facebook Inc. founder Mark Zuckerberg started the company, this time by a New York man who says he is owed 84 percent ownership of the company.

Paul Ceglia says in his lawsuit in an Allegheny County court that he has a signed contract with Zuckerberg in 2003 to design and develop thefacebook.com.

Ceglia said he was owed a $1,000 fee and ownership of 50 percent of Facebook, plus 1 percent for each day beyond the original terms until the site was finished, adding up to an 84 percent stake.

The judge in the case has put a temporary restraining order on Zuckerberg and Facebook, preventing the Palo Alto social networking company from transferring any of its assets online payday loans.

Facebook has denied the charges made by Ceglia and is attempting to move the case to a federal court.

Ceglia was sued last year by New York Attorney Gen. Andrew Cuomo for allegedly taking $200,000-worth in pre-orders for wood pellets and then failing to deliver them.

His lawsuit follows a more celebrated case involving ownership claims made by Zuckerberg's Harvard University classmates, the subject of a movie due for release this fall.

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A concrete panel on the facade of the O’Donnell Park parking structure has been ordered removed as a precautionary measure to ensure public safety.

The panel is adjacent to a spot from where a 30-foot, 27,000-pound concrete slab fell from the structure, killing a 15-year-old boy and injuring three others as the made their way to Summerfest.

The order came at the recommendation of County Executive Scott Walker, in conjunction with on-site engineers, the Sheriff’s Department, the District Attorney’s Office and Milwaukee County corporation counsel.

Since the June 24 accident, access to the parking structure has been limited and Milwaukee County has been inspecting the remaining facade panels to determine whether they are securely attached to the structure.

Based on the ongoing inspection, it has been determined that it is necessary to remove the concrete facade panel that is currently in place over the entrance into the parking structure from Lincoln Memorial Drive, according to a statement from the county no fax payday advance.

Steps have been taken to secure the precast concrete section until its removal, the county said. The facade removal will be done at the direction of the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s office. The date and time of the removal has not been determined, but will take place “as soon as arrangements can be made,” county officials said.

Once the piece is removed, it will be placed in secure storage as potential evidence in the ongoing investigation, according to the statement.

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IKEA is recalling more than 3 million additional window blinds after a child nearly strangled earlier this year, the government said Thursday.

This expands the furniture retailer’s previous recalls of the same types of blinds, bringing the total number of blinds recalled to more than 4.5 million.

All Roman blinds and roll-up blinds sold at IKEA nationwide from 1998 through June 2009 for between $5 and $55 are included in the recall, according to a statement from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Roller blinds without a tension device attached to the beaded chain are also part of the recall, because a child’s neck can become entangled in the looped chain if it isn’t attached to a wall or floor.

The three types of blinds were all recalled due to the risk of a child being strangled by a cord.

CPSC said the recall was announced a new report that a 1 year old boy had nearly strangled on a cord in February.

Previous recalls by IKEA of the same types of blinds came after reports that one child died and another was almost strangled cheap payday advance. About 790,000 Roman blinds were recalled in 2008 and 2009 and 533,000 roller blinds were recalled in 2009.

Roman blinds can cause strangulation if children pull the blind’s exposed cord out and wrap it around their necks, or put their necks between the blind’s inner cord and the back of the blind.

Roll-up blinds can strangle a child puts his or her neck in the loops used to lift the blinds after it falls off the blind.

Consumers should immediately stop using all Roman blinds and roll-up blinds and return them to IKEA for a full refund. Roller blinds without a tension device attached to the chain can also be returned.

For additional information, consumers can call IKEA toll-free at (888) 966-4532. 

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A key index of prices paid by consumers ticked lower in April but is still higher from a year earlier, the government said Wednesday.

The Consumer Price Index, the Labor Department’s key measure of inflation, has increased 2.2% over the last year. But that is the smallest 12-month increase since January 1966.

"Inflation continues to be a non-issue," said Anika Khan, Wells Fargo economist, in a research note.

On a monthly basis, CPI fell by 0.1% in April. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com expected a 0.1% jump. The decline was largely due to a 1.4% drop in the energy index, the report said.

Despite its April decline, the energy index has soared 18.5% over the last year.

The small overall CPI increases "should continue to allow the Fed to keep short-term interest rates low," Khan said.

Core CPI: The even more closely watched core CPI, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, rose 0.9% on an annual basis and was unchanged over the month.

Index-by-index: The food index jumped 0.5% on an annual basis. It rose 0.2% in April, the same increase as the previous month.

The indexes for recreation, new and used motor vehicles, and medical care also posted increases in April. Other sectors declined, including apparel and household furnishings.

CPI is based on prices of goods and services that people buy for day-to-day living. Prices are collected each month in 87 urban areas across the country, from about 4,000 residences and 25,000 stores. 

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Shopping mall owner Simon Property Group Inc. is willing to settle for a slice of its biggest rival, just two months after it had a buyout offer rejected as too low.

Simon, the nation’s largest mall operator, on Wednesday offered to help finance General Growth Properties Inc.’s exit from bankruptcy in exchange for a quarter stake in the No. 2 mall owner.

Analysts suggested Simon may have backed off a bid for a complete takeover because of antitrust concerns.

But a person familiar with the talks said Wednesday that General Growth has made clear it prefers a strategy that would give it the financial means to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, rather than to be taken over. The person, who spoke on condition of anonymity, was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly easy pay day loans.

General Growth issued a brief statement noting it would study the latest Simon offer.

General Growth operates more than 200 shopping malls in 43 states, including the St. Louis Galleria, and is the nation’s second-largest shopping mall operator.

Among Simon’s eight properties in Missouri are the Regency Plaza center in St. Charles and the St. Louis Mills mall in Hazelwood. Most of Simon’s 20 Illinois properties are in the Chicago area. Its lone Metro East center is Lincoln Crossing in O’Fallon.

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About 4,000 laid off workers from companies including Freescale Semiconductor Inc. are eligible to apply for Trade Adjustment Assistance, the U.S. Department of Labor announced Thursday.

The federal Trade Adjustment Assistance Program is designed to help workers who have lost their jobs as a result of foreign trade.

The workers in 10 states are covered by the latest TAA certifications and will be contacted by state officials with instructions on how to apply for individual benefits and services, officials said.

Those who apply may receive case management and re-employment services, training in new occupational skills and trade readjustment allowances that provide income support for workers enrolled in training. Some workers may also receive job search and relocation allowances, and the health coverage tax credit.

Austin-based Freescale, which manufactures semiconductor chips, employs about 19,500 workers nationally, including 5,000 in Austin. The company was founded in 2004 as a Motorola Inc. (NYSE: MOT) spinoff. In early 2009, Freescale cut about 700 local jobs as part of companywide reduction of 2,400 positions.

Although Trade Adjustment Assistance is open to eligible workers of all ages, workers 50 and older may elect to receive Re-employment Trade Adjustment Assistance instead. If a worker obtains new employment at wages less than $55,000 and less than those earned in adversely affected employment, the RTAA program will pay 50 percent of the difference between the old wage and the new wage, up to $12,000 during a two-year period, officials said.

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Robert Rogalski has been named CEO at Excela Health, a position he has held on an interim basis for three months, the Greensburg-based hospital network announced on Monday.

Rogalski, a former senior counsel and health care practice group leader at Thorp Reed & Armstrong LLP, joined Excela as a hospital trustee six months ago. He brings to the job more than 17 years of experience advising health care systems on a variety of strategic and legal matters, including corporate governance and acquisitions.

“While a number of candidates emerged during the deliberations, we found the opportunity to observe Bob’s strengths firsthand in day-to-day operations a considerable advantage,” Excela board Chairman Paul Mongell said in a prepared statement. “The positive results and substantive work he has performed during the transition period demonstrate the key attributes we seek in moving Excela Health forward.”

Before Thorp Reed, Rogalski was in-house counsel for health systems in western Pennsylvania and upper Midwest. Most recently he served as vice president and general counsel and compliance officer at MedCenter One Health Systems in Bismarck N.D. He has also worked as in-house counsel at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and West Penn Allegheny Health System, the first and second largest hospital networks in the region.

Rogalski is a graduate of St. Vincent College. He received his law degree from the University of Pittsburgh.

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Bank of America spent $4.4 billion last year on its Wall Street bankers , according to a person familiar with the matter.

The nation’s largest bank used 19% of the $23 billion in revenues it generated in 2009 within its markets and investment banking businesses to pay workers’ salaries benefits as well as year-end bonuses.

That works out to an average of about $440,000 per employee. The bank has roughly 10,000 workers in its markets and investment banking units.

Bob Stickler, a spokesman for Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500), would not confirm the figures, although he said that the company tried to walk a fine line when it structured worker pay this year.

"We are trying to balance the need to pay competitively and to respond to concerns about the level of compensation on Wall Street," said Stickler.

Faced with a public backlash over outsized bonuses, many of the nation’s largest financial firms have incrementally lowered pay levels for traders and investment bankers.

Many institutions have offered workers less cash and more stock, in an effort to tie workers’ performance with the firm’s fortunes and the interest of shareholders.

The use of so-called "clawback" provisions, which would reclaim pay from workers whose actions may damage the firm’s long-term financial health, have also gained momentum recently.

The issue of compensation has haunted Bank of America for much of the past year after it was revealed that the firm paid $3.6 billion in year-end bonuses to Merrill Lynch workers for fiscal year 2008. The firm is currently facing two legal actions by the Securities and Exchange Commission over the matter.

Compared to some of its peers, the amount Bank of America spent on its Wall Street employees appeared to fall in the middle of the pack.

Last month, JPMorgan Chase (JPM, Fortune 500) said it spent $9.33 billion to compensate workers in its investment banking division. Divided among the nearly 25,000 individuals in this business, the average annual compensation per employee was nearly $380,000.

Goldman Sachs (GS, Fortune 500) also revealed during the latest earnings season it spent approximately $498,461 a person, if its compensation pool were divided evenly among the firm’s 32,500 employees. 

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