Website dedicated to providing access to the best material for capacity building in the field of rural finance. Rural Finance has to do with providing financial services to the population of rural areas. The Learning Center aims to assist and support organizations in developing countries in capacity building, enabling them to provide better financial services, which correspond to the needs of households and rural businesses. You can access training guides that will enable managers and staff of training institutions, develop short courses on topics of importance to the development of rural finance, to videos, to a library of documents and multimedia material, to distance learning; a discussion forum on rural finance issues and development.

What are the risks and opportunities of tourism business in the coming years?

The answer to this question was the subject of a presentation by Angel Garcia Butragueno, vice president of American Express Business Travel, spoke during the “Second Meeting with Industry Leaders” organized by Antonio Lopez de Avila, Director of Executive Master in Business Tourist Enterprise Institute, whom I thank for your invitation to participate in it.

Some of the ideas that Angel Garcia and the number of participants presented during this meeting proved to be particularly interesting.

The business travel market: current situation

The Spanish Corporate Travel market (which includes groups and incentive) reached a transaction volume exceeding 3,200 million dollars and is the 5th in size in Europe after Germany, Britain, France and Russia. It is expected that this market will continue to grow thanks to good economic conditions that are experiencing this country.

The tourism business has become a technology business in which we must be able to handle information quickly increasingly abundant and complex.

In general travel expenditures of enterprises engaged in 75% to the purchase of air tickets, 10% hotels, 10% for groups and incentives and 5% for cars.

The corporate tourists stays generally range between 1 and 2 days, which is a hotel for overnight stays between zero and half a night.

In the last 5 years for the sale of airline tickets commission received by travel agents has dropped 6.95 points. It is expected that soon the commission will zero for this type of sale.

Spending on business travel are rising primarily due to rising fuel prices and high hotel occupancy rates being experienced. For this reason, companies tend to focus their recruitment to increase their bargaining power and lower their costs.

For many travel companies represent the largest cost item after salaries and technologies.

The crisis of the traditional business model of travel agents

Contrary to expectations, the Internet has not yet produced the expected disintermediation in tourism. In Spain the number of travel agencies continues to grow.

According to Ángel García Butragueño this phenomenon can persist only temporarily, as the crisis for independent travel agents is inevitable. So what is the force that will cause this crisis? The answer: technology.

Clearly, online booking service available to Internet users are becoming more comprehensive, varied and easy to use. This makes the traditional services of travel agent bookings lose value.

Trying to compete on price has no future. The travel agent has to stop acting like a “teleoperator” and fully transformed into a travel consultant. The role has to shift from commission agent commission agent supplier’s customer is a sales agent of the supplier to customer purchasing agent.

In this sense, information technologies play a fundamental role: to produce a consultancy service with high added value the agent will need increasingly sophisticated technologies, whose costs will be unsustainable for many.

The agencies also have to specialize because companies prefer those agencies that can provide sufficient strength and reliability. No longer goes “do everything”.

American Express’s strategy here is to help businesses maximize the return on investment in the trip. Do not want to be the cheapest, but those that provide the best value for money in terms of services.

This approach is consistent with the change of mentality of the companies now consider travel as a profitable investment rather than a mere game to manage and minimize costs (as happened in the past).

The new business model

According to Garcia, soon we will see the implementation of zero commission for selling airline tickets. The agents have to go to charge a transaction fee directly to customers.

In the future we will commission / transaction fee to the commission / fee for consulting. But will customers be willing to pay?

If businesses are willing to pay, the agents must be able to:

* To help enterprises optimize management and travel costs.
* Provide an adequate level of supply of service providers.
* Provide an efficient service through the appropriate use of technology.
* Provide quality service at the right price.

Change adaptation and innovation, together with the training of human resources in this context will be critical to success.

Since its launch in April 2007 Expedia.es is offering its customers the service to purchase airline tickets free of charge. Travelprice.com, the white mark of Lastminute.com, in some periods also apply this policy of no fees and always try to charge less transaction fees than other online travel agencies. Priceline.com and AvionExpress.com (belonging to Viajar.com) are other examples of companies that use this type of timely promotion.

It seems clear that the charges for transactions with low value added, as is the case of airline tickets between major cities in the world, is something that tends to disappear in the future. The income of travel agents in the future will depend mainly on the services “as”.

Travel agents need to realize the low value they bring to their customers for certain transactions.

According to Angel, another possible scenario is the variable commission payments by airlines to the agencies. A few days ago I read that Aireuropa, in order to encourage ticket sales of higher value, is considering paying a commission to agencies dynamics, instead of 1% fixed for 2008.

The hotel industry, tourists and business travel agents.

The hotel industry, unlike the airline industry is very fragmented. It is likely therefore that the current commission levels experienced by hotels continue unchanged for the coming years.

For the agents maintain the information and services necessary to provide a valuable service to businesses, hotels information (availability, price, service, etc..) Must be integrated into the systems of the same agents.

In Spain 60% of the corporate market is in the hands of the 4 main groups: Amex, Carlson, and Marsans English Court. It is likely that in coming years to grow its market share further.

This implies that those individual hotels can not afford to be part of computer systems and commercial of these groups are very likely to fall outside of this market.

While the goal of agent-consultant will be to offer your client the best solution in terms of money, the running time of this operation must be minimized so that this service can be profitable.

To be effective agents will then see the options of their own system. The hotels that appear on the screen, depending on your criteria, are those which propose to their customers. The agent will then offer the best under a bond of time / productivity, always more important to the profitability of your business.

The hotels belonging to major chains in this context will be advantaged. By contrast, independent hotels have to develop other marketing strategies to attract those tourists who are organizing business trips independently.

The search service hotels that provide travel agents will also depend on the agreements that companies have with the hotel chains.

In the case of contracted rates between companies and hotels, travel agents from American Express process the transaction as quickly as possible because, in this case, everything will be fixed and linked. This operation will then be a transaction with little added value.

Sevices low-cost business and tourism

The entry of low-cost airlines in the business market has covered a market gap that traditional companies were not attending.

According to Garcia ’s low-cost airlines are serving well to companies who want to travel to destinations that their side but market penetration is likely to grow slightly in coming years due mainly to limited and sometimes nonexistent, differences in prices with the companies traditional, such as Iberia, if purchase in advance.

Significantly, according to a study by Accenture, the tourist business in the U.S. after having set a trend towards services for hotels and low-cost in recent years, are now returning to traditional companies in search of better services and guarantees ( such as punctuality in the case of flights). It is possible that this phenomenon is present also in Europe.

Travel agents must take into account the 2 types of carriers when advising their clients, still the best solution for companies to find the optimal combination of use of the 2 services.

Similarly, the new travel agents also have to offer its customers an optimal combination of using low-cost hotels and traditional hotels.

Future scenarios and service autoreserva

Travel agents will stop using their traditional inplants, which will replace the outsourcing of their service to call centers and online services on their websites.

The strategy for success begins with customer knowledge and technologies today allow us to know all data, customer preferences and needs without requiring a dedicated Implants to a number of accounts.

In addition, the website of the agencies that will enable business customers to directly manage those services with low added value “transactions commodity.

Then be developed autoreserva services for travel agents can devote their time to value transactions, and limit your involvement in the most basic and common transactions.

Customers will then be able to develop standard transactions for its own account in the Web environment from the agency or through automated telephone services.

Therefore, although the technologies play a fundamental role for travel agents tourism oriented business, savings and management control are the other pillars are essential for success.

Introduction: the challenge of growth This paper examines the difficulties inherent in the prudent management of growth in microfinance organizations and identified potential limits to the greater efficiency, profitability and sustainability that are usually expected to achieve growth and higher dimensions.

To illustrate these dilemmas, the paper uses the experience of Banco Solidario SA (BancoSol) in Bolivia. For the formalization as a bank BancoSol brought the prospect of faster growth and, consequently, a number of challenges, unexpected problems, new sources of costs and adjustments of the second generation. From this experience you can learn lessons very interesting, because few microfinance organizations in Latin America have grown so much and so fast.

The objectives of this paper are to analyze how growth has occurred in the case of BancoSol, considering the challenges that this growth creates for any microfinance organization and identify conditions that must be met for prudent management of growth. Given the history of the creation of BancoSol, would be impossible to understand the lessons of this experience if the analysis does not consider, where appropriate, the first steps taken during the PRODEM.

The growth has at least three positive implications for a microfinance organization. First, growth is the central mechanism to increase the reach of the institution, which is one of the main indicators of its success. A growing number of customers improved amplitude range. Given that in developing countries there are large numbers of family businesses that may be subject poor credit but who lack access to financial services, microfinance organizations should always searchan growth.

Let the OHFA help with down payment and closing costs through the profit tax credit or interest-free loan payments until August 2010. Eligible borrowers who participate in the program for their first home buyers or the Ohio Heroes program can use the loan to reduce the costs that a buyer must pay from his pocket when buying a home.

If you qualify for one of the programs for housing loans of OHFA, may decide to take advantage of the benefit program tax credit.

* The OHFA will issue a loan in the form of second mortgage for up to 3% of the purchase price of the house.
* You can use the loan for the down payment for closing costs or other expenses to be paid in advance prior to closing. Note that although the loan will considerably reduce their expenses, you may still need to pay some costs of its pocket if they are not covered by the loan.
* If you take advantage of the loan, the interest rate on the second mortgage is set at 1% higher than the current mortgage rates of OHFA and you begin to pay the August 1, 2010.
* You may be eligible for a new federal tax credit for buyers of their first home of up to $ 8,000. You can claim the credit on your federal tax return for 2008 to be submitted no later than April 15, 2009, or the tax return for 2009 to present in 2010. You can find more information about the tax credit for buyers of their first home on the website of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
* There are incentives available if you decide to prepay the loan for the benefit of tax credit for purchasers of homes before June 30, 2010. Otherwise, your mortgage payments will increase slightly due to the additional payment of the second mortgage.

Do I qualify?

To qualify for the benefit of tax credit, you must meet the program requirements of OHFA loans for buyers of homes and closing the transaction of his house before November 30, 2009. You can also claim a federal tax credit of up to $ 8,000 in their federal tax return, 2008 to be submitted before April 15, 2009, or the tax return for 2009 to be presented in 2010. Check the requirements for the program to buyers of their first home and the heroes of Ohio.

In addition, you must:

* Take an educational course for purchasers of housing provided by a housing counseling agency approved by HUD, or
* Use the instructional program for buyers of homes in the OHFA online.

Learn more about the educational options for buyers of homes.
Download Information

You can download information about our loan programs from our download center.

In the coming years, providing excellent customer service will determine the success of any enterprise. Some time in the organizational environment that can be heard this phrase, however, when acting as clients often do not receive a service is consistent with it. It would be useful to recall that when the customer is well served, in addition to comment back.

But if we pause to reflect what is causing this widespread lack of awareness about the service, we can begin with the following: each person who attends our staff belongs to the front line, ie those Employees who have direct contact with the client, since it is difficult to do an executive. This is important, because part of the image that takes the customer of the company, is the treatment given.

The idea is so simple, how to create loyal customers in time, one of the best investments you can make, therefore, is to raise the professional quality of staff. Think of ourselves: we take care to select and train our staff to provide good service?
A good goal is to make regular and casual customers, this is achieved by the service. In this sense, although it is vital to use good technology is not enough to possess the most modern machinery and the best system, all involved must take the most that can be derived from these resources in relation to the unmet needs of market.

At the same time, we must move decisively in the development of the concept of Quality Management. Of course, more than one local entrepreneur might ask: why spend money on quality control if we do not come here?

In the case of products, it is very common to confuse quality control with a gentleman sitting at the end of the line and dedicated to separate the bad from the good that came out. Not so. Quality management aims, simply, that there are no defects. So this is a topic that does not support middle: either you are a fan of the quality of service or is not.

There are several reasons to invest in a program of quality improvement, which vary by market and wanted the technology to process, but always see three reasons that are applicable to any activity and any market:

1. Trade borders, throughout the world, are becoming more permeable, so that new competitors will have at home that have worked for decades in this direction.

2. If you want to place our products or services abroad, we must-at least able to achieve international quality standards, but not only that: we will also have to be competitive in price, delivery conditions, design, etc. ..

3. Consumers today demand higher quality in their purchases and their loyalty to a brand is weakened by adopting an attitude of permanent. If you still have doubts about the benefits of operating quality, I will name – as shown – the following:

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Increased profitability.
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Enhancing the quality of loyal customers.
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Reduced cost of waste.
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Increased staff satisfaction, reducing turnover.
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Increased market share by developing the ability to attract new customers.

Is it so important to quality as a substitute for good management?
No. Personally, I am clear that the final quality of service will never exceed the quality of managerial management. This arises from the following: not enough on training and customer service, it must be a cascade effect, starting with the directors and reaching all staff, maintaining inward (internal customers) the same treatment as out (external client).

Finally, a good way to see what kind of services we are taking is to conduct a brief survey among customers and then take the views of senior management, which generally do not know what happens below.

It is clear that the answers obtained will be the starting point to improve things in business, because ultimately what we’re trying to improve the quality of life.

What is a Business Plan?

Concept and Definition

Also known as the Business Plan or Business Plan. We can define it as a map that describes the trajectory of the company or business, three times, past, by way of introduction; Present: the specification of the situation at the time; Future: The projections of goals and objectives.

We can define it as a document in an orderly and systematically details the operational and financial aspects of a company. Then, like a map that guides the traveler, the business plan in advance to determine where the company where they’re coming and how much we need to reach the target.

Who needs a Business Plan?

It is generally customary to think that only large companies need a business plan. However, this document is essential for small and medium enterprises (SME’s). Many entrepreneurs consider the business plan as “the most powerful tool” that can be used to operate in the evolving market economy. Therefore this instrument in the hands of a micro and medium business could be a key to open a number of business opportunities.

What I need?

When we think of a business plan usually believe that this only helps us to search for funding. The first objective should be to define a precise and objective manner the feasibility of the project or company.

It can also be used for:

1. Redefine the direction of action;

2. Supporting an application for credit;

3. Search for new investors or partners, including the type of Joint Ventures

4. Make an offer of sale;

5. Obtain a license or a franchise from a
local or foreign company, among other options.

Each stream has its own scheme of how to develop a business plan. If you just starting this and want to organize your steps you can use the following guide, bearing in mind that each company will have its specificities.

Schematic model for the development of a Business Plan

I. Introduction to the Company or Business:

1.1 Origins of the company.

1.2 Objectives and philosophy of the company. Defining the mission, vision and values (what, how and for whom)

1.3 Characteristics of the company.

1.4 Composition and Organization.

1.5 Human Resources. Management team. Operational team.

1.6 Physical resources.

1.7 Expectations of partners and customers

II. Nature of Project

2.1 The product or service

2.1.1 Current and Features

2.1.2 Operational Strategy (products or services)

2.1.3 Prices, sales and costs

2.2 Overall assessment of the project and consistency

III. Marketing and Strategy

3.1 Identification of the target (segment) of the target market

3.2 Competitive Analysis

3.3 Price Strategy

3.4 Promotion and advertising

3.5 Distribution

3.6 Forecasts

3.7 Marketing Plan

IV. Product or Service

4.1 Specifications of the product or service

4.2 Area of production

4.3 Equipment and Infrastructure

V. Organization and Work Plan Development Project

5.1 General aspects of the organization

5.2 Legal framework of the organization

5.3 Work plan for project development

VI. Economic Issues – Financial

6.1 Determination of the initial investment required

6.2 Study of available funding sources

6.3 Projected performance

6.4 Plan and Cash Projections

6.5 Balance Sheet

VII. Conclusions

Ll organized by small business that is a must have solid communication structure which includes different types of meetings at different levels and for different purposes. All sessions are a firm with the aim of improving communication to transmit messages in groups, thus resolving or improving their operations. All sessions are a firm with the aim of improving communication to transmit messages in groups, thus resolving or improving their operations. The word Reunion (re-union) is regrouping and unification. The word Reunion (re-union) is regrouping and unification.

Depending on the type and size of the company via the communication sessions may be simple or extremely complex. Depending on the type and size of the company via the communication sessions may be simple or extremely complex. The parameters for the micro-enterprise, business or family business macro and methods of conduct are parallel. The parameters for the micro-enterprise, business or family business and macro methods of conduct are parallel. We must also bear in mind that any reunion usually have a purpose clearly defined prior to the call. We must also bear in mind that any reunion usually have a clearly defined purpose prior to the call.

A correct business entity that has a calendar of scheduled meetings organized periodically. A correct business entity that has a calendar of scheduled meetings organized periodically. These are planned and established on the basis of a communication infrastructure implemented as a method to ventilate issues, potentials, these are planned and established on the basis of a communication infrastructure implemented as a method to ventilate issues, potentials, motivation and interaction with their employees and management. motivation and interaction with employees and management. In this way provides a dynamic system of communication and cooperation with the involvement of organized human resources. In this way provides a dynamic system of communication and cooperation with the involvement of organized human resources.

For a reunion to be effective, dynamic and productive requires that certain parameters are met. For a reunion to be effective, dynamic and productive requires that certain parameters are met. Not all of these apply to all business entities, according to their needs and apply the following size parameters. Not all of these apply to all business entities, according to their needs and apply the following size parameters.

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That the company has distributed a calendar of meetings in the fiscal year to maintain a frequency with which they do not lose continuity or follow-up logistics. That the company has distributed a calendar of meetings in the fiscal year to maintain a frequency with which they do not lose continuity or follow-up logistics.

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To discuss that matter is clear in its content and purpose. To discuss that matter is clear in its content and purpose. It is therefore necessary that the material support or topic of discussion It is therefore necessary that the material support or discussion on this theme by the participants in written form, with the necessary anticipation for the members to analyze the data before the reunion. this in the hands of participants, in writing, with the necessary anticipation for the members to analyze data prior to the reunion. This applies especially to the meetings of Boards and senior executives. This applies especially to the meetings of Boards and senior executives.

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The area or room should have a relaxed atmosphere and the physical distribution of chairs, tables, podium, etc. The area or room should have a relaxed atmosphere and the physical distribution of chairs, tables, podium, etc. must agree to discuss the issue and purpose. must agree to discuss the issue and purpose. For example, it is not a Board meeting which will discuss finances and logistics to a reunion of a sales department with the launch of a product. For example, it is not a Board meeting which will discuss finances and logistics to a reunion of a sales department with the launch of a product.

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It is extremely important that punctuality and respect for order and not missing. It is extremely important that punctuality and respect for order and not missing. The rules of business protocol is precise and clear. The rules of business protocol is precise and clear. In this aspect the Operations Manual and / or company policy must be clearly defined. In this aspect the Operations Manual and / or company policy must be clearly defined. It is not acceptable to break the order of the agenda, this should be respected fully. It is not acceptable to break the order of the agenda, this should be fully respected.

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In the meetings is the absolute objectivity of important issues without diluting or diverted to other areas that do not use either a personal or business or not in agenda. In the meetings is the absolute objectivity of important issues without diluting or diverted to other areas that do not use either a personal or business or not in agenda.

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It is advisable in most cases required, which it is a minute of the meeting to record the discussions. It is advisable in most cases required, which it is a minute of the meeting to record the discussions. The easiest method is simply the recording to then be finger. The easiest method is simply the recording to then be finger. You can also use a Lap Top. You can also use a Lap Top.

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Every meeting must obtain a positive result; Every meeting must obtain a positive result, this requires the use of the philosophy that involves “Problems are opportunities for achievement.” This requires that you use the philosophy that involves “Problems are opportunities for achievement.” Commercial entities are always changing with a changing market, consequently, will face challenges that call for a philosophy which is relying on the affirmative action solutions. Commercial entities are always changing with a changing market, consequently, will face challenges that call for a philosophy which is relying on the affirmative action solutions.

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Every meeting should produce results or proposals which would be implemented. Every meeting should produce results or proposals which would be implemented. These should be formally incorporated into the communication infrastructure of the company and become part of the record (Records) of the company. These should be formally incorporated into the communication infrastructure of the company and become part of the record (Records) of the company. In many cases they are part of the “Operations Manual” which can be thought of as the “Constitution of a State.” In many cases they are part of the “Operations Manual” which can be thought of as the “Constitution of a State.” This is the concept, always open to amendments or revisions. This is the concept, always open to amendments or revisions.

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Special meetings are conducted in the same way the only difference is the urgency of the case to ventilate. Special meetings are conducted in the same way the only difference is the urgency of the case to ventilate. This means they are not part of the corporate agenda and that its call is more accelerated. This means they are not part of the corporate agenda and that its call is more accelerated.

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Presentations should be clear and there, depending on the company and its financial capacity, different methods so that the message is clear. Presentations should be clear and there, depending on the company and its financial capacity, different methods so that the message is clear. These can range from written material to high-tech presentations. These can range from written material to high-tech presentations.

These ten rules are the basis for a reunion These ten rules are the basis for a reunion is “effective” and that means you get a tangible result, thus becoming “Affirmative Action”. be “effective” and that means you get a tangible result, thus becoming “Affirmative Action”. Otherwise the body does not get any benefit. Otherwise the body does not get any benefit.

In this presentation, we refer only to meetings of an operational company. In this presentation, we refer only to meetings of an operational company. Of course, in business activities or social events and informal part of the image that the company plans for consistent, are powerful weapons for use in the concept of marketing and public relations. Of course, in business activities or social events and informal part of the image that the company plans for consistent, are powerful weapons for use in the concept of marketing and public relations.

The most important thing a company or person should have the basic concept is that “Time is the most valued resource that is” The most important thing a company or person should have the basic concept is that “Time is the most valued resource that exists “is extremely limited and irretrievable. is extremely limited and irretrievable. Benefit of this simple axiom otherwise is mere “logical deduction, therefore, of this simple axiom Benefit otherwise is mere” logical deductions “, thus” time management “is part of a” Effective Meetings”" Time management ” is part of a “Effective Meetings”

Monster job search website JobPile.com hits the ground running garnering a huge user base and strong traffic right out of the gate.  Job Pile primarily operates in the United States but also provides free job search services to hot international job markets in: China, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, India, Russia, Germany, France, Canada and many others.   Job Pile utilizes the latest web technologies and was developed by a team of globally collaborating developers.  The finish product is a powerful unique job search website that helps job seekers worldwide reach corporate career websites and job listings from multiple networks, including search engines such as Google, job aggregation and job posting websites such as Indeed, Simply Hired, Yahoo HotJobs, and Jobster.  Unlike most job search sites, through several international partnerships, Job Pile also caters to the rapidly growing global job market offering global job search tools for many countries worldwide.  Also like most sites Job Pile offers local job search for major cities across the US.

The folks behind the Job Pile hope that this resource will help alleviate some of the stress associated with finding employment and will make the job search process much easier and more effective for all job seekers including: students, recent college graduates, people who have been laid off or are unemployed and those whole are looking for better a better career path or better job. The collective goal of Job Pile is to give job seekers a one stop shop to quickly search all the major job boards in one quick easy search completely free of charge.

Recently while most websites have experienced declines in traffic due to the global slowdown JobPile.com has been experiencing rapid growth with huge month over month traffic increases and this trend is expected to continue for the rest of 2009.   The reason for this is likely a large increase in job search activity online.   According to Google, the search term “jobs” in October 2008 ranked sixth in the top ten search terms, above cars, games and porn. On average, more than 150 million searches were conducted on this search term.  That was up 20% from the typical month average.  In the midst of a global recession in the toughest job market in nearly a century, Internet job related searches have now swelled to nearly 300 million searches per month.

Founded in 2005, InternetMediaBrands.com an Internet business development company is headquartered in Las Vegas, NV.  Their new job search website can be accessed at: www.JobPile.com