The Ballen Group of Keller Williams, team of Las Vegas Short Sale Specialists, has promoted Tom Wirt to CEO.

Lori Ballen and her husband Richard Ballen manage the  Las Vegas Real Estate Team at Keller Williams Realty Las Vegas. As Las Vegas Short Sale Specialists, Lori and her team focus on distressed properties and residential real estate in Nevada.

They are also looking to fill more real estate jobs. The Ballen Group is seeking additional talent for the team as well including buyer specialists, listing agents, short sale processors, administrative and marketing staff, and a web master.

Lori Ballen, Leader of The Ballen Group says, “We are excited to have Tom Wirt leading our Las Vegas Real Estate team. Tom always has our client’s best interest in mind and their number one goal is his number one goal. He is a natural leader, a determined individual, and is great with the details.”

Tom has been with The Ballen Group since April of 2011 and quickly became the teams “go to” person for advice, leadership, and training.

The Ballen Group has been recognized for top achievements in Listings, Production, and marketing.

Kathy Parker has been appointed to the position of Senior Executive Administrator and Free Trade Zone Coordinator.

The Las Vegas Global Economic Alliance, previously known as the Nevada Development Authority, is Southern Nevada’s economic development agency. For 57 years, it has continued to diversify and improve the economy of Southern Nevada. For more information, call 702.791.0000 or visit www.lvgea.org. The Las Vegas Global Economic Alliance is located in The InNEVation Center powered by Switch.

Switch is the world’s most reliable technology ecosystem, in the country’s safest desert. Switch is a Nevada-based technology ecosystem that includes the Switch SuperNAP, a 407,000-square-foot facility that houses the servers of Google, VMWare, HP, Intuit, eBay, Zappos, and many more. The SuperNAP has gained global attention through its use of patented technology to house servers at a density that far surpasses industry standards, with additional safeguards provided by armed security and Las Vegas’ unique geography as a city free from natural disasters.

The Wanted Analytics found that over the past 90 days, more than 14,000 jobs ads for human resources professionals specified that candidates would need either a Professional in Human Resources (PHR) certification or a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) certification.

This is an 8.5% increase in the number of jobs that specify this certification in their ads. This only represents about 7% of all HR-related job ads posted online during the past 90 days.

It’s likely that employers will find positions that require these certifications hard-to-fill. Nationally, this requirement scores a 78 on the Hiring Scale. (The Hiring Scale ranges from 1-99, with 99 representing the most difficult market conditions.)

The best location in the US to find potential candidates with SPHR’s or PHR’s is Eugene, Oregon. Although Eugene doesn’t necessarily have the largest talent pool in the US, it has just a few open positions.

Employers that are able to source candidates from this area are likely to experience very little competition from other companies trying to attract the same candidates.

Vegas PBS, which expands its television broadcast impact through supplemental materials on Vegas PBS.org, PBSKids.org, PBSKidsGO.org, PBSParents.org and PBSParents.org, said this week that Jami Miller has been appointed Workforce Training and Economic Development Coordinator for the television station.

Commerce added three new brokers to its roster, Sharon Beesley, Adam Collins and Curtis Sanders—all of whom joined the company from the NAI Global Las Vegas office.

Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA employers expect to hire at a healthy pace during Quarter 2 2013.

Job prospects appear best in Construction, Transportation & Utilities, Information, Financial Activities, Professional & Business Services, Education & Health Services, Leisure & Hospitality, Other Services and Government. Employers in Durable Goods Manufacturing plan to reduce staffing levels, while hiring in Nondurable Goods Manufacturing and Wholesale & Retail Trade is expected to remain unchanged.

“Hiring activity is expected to improve considerably during the second quarter of 2013 compared to the first quarter of 2013 when the Net Employment Outlook was 3%,” said Manpower spokesperson Andy Katz. “Employers also expect much more robust employment prospects compared with one year ago when the Net Employment Outlook was 5%.”

From April to June, 22% of the companies interviewed plan to hire more employees, while 6% expect to reduce staff. Another 69% expect to maintain their current workforce levels and 3% are not certain of their hiring plans. This yields a Net Employment Outlook* of 16%.

Of the more than 18,000 employers surveyed in the United States, 18 percent expect to add to their workforces, and 5 percent expect a decline in their payrolls during Quarter 2 2013. Seventy-three percent of employers anticipate making no change to staff levels, and the remaining four percent of employers are undecided about their hiring plans. When seasonal variations are removed from the data, the Net Employment Outlook is +11%, stable compared to the Quarter 1 2013 Net Employment Outlook of 12%.

A new poll from Careercast posits that more than 110 officers were lost in the line of duty last year, according to the non-profit organization Officer Down. The personal safety risks police officers face are apparent. As for overseeing the safety of others — one of the factors in the stress score – it’s outlined right in the officer’s motto: To Protect and Serve.

This is all according to their article on the most stressful jobs in America.

Several other metrics that apply to the Jobs Rated stress score – travel, working in the public eye, physical demand and danger.

Among civilian careers, firefighter is ranked the most highly on the Jobs Rated stress scale. The job’s danger is apparent: running into burning buildings and dropping into forest fires calls for nerves and bravery few other careers require.

The personal danger a firefighter sees in the line of duty is high. Likewise, they are charged with the well-being of communities’ residents and property. The job’s challenges are myriad, and the stress can have a profound impact. The U.S. Fire Administration and International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) collaborated on a study over the course of six years, examining the dangers firefighters face.

“Year after year, there are notable advancements in the fire service industry. These advancements range from building code improvement to sprinkled buildings, from better protective gear to technologically advanced apparatus,” the report says. “But despite the advances made in safety and health areas, firefighters are still being killed, injured and diseased at an alarming rate.”

Two careers in the media industry score highly on the stress scale: photojournalist and newspaper reporter. Professionals from each field can be thrown into the epicenter of dangerous situations, such as war, natural disasters and police chases.

According to Careerbuilder�s annual hiring study, twenty-six percent of hiring managers plan to add full-time, permanent employees in the New Year, up three percentage points over 2012. The study also points to heightened competition for high skill labor and improved compensation trends.

�More than 60 percent of employers reported that they are in a better financial position than last year and more than 40 percent said their sales increased over the last six months,� said Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder. �While this bodes well for job creation, employers are still assessing the implications of a weakened global market and a modest recovery at home. The guarded approach to hiring that has been evident over the last few years was sustained in part by concerns over the fiscal cliff during the time of the survey. We don�t expect 2013 to bring any big surprises in regard to employment, rather it will continue on a path of stability and gradual growth barring any significant economic disruptions.�

Twenty-six percent of employers expect to hire full-time, permanent employees in 2013, up from 23 percent last year. Nine percent plan to decrease headcount, up from 7 percent last year. Fifty-five percent anticipate no change in their staff levels while 11 percent are unsure.

The top two positions companies plan to hire for in the New Year � Sales and Information Technology – are also where employers expect to see the biggest salary increases. Hiring managers plan to recruit full-time, permanent employees for:

� Sales � 29 percent

� Information Technology � 27 percent

� Customer Service � 23 percent

� Engineering � 22 percent

� Production � 22 percent

� Business Development � 18 percent

� Administrative � 17 percent

� Research & Development � 15 percent

� Accounting & Finance – 14 percent

� Marketing � 14 percent

Fifteen percent of small businesses (500 or fewer employees) reported they plan to take out new lines of credit in 2013. While small businesses are showing more confidence in their hiring intentions, there are still concerns over financial stability and market demand. Plans to hire increased at least three percentage points across small business segments while plans to downsize trended up the same amount.

� 50 or fewer employees � 19 percent plan to add full-time, permanent staff in 2013, up from 16 percent in 2012; 6 percent plan to reduce headcount, up from 3 percent last year.

� 250 or fewer employees � 24 percent plan to add full-time, permanent staff in 2013, up from 20 percent in 2012; 7 percent plan to reduce headcount, up from 4 percent last year.

� 500 or fewer employees � 24 percent plan to add full-time permanent staff in 2013, up from 21 percent in 2012; 7 percent plan to reduce headcount, up from 4 percent last year.