This Week's Herman Trend Alert Demand-Driven Workforce Development

The Herman Trend Alert December 20, 2006 Spam Affecting Productivity When Joyce was in the Direct Marketing industry decades ago, she likened advertising mail (to call it "junk" was sacrilegious) to a flower that blooms in the wrong place. No matter how beautiful it was, it was characterized as "a weed". So it is with unwanted advertising e-mails. We call them "spam". According to a Reuters report out of London, spam now accounts for a full 90 percent of all e-mails. The report details that "criminal gangs using hijacked computers are behind a surge in unwanted e-mails peddling sex, drugs, and stock tips". A U.S. e-mail security company, Postini, reports that "The number of spam messages has tripled since June and now accounts for as many as nine out of ten e-mails sent worldwide". Reuters observed that "as Christmas approaches, the daily trawl through in-boxes clogged with offers of fake Viagra, loans, and sex aids is tipped to take even longer." Taking longer not only reduces productivity, but also increases the visibility of the "advertising" messages. In November, Postini detected an astounding 7 billion spam e-mails across the globe, compared to 2.5 billion in June. "About 200 illegal gangs are behind 80 percent of unwanted e-mails, according to Spamhaus, a spam-tracking agency. To create these billions of spam messages, millions of home computers are hijacked to send these increasingly annoying unwanted messages e-mails. These "zombie networks", also called "botnets", can link 100,000 home computers unbeknownst to their owners’. These networks are then leased to gangs who use their enormous "free" computing power to send millions of e-mails with relative anonymity. A study released last year by the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business reported that computer users spent an average of three minutes a day or 22.9 million hours per week deleting spam e-mail. That time translated to a loss of productivity and a financial loss of $21.58 billion per year. And that was last year when spam levels were far lower than they are now. All of these numbers make the case for a investing in more robust spam-blocking software to reduce the loss of productivity. © Copyright 1998-2008 by The Herman Group, Inc. -- reproduction for publication is encouraged, with the following attribution: From "The Herman Trend Alert," by Roger Herman and Joyce Gioia, Strategic Business Futurists. (800) 227-3566 or http://www.hermangroup.com. The Herman Trend Alert is a trademark of The Herman Group, Inc." DON'T BE LEFT BEHIND! If you've been thinking about attending our valuable Employee Retention Specialist Certificate Program, don't delay--only three spaces remain. With the employment market heating up, many positions are literally impossible to fill. Attend this course and you will learn dozens of low-/no-cost valuable strategies to attract and retain the talent you need. Recertification credit from HRCI. Next program: May 22-23, Charleston, SC. Call Carol at 336-282-9370 or visit http://www.employeeretentionspecialist.com. GET INSIDE THE MINDS OF YOUR EMPLOYEES Find out what's really going on inside the hearts and minds of your employees. Our InnerViews interviewing service uses SPHRs and PHRs, certified human resource professionals to probe for the information you really need to know. Exit and Stay Interviews, as well as Why-Didn't-You-Take-Our-Offer Interviews. Call Rosalie Catalano at 937-648-1918 or read more at: http://www.hermangroup.com/retentionconnection/exit_interviews.html. NEW BABY BONUS Book Joyce to speak on the West Coast in 2008 and receive 100 of her books of your choosing. There is a new baby in the family, Spencer Jay, and Joyce would appreciate more opportunities to watch him grow. For more about Joyce, visit http://www.hermangroup.com/joyce.html or call Joyce at 336-210-3548. Herman Trend Alerts are produced by the Herman Group, strategic business futurists, Certified Management Consultants, authors, and professional speakers. New subscribers are welcome. There is no charge for this public service. The Herman Trend Alert is received by over 30,000 subscribers in 78 countries, in addition to other websites and printed magazines. Do you enjoy receiving this weekly e-mail update? Contact us about our co-branded Trend Alert service. Click here to sign up for the Herman Trend Alert. Subscribe or Unsubscribe to weekly Herman Trend Alert View this week's Herman Trend Alert Archived Weekly Herman Trend Alerts

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