Inside East Valley Business

Gerry Keim, associate dean for the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University, recently completed research on how consumers during the mid-1800s began to switch from using whale oil to petroleum for fueling their indoor lights.
What does this have to do with today’s economy or the price of gasoline at the pumps?
“We had to move away from whale oil because of the rising prices,” said Keim. “As a result, people began drilling for oil and found an alternative source of energy.”
Keim said the search for alternative energy to replace gasoline (instead of whale oil, of course,) continues today with solar power, wind power, hydrogen and electricity.
“I’m confident we’ll have real alternatives in 10 to 15 years,” said Keim.
Did you hear that, Herman Melville?

There’s likely a few of them working in every office, construction site and factory - the guy or gal who just won’t shut it when it comes to politics.
Robert Half International, a global staffing firm, said roughly eight in 10 people, or 81 percent, admit they engage in some form of political debate on company time.
Two-thirds of those respondents say that political sparring in the workplace is acceptable “within reason.” The remaining 14 percent say they actually invite the conversations.

Linen’s ‘n Things will close seven additional stores in Arizona —including three in the East Valley — as part of a plan to shutter 120 locations nationwide.
The stores are at Tempe Marketplace shopping center in Tempe, Crossroads Towne Center in Gilbert and Chandler Crossing in Chandler.
Stores in Tucson, Surprise, Prescott are also closing. A location in Yuma has already gone dark.
Shortly after declaring Chapter 11 bankruptcy in May, officials said they planned to close only one Arizona location — the store at Arizona Mills in Tempe.
Susan Kenney, a Linens ‘n Things spokeswoman, didn’t offer specific dates when the stores would close.
“We expect an orderly wind down of business over the next few months,” she said in an e-mail. “As for employees, where possible, we will try to accommodate (them) at other stores.”

Those 100-calorie snack packs that are so popular among dieters may be doing more harm than help.
Arizona State University researchers say people tend to eat more food when the portions are in small sizes.
The experiments tested subjects by offering them 200 calories worth of regular-sized M&Ms in large plastic bags. They also offered 200 calories worth of mini-M&Ms in four small plastic bags.
“Even though the amount of calories was the same, study participants perceived the mini-M&Ms in the small packages to be more like diet food,” a press release from the university said. “The response was to chow down on multiple mini-packs.”

Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly wants help deciding on a Halloween costume.

He needs it, judging from past selections.

Kelly made a good Captain Jack Sparrow, but his tongue was way too short to summon up Gene Simmons in full KISS make-up, and he was decidedly too skinny to fill out Hairspray’s Edna Turnblad’s duds last year.

Kelly posted a challenge on Southwest’s blog, asking customers and employees to scare up some suggestions for this year’s get-up.

A few imaginative ones range from “a bag of peanuts” to “a barrel of oil.”

But most offerings are pretty dull. So far, Indiana Jones seems to be winning the poll — must be from employees hoping to curry favor with the boss.

Passengers have less to lose — maybe their luggage, but at least they didn’t have to pay to check it — by scrapping the hero hunk suggestions and going for some ghoulish garb.

Check out photos of Kelly’s past costumes and comments at http://www.blogsouthwest.com/blog/help-me-decide

Whoever said that only couch potatoes play video games have likely never heard of Nintendo’s newest product for their Wii game console.
The Wii Fit Balance Board has internal sensors that detect the player’s movements. Over 40 interactive games and exercises ranging from aerobics and yoga to virtual tightrope walking and snowboarding.
Company representatives are at Arizona Mills mall in Tempe offering free one-on-one instruction to shoppers.
The free demonstrations will last through Sunday.
Wii Fit hit stores late last month.

A class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of a group of truckers against Phoenix-based Swift Transportation is moving forwarded.
Officials from Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro, a Seattle law firm with offices in the Valley, said this week the Arizona Court of Appeals reversed a lower court’s decision denying the case class-action status.
The lawsuit claims the company short-changed contract drivers in pay “using a flawed method to calculate mileage.”
“Since we filed the complaint, we’ve heard from numerous Swift drivers that Swift’s mileage calculation method robs them of fair compensation,” said Rob Carey, an attorney with the firm, in a written statement.
Attorneys say the company routinely failed to fully compensate drivers for total mileage driven by arbitrarily determining delivery destinations rather than calculating the actual distances.

The Westin Kierland Resort & Spa, a northeast Phoenix resort with a Scottsdale address, hopes to lure people from their TVs during the Olympics by promoting themed weekends in August.
They include “Olympics viewing parties,” and sticking the name Olympics in front of menu items, spa services, golf packages and fitness events such as yoga and wellness classes and health center training.
The resort is also staging some contests in decidedly non-Olympic events such as sack races on the grounds and cannonball competitions in the pool, with ribbons or medals for winners.

Resist the temptation to send a video resume when searching for that new job.
According to a new survey, only 24 percent of those videos are ever seen by hiring managers.

The poll of 150 senior executives at the nations 1,000 largest companies showed only about one in four hiring managers accept videos.

Robert Half International, a national staffing firm, said the tight job market means applicants are resorting to more creative means to draw attention their qualifications.

“Although video resumes have become more common, many employers are reluctant to accept them for fear of bias claims from applicants,” a press release said. “Before submitting a video resume, job candidates should check with the hiring manager to ensure the company does not have a policy against their use in evaluating candidates.”

Max Messmer, chairman and CEO of Robert Half and author of “Job Hunting for Dummies,” said in the report that job hunters try to distinguish themselves by simply “getting the basics right.”

“Writing error-free resumes targeted to each job opening, crafting customized cover letters that succinctly explain why you are the right person for the position and maximizing every opportunity to network with others in your field can often be the most effective strategies for getting hired,” he said.

The Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery plans to expand to 50 locations nationwide by late 2009, the company has announced. Currently, there are nine locations in the United States, including bars in Tempe, Scottsdale and Mesa.

Tempe-based Tilted Kilt’s menu features pub food like fish & chips and shepherd’s pie, drunken clams, meatloaf and pasta dishes. The eateries sell beers from around the world.