Recent published reports can shed some light on these questions.

How Does the U.S. Solar Industry Stack Up?

The U.S. Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) says that the U.S. market share of worldwide solar installations has fluctuated between five and seven percent since 2005.

According to the Solar Foundation’s National Solar Jobs Census 2010, there were 16,703 solar employers in the United States in 2010. Over half of those employers were in the Western U.S. Twenty percent were in the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic region.

Most U.S. solar companies, about 65 percent, are involved in installation. About 50 percent are in wholesale trade and about 25 percent are in manufacturing. On the installation side of the industry, 92.1 percent of solar firms install photovoltaic (PV) systems, 50.6 percent install water-heating systems, and 21.9 percent install space-heating systems. Solar manufacturers tend to be more diversified, with only 64.6 percent making PV systems.

SEIA reports that although the U.S. solar industry imports goods such as PV equipment, polysilicon, and PV feedstock, the industry is in fact a net exporter. The country imports $3.75 billion and exports $5.63 billion, for net exports of $1.88 billion. U.S. solar installations for 2010 had a total market value of $5.96 billion.

The European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA) says 60 percent of U.S. PV solar installations are in California. In such western states, solar irradiation is high. Electric rates there are high as well, so EPIA believes that in those markets “PV will become competitive relatively rapidly.”

Solar’s Place in the Overall U.S. Energy Picture

In 2010, the Solar Foundation surveyed utilities that are active in solar energy. Even in those utilities, solar still makes up a small percentage of their generation profile. Nearly 70 percent said solar was less than one percent of their generation; 11.4 percent said solar was between one and two percent of their energy profile; 10.1 percent of those utilities said solar made up more than 5 percent of their generation. Over 90 percent expected their solar capacity to increase in 2011.

Solar should gain market share as it becomes cost-competitive with conventional energy sources. The Department of Energy (DOE) projects that the cost of PV energy will continue to decline and gain in market penetration over the next two decades, becoming fully competitive for utility generation between 2015 and 2020.

“Green Jobs” in the Solar Industry

One huge positive for the solar industry is that it is creating jobs in the U.S. According to the Solar Foundation, the U.S. solar industry now employs 100,237 Americans, a 6.8 percent growth since August 2010. This compares to growth of only 0.7 percent in the overall economy, and a loss of 2 percent of jobs in fossil-fuel generation.

Reliance of Solar on Government Incentives

In the United States, many states have adopted renewable portfolio standards that require electric utilities to generate certain percentages of their power from renewable sources. This is driving adoption of solar and other renewables in the U.S.

Governments provide funding for solar projects through tax credits or rate-based subsidies, offer financing support for solar purchasers and work with banks to support lending to solar-industry businesses. They also fund research and development in solar technologies.

You find yourself back searching for a job. You thought it wouldn’t take long, given your skills and experience. But what was supposed to be a job search lasting weeks has now become a year, and employers are beginning to express concern that your skills may have become outdated.

If you find yourself in this position, how should you approach the job search?

The first thing to look at is your resume. Since this is the first thing the employer will see, how you sell yourself and your skills is important, even more so if you have to deal with a gap in your employment history.

If your resume doesn’t address the issues that concern the employer, it will be put on the stack of rejected applications right away. So, in this case, you need to rework your resume, using a format that doesn’t fit the traditional mold.

In this case, you want to use what is known as a combination resume, which is geared more for people who have been out of work for a while, or for people who are changing careers. The combination resume is what the name implies, a combination of what you have done, along with when you have done it.

The first part is the introduction, where you give the employer a taste of what you have done and the value you would have to the business. You would highlight briefly your outstanding accomplishments along with your other qualities. It gives a checklist of qualifications.

The next section is accomplishments, where you highlight what you have done. This is an opportunity to show that you still have the skills and experience to do the job. Here you want to be as specific as possible about what you have done and include the achievements you are most proud of.

Then, only after you have highlighted your skills, accomplishments and experience, do you list your work history, giving a chronological listing of previous employment, with a short summary of your duties in each job.

Then, lastly, you would include your educational background, which would include college and any professional development training.

Bring your resume to Bayside Solutions! Many of the Bay Area’s top companies look to us to help them fill temporary, temp-to-hire and direct-hire positions. We look forward to hearing from you.

In fact, recent research conducted by the State University of New York-Stony Brook and UCLA found that unemployed individuals in the U.S. are discriminated against in ways that are unrelated to their skills as well as how/why they lost their previous job.

The research consisted of recruiting a cross section of Americans online and then asking them to look at fake job candidates. Researchers found that participants rated “applicants” who were “unemployed” lower than “employed” candidates.

In one instance, participants were asked to rate the résumé of a job applicant. Half of the participants were told the “applicant” currently had a job while the other half were told the “applicant” was unemployed. Research participants then ranked the “applicant” on different personal qualities.

Even though all participants had the same résumé, they believed that the “jobless” candidate was less competent and proactive than that of the “employed” applicant. Study participants also said they would be less likely to hire or even interview the “unemployed” applicant.

Results were similar when participants viewed a videotaped job interview. Half were told the applicant was employed while the other half were told the candidate had no job. Study participants thought the “employed” candidate was more impressive than the “unemployed” applicant.

Researchers also said that the how or why the unemployed applicant lost his or her job had little impact on participants’ perceptions. That is, the fact that the unemployed “applicant” who left a job on his or her own volition was looked upon just as negatively as someone who had been fired or laid off. The only time an unemployed individual wasn’t looked down upon was when the circumstances surrounding the unemployment was perceived to be totally out of the individual’s hands, such as an employer going completely out of business.

Researchers said that economists had believed that long-term unemployment was because of a job seeker’s perceived or assumed deterioration of skills or laziness when it came to looking for jobs. Their research apparently shows that there’s a real stigma to being unemployed and that the longer an individual remains unemployed, the harder that stigma will be to overcome.

If you’re unemployed, don’t let yourself remain that way for long — let Bayside Solutions become your employer. We can place you in temporary and temp-to-hire positions with some of San Francisco’s best companies while you look for work. We also can help you find a full-time position with one of our direct-hire placements. Contact us today!

The HIPAA Security Rule specifically focuses on the safeguarding of electronic protected health information (EPHI). All HIPAA covered entities must comply with the Security Rule, which says the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of EPHI must be protected. Ensuring the security of all data that is created, received, maintained or transmitted is paramount.

Remote access is a high-risk issue for providers that have staff or contractors who use computerized PHI offsite. Permitting remote access to EHRs increases the risks of data theft and data tampering in two ways:

1) APPLICATION VULNERABILITIES: Hackers exploit vulnerabilities in network protection (e.g. firewalls), operating systems, and applications. When an application is made available online to remote users, vulnerabilities in the application become especially significant. Hackers can access the application with automated tools to exploit flaws in the design, logic and coding of the application.
This risk can be substantially reduced by allowing remote access only through a Virtual Private Network (or VPN).With a properly configured firewall, hackers are unable to send any data or commands to the application and therefore cannot access sensitive information.

In areas where a VPN is not a viable option, remote users can access the application using an Internet connection. Any application supporting Internet connectivity must be protected from design flaws and code faults that would expose it to intentional attacks. To reduce this risk:

• Verify the EHR application will support secure Internet access.
• Ensure that the vendor has a support person assigned to oversee security of the EHR system, who can be easily contacted.
• Make sure the vendor has a procedure in place for responding to security incidents involving the EHR system.

2) VULNERABILITIES AT THE REMOTE ACCESS LOCATION: Remote access exposes the EHR system and its data to risks associated with a compromised workstation. Home machines are often compromised. If they are used by multiple family members for both personal and business purposes, they can be infected by malware that provides opportunity for hackers to gain control of the computer or intercept user credentials and data. Other types of software may give the hacker complete control of the home machine and allow the hacker to access all aspects of the remote EHR session. These risks are significant because personal computers used for remote access are not subject to organizational control. There is no oversight for the computer’s configuration, usage, virus protection, or other basic security measures.

What can you do to protect against these risks?

• Implement two-factor authentication for granting remote access to systems that contain EPHI: users must input information, such as answering a security question, in addition to typing in a username and password.

• Employ a technical process for creating unique user names and performing authentication when granting remote access to a workforce member.

• Develop and employ proper clearance procedures and verify training of workforce members prior to granting remote access

• Establish remote access roles specific to applications and business requirements. Different remote users should have different levels of access based on job function.

• Establish appropriate procedures for session termination (time-out) on inactive remote devices.

• Install personal firewall software on all laptops that store or access EPHI or connect to networks on which EPHI is accessible.

• Ensure that the issue of unauthorized access of EPHI is appropriately addressed in the required sanction policy.

In general, HIPAA-covered entities should be extremely cautious about allowing the offsite use of, or access to, EPHI. Remote access to EPHI should only be granted to authorized users based on their role within the organization and their need for access to EPHI.

For more information on finding the remote access data security professionals you need, contact the IT staffing professionals at Bayside Solutions.

In a temp-to-hire job, you work through an agency, which places you in a temporary assignment with a company.  If you do well in the assignment, you may be hired on as a permanent employee of the company.

But it is important to note that having a temp-to-hire position does not guarantee that you will be hired on as a permanent employee.  The company may decide that it really doesn’t need to fill the position, or that it needs to trim its expenses by cutting some jobs, for example.

But there are many good reasons to consider taking a temp-to-hire position.  One reason is networking.  When you sign on as a temporary, you get to meet many new people at the company where you are working, people who work in your area and who will get a chance to see your work.  If they like what you do, they will be able to refer you to other people.  You also get a chance to see what the job market is like in your area of expertise.

Another reason to take a temp-to-hire job is to give a boost to your self-confidence.  If you’ve been job hunting for a long period of time, you know how it can wear you down.  You’re getting rejection letters (or e-mails), and the experience may have been a disappointing one.  Taking the temp-to-hire job will remind you how good you are at what you do, and will help to rejuvenate your job search.

Also, temp-to-hire is an opportunity to help you build up your rèsumè.  As a temporary, you may get a chance to work in a new area and acquire new skills that you can then include on your rèsumè.  You may be able to strengthen your rèsumè where it’s less than stellar, learn a new technology or a new business method.

Temp-to-hire also is a good way to get your foot in the door.  As was mentioned, if you do well in the job, the odds are good that you will get hired to a permanent position.  If things don’t work out, there is little loss for company and for you, since it was only a temp position to begin with.  Your staffing manager will then work to find you another temporary, temp-to-hire or even direct-hire (where you’re hired on to a company’s payroll without working there on a temporary assignment first) assignment.

If you have experience in green technology, managed services or in the science, construction or manufacturing industries, Bayside Solutions wants to hear from you. We have many terrific temp-to-hire assignments (as well as temporary and direct-hire) at some of San Francisco’s best companies. Contact us today!

Call them toxic, call them nuts, call them weird (and sometimes you also call them “boss”), learning how to enjoy your job and do your job well while dealing with difficult coworkers is a great skill to have. However, it’s a skill that usually has to be learned. Here are some tips on how to get along with difficult coworkers.

If your difficult coworker is your boss, you have our sympathy. However since you probably want to keep your job — at least until you can find another one — you’re going to learn how to live with him. Never belittle, confront or yell at your boss. Avoid putting him down with your coworkers when he’s not around because word can and often does leak out.

Troublesome co-workers come in many different forms. There’s the backstabber, taking credit for work you did. There’s the guy who loves to gossip. There’s the drama queen. And let’s not forget the meddler and, possibly the most difficult of co-workers, the take-no-prisoners competitor

In order to alleviate the problem, You should approach a difficult coworker sooner rather than later. Don’t confront and don’t yell. Ask the coworker if the two of you could meet together in private and then bring up your concern. Your conversation might start something like this:

“Steve, I noticed the other day that you told our supervisor that the marketing idea our team came up with was yours. I remember all of us talking about it and brainstorming on it. Perhaps I misheard you. Could you explain your comment to me?”

Or: “Jane, Mary told me that you mentioned to her that my husband and I are having difficulty. Please understand that anything of that nature I tell you is confidential and I hope you won’t do it again May I have your word on that?”

A firm but gentle approach often can work wonders, especially with co-workers who undermine your ideas, authority or privacy. Often, all it takes is a short conversation such as described above for the individual to stop.

In fact, if you can find something — anything — to appreciate or like about a coworker you dislike, comment on it in a positive manner. A little appreciation can go a long way to forging an alliance, allowing the two of you to work together better, even if you never become truly friendly.

Sometimes, though, a heart-to-heart conversation between two professionals doesn’t solve the problem — some people really are petty, self-absorbed, über competitive, etc. If toxic behavior continues, and especially if it starts affecting the quality of your work or even your health, you may have to notify your manager or your company’s human resources department.

If you’re looking for your next terrific position and live in the Bay Area, contact Bayside Solutions. We can help place you in temporary, temp-to-hire and direct placement positions with some of San Francisco’s finest companies.

Here are five common mistakes just about every hiring manager has committed, and tips on how to avoid them.

During an interview, stop talking! The point of an interview is to get to know the job candidate talking, not to hear the soothing sounds of your own voice. Listen 80 percent of the time and you’ll learn a lot of valuable information about your candidate. Watch how she responds to your question about why she left her previous employer. Note how he perks up when he talks about how he’s read your annual reports for the past five years and learned that you doubled in size in that time and then baldly states he wants to work for a winning company just like yours! You also may want to consider using behavioral interview techniques so that you can learn how your candidate handled challenges and opportunities in previous jobs.

Be sure the candidate is very clear regarding the job’s duties and expectations. Will she be expected to travel two days a week in her sales job? Does the PR person need to pitch to X number of media professionals a week? Will the administrative assistant report to two or three managers? This helps clear up any misconceptions about the job (she thought she traveled two times a month; he thought he would be supporting a group of five directors, etc.)

Don’t place so much emphasis on the  first interview. Aim to take your first impression of a candidate more lightly than you probably are inclined to do. Realize that many people who interview can end up not being a good employee. In addition many people get very nervous during interviews and clam up. That awfully “nice” and “quiet” person could become quite testy once he’s been on the job a few weeks. Meanwhile, many truly shy people can sometimes be quite wonderful contributors to your company’s success.

Aim for several interviews (at least two) before making your choice. See if you can get others to sit with the candidate as well. You also may want to give some personality tests to see if a person’s talk matches her true personality. For example, regarding sales positions: some experienced interviewees can be very gregarious during an interview but then clam up when facing sales prospects. Test for the correct sales personality.

In addition, be aware that there’s a dark side to every positive personality trait. A “caring” person can go overboard and become too involved with office personalities. Conversely, someone who’s proud of her “I get the job done” trait could become so pushy around others as she strives to complete tasks that she alienates her co-workers.

Ask the exact same questions of each candidate for the same position. This way you’ll be able to compare candidates using the same criteria. You’ll be better able to compare candidates’ strengths and weaknesses. Develop a ranking/rating system for your interview process.

Let Bayside Solutions take the often tedious, lengthy and highly subjective interview process off of your to-do list. Our Bay Area staffing firm can bring you skilled and professional workers for temporary, temp-to-hire and direct hire assignments with just a phone call. We look forward to hearing from you.

First of all, promotions go to those who deserve them. Who do extra. Just because you’ve worked at a business for two years doing the same thing doesn’t mean a promotion comes automatically. Those who get promoted have earned it.

So, do the work. Be a positive force. Have enthusiasm. Aim to do your best every day.

Do you have the skills and education to do the position you seek? Do you walk your talk and do as you say you will. Do you have the necessary degrees, if a certain degree is necessary? Are you continually upgrading your skills? Do you do more than “just enough”?

When you’re given a challenging assignment, do you embrace it, or do you whine (and if you do whine, we hope you don’t do so at work!)?

Don’t rest on your laurels. That is, if you finished a terrific project last month, don’t sit back and do nothing. Instead, focus on giving it your all on the tasks and projects before you now. Only you care about how well you did yesterday; your boss is going to care big time about how well you do tomorrow.

Volunteer for projects. Take initiative. Solve your boss’ problems.

If you’re an assistant manager and are gunning for the manager position, do your work as a manager would. Demonstrate that you already have what it takes to be a manager now.

Document your successes. Write them down. Do them today because six or nine months from now, when it’s review time, you — and your boss — will have forgotten. You can this success document to put together a case for a promotion because you’ll probably have to….

Ask for a promotion. If you want to be promoted, you’ll more than likely have to ask for it. Be prepared to present your case to your boss in a professional manner, reminding her of your accomplishments, how you’ve helped your employer grow, save money, get new clients, run more efficiently, etc. State your case clearly and use any documentation you may have on hand (your success log, an “atta girl” letter from you boss, etc.) to prove your case.

If you’re ready to promote yourself into a new position, give Bayside Staffing a call. We have some terrific temporary, temp-to-hire and direct-hire assignments at some of San Francisco’s best companies. Contact us today.

Of course, temporary employment services continue to provide the country’s businesses with warehouse workers, administrative assistants, receptionists and general laborers, but the “face” of today’s temporary worker is changing to one who possesses high-level skills.

In fact, according to an American Staffing Association Intelligence Report,
Staffing Employees: Extraordinary Human Resources:

• Staffing employees are better educated than the overall workforce, with 74 percent having at least some college education (compared to only 62 percent of the overall workforce.
• Staffing employees who prefer temporary and contract work are more likely to hold a bachelor’s degree and earn higher wages.

In addition, many people who work for temporary employment firms do so because they enjoy the variety and the chance to learn new skills temporary assignments can give them.

They also see temporary work as a bridge to a regular position on a company’s payroll. In fact, many people who work for a staffing service see the service as the way to find a full-time position. As the ASA Intelligence Report states:

“Everyone knows that there’s no such thing as a truly permanent job. But most staffing employees and most staffing clients want something staffing firms have to offer: a bridge to permanent employment.”

• Most staffing employees who want a permanent job get one eventually—43 percent get hired by the staffing client.
• Almost 25 percent of those who got a permanent job say they did so faster because of their temporary or contract work.
• Fewer than half of staffing employees are actively seeking permanent employment on their own — most are either using their temporary job as their only way to search for a position. (some just prefer the temporary/contract work).

“As the world economy evolves and agility becomes absolutely essential for success in the global marketplace,” the report states, “the smartest companies are taking bold approaches to staffing,” the report states. “Increasingly, they are eschewing the traditional hiring model. They are moving away from hiring processes that can take weeks or months to recruit, interview, screen, and negotiate with candidates to fill a single opening. They no longer see the wisdom in filling every position with a permanent employee whose real cost to a company only begins with a salary and extends to benefits, payroll taxes, vacation time, holiday pay, and a host of other expenses.”

To read the full Intelligence Report, click here.

If you’re a company doing business in the Bay area, Let Bayside Solutions help you maximize your human resources efforts. We’ll be happy to demonstrate how using our staffing service can help your company become more agile and more profitable. Contact us today!

There’s probably no one among us who doesn’t like recognition for our work, whether it be through an “atta girl” from the boss, a commendation from the company’s CEO or a promotion and raise.

Still, just doing good work and hoping higher ups notice and reward you for it without you asking will get you… probably not much other than the self-satisfaction of doing a job well.

Here are some tips to help you impress your boss:

As you perform your duties, keep the whining to a bare minimum. Don’t commiserate with your co-workers; don’t let yourself be sucked into a never-ending vat of negativity that occurs all-to-often at workplaces. You don’t have to be Pollyanna, but you should work to keep a positive attitude while at work. If you must vent, do after hours (and never with co-workers; word gets around).

Volunteer for projects others avoid. In fact, to become more visible to higher ups elsewhere in your organization, offer to work on company-wide projects, such as the HR diversity counsel, or the United Way committee. Take initiative and get things done — without being asked.

Become the go-to person for something. In another words, hone some skills in at least one aspect of your position that are difficult to master, so that when your boss needs someone to handle this critical aspect of a project, she knows to go straight to you.

Give 100 percent. Meet your deadlines (or, if missing one is unavoidable, come to your supervisor as soon as you know so: explain the reason why the deadline will be missed and be sure to give your boss a new deadline. Do what you say you will do; be reliable.

Keep your skills up and learn new ones. Ask you boss if you may attend educational conferences. Sign up for one-or two-day workshops (with your boss’ permission). Show your supervisor you have a yearning for learning; never just coast along.

Keep a “bragging file” of all the things you accomplish. Note any times you completed projects before the deadline, under budget, etc. This file will come in very handy when you sit down with your boss for your annual review. In fact, if you’re itching for a raise/promotion, writing a short report detailing all you’ve accomplished can go a long way to helping your boss see in black and white why you deserve a promotion and a nice raise to go along with it.

If you’re looking for your next terrific position and live in the Bay Area, give Bayside Solutions. We can help place you in temporary, temp-to-hire and direct placement positions with some of San Francisco’s finest companies. Contact us today!