Throughout 2012, news reports regarding EMEA’s economic situation have generally focused on the same issues – rising unemployment, depreciating monetary units, and high inflation.

But, in the midst of the region’s current recession, are there currently any signs that economic recovery is occurring? Are there any indications that unemployment and consumer prices will decline during the fourth quarter? Has consumer confidence risen in any countries and, if so, is such progress expected to continue?

For answers to such questions, the following report will provide data regarding the region’s present business and consumer confidence measurements, employment situation, and Consumer Price Index statistics.

Euro Zone:
Prior to the release of the Euro Zone’s latest confidence measurements, Moody’s Analytics predicted the region’s business and consumer sentiment index would rise on a month-to-month basis in September, for the first month since March. However, as a surprise to some economists, the index actually continued to decline, dropping from 86.1 to 85, the sixth consecutive month of decreases. The reduction likely occurred as a result of a deterioration of four of the index’s five sub-indices – industrial, consumer, retail trade, and services, which fell to -16.1, -25.9, -18.6, and -12, respectively. Due to high regional unemployment, as well as the sovereign debt crisis, the sentiment index is expected to remain below its long-term average of 100 until next year’s first quarter, at the earliest.

Germany:
As projected, Germany’s unemployment rate lingered at 6.8 percent in September, as it has throughout 2012. Of course, unemployment, as usual, did vary according to regions, as West Germany’s jobless rate was measured at 5.7 percent, a 0.3 percent decrease, when compared to August’s rate, while East Germany’s unemployment rate fell from 10.3 to 9.9 percent. Although the decreases were certainly welcomed, each region’s rate is still higher than usual and, despite recent downward trends, there is currently no indication the rates will drop considerably during the fourth quarter. According to Bundesbank, roughly 2.91 million Germans were unemployed in September, a rise of nearly 9,000, in comparison to August’s figures. The total number of jobless citizens has now increased on a month-to-month basis throughout the last six months.

France:
As predicted by some global economists, France’s consumer confidence continued to weaken in September, declining from 86 to 85, the third successive month of decreases. In fact, September’s rate was the lowest that has been recorded since February. Five of the measurement’s sub-indices also fell from August to September, including past and future living standards, while three other sub-indexes – savings intentions, unemployment outlook, and inflation outlook – rose for the second straight month. As a result of high national unemployment, many economists believe consumer confidence will remain below its long-term average of 100 throughout the coming winter months.

Russia:
According to the State Committee of the Russian Federation on Statistics, the national Consumer Price Index increased by 0.5 basis points last month, rising from 100.1 in August to 100.6 in September. Consumer, food, and nonfood prices also augmented on a year-to-year basis last month, rising by 6.6, 7.3, and 5.4 percent, respectively. The rise in inflation led the nation’s central bank to increase each of its policy rates last month, as the refinancing, overnight deposit, and overnight auction-based repurchase rates rose to 8.25, 4.25, and 5.5 percent, respectively. A majority of economists have forecasted a steady rise in national inflation, especially during the remainder of the fourth quarter.

United Kingdom:
After lingering at -29 since May, the United Kingdom’s consumer confidence measurement upturned slightly in September, rising to -28, two points higher than its year-ago reading. Although the uptick is welcomed news, especially in the midst of Europe’s ongoing debt crisis, much work remains to be done. After all, the measurement’s long-term reading is -9, more than one-third lower than September’s index. Furthermore, three of the measurement’s sub-indices, past personal financial situation, future general economic situation, and climate for major purchases, remained unchanged last month. But, as a sign of improvement, two sub-indices, future personal financial situation and past general economic situation, rose from August to September, climbing to -8 and -54, respectively.

Have you ever wondered where all your money went? You haven’t bought any thing memorable, but the $100 you just had the other day is down to $5. Why is it important to manage your money well? The better you are at managing your income and expenses, the more money you’ll have left over – and you’ll be able to see the rewards of your hard work. If you’re currently on assignment through Adecco, we offer several tools to help you be financially successful:

• Direct deposit ensures that you always receive your check on time, with immediate access to funds. Having direct deposit can eliminate checking account fees that add up at many banks.
• Paperless pay allows you to view your pay stubs online – reach out to your local branch for more information.
• As an Adecco contractor, you are eligible to contribute to a 401(k). These contributions are taken out of your check before it is taxed, which saves you money.

But wouldn’t it be nice if there was also an app or website that could track your purchases and show you all of your accounts in one place – instead of logging into 18 different websites? There is; and they’re free. Check out these 5 tools for financial success:

1. Mint.com is the most commonly known program. With Mint, you can link your debit card, credit cards, checking and savings accounts, retirement accounts, car payments and other accounts; so you can see all of your balances in one place. You can also see investment performance for each type of investment in your portfolio. Each time you make a purchase, the website records it and categorizes it, allowing you to see a graph of your spending each month. Cash purchases can be recorded to break down ATM withdrawals.

You can also set up bill reminders, savings goals and budgets for each spending category. You can see trends over time to determine which areas you are spending the most money in, and an overall summary for each month to determine if you are “in the red” (spending more than you make) or “in the green” (bringing in more than you spend).

Based on your spending, Mint will even suggest advice – lower rates for car insurance or credit cards with better reward programs. You can use the traditional website, or you can add an app to your smartphone. Click here for a sample video.

2. Adaptu is a similar service that gives users a virtual wallet to manage cash flow. You can easily see which percentage of your budget you are spending on each category. Investments are grouped by type of fund – stock, mutual fund or money market. However, with Adaptu, there are no budgets, so you won’t receive alerts if you are overspending in a certain category. Click here for a sample video.

3. Personal Capital is a great tool for investors. Users can view asset allocation showing which percentage of their money is in stocks (domestic and international), bonds, cash and alternative investments. Although it focuses on investments, it also compiles data for debit card and credit card purchases.  Click here to see a sample video.

4. Manilla is more focused on bills and subscriptions than tracking each transaction. It has a dashboard to show bill reminders, subscriptions and travel and reward program points. It can also receive and file copies of bills.  Click here to view a sample video.

5. DebtFree is an iPhone app that uses the snowball method. It summarizes debts and helps users create a payoff strategy. Once the strategy is created, it shows the date the user will be “debt free”. It shows the amount of interest that will be saved by paying debts off early, generates reports on debt by account or category, and allows users to make payments and see payment history from the app. Click here to view a sample video of the app.

For my next A Tempting World assignment, I have been stationed at SecurityPoint Media in Tampa, Florida.  I am looking forward to learning about this unique business of passenger security checkpoint media and had the pleasure of meeting the entire office staff and CEO, Joe Ambrefe, on my first day of work.

During my meeting with Joe, he informed me how his business began.  On the back of a napkin in 2001, he jotted down his idea of how to make a more streamlined, organized way to get through airport security while advertising to hard-to-reach consumers.  Though it took a bit of convincing for his family and friends, Joe stayed focused, came to the conclusion that he really had something and moved forward to turn an idea into a business.  It took about four years to plan the business strategy and obtain several patents.  The end goal of launching The SecureTray System in airports came to fruition in 2008 and currently operates in 41 airports across the nation.

The longer Joe and I spoke, the more I realized how much I could relate to him.  As an athlete, I had to overcome obstacles, persevere and focus on my passion.  Even on my first day of work, I became inspired by the energy and excitement of the staff and am happy to be a part of this growing company.

Throughout my assignment, I will be working on various spreadsheets and updating sales sheets for potential advertisers.  From previous experience, I feel comfortable in my ability to collect and import data using Excel and know that I will be able to produce high-quality reports for the team. I have also been tasked with thinking of ways to improve the format and design of the securetrays.

Stay tuned for more about Ben’s experience at SecurityPoint Media!

We coach our candidates extensively before interviews with our clients. However, recently, I’ve seen an increase in mistakes made by candidates. These mistakes are things we didn’t discuss with the candidates since we believed they were “common sense”. Below are some common flaws pointed out by hiring managers to avoid in interviews:

1. Put your phone away – or better yet, don’t bring it in at all. Do not answer a call during an interview. Texting and e-mailing is also off limits. This is blatant disrespect of a manager’s time. It is best to leave your phone in the car – any alerts or calls during the interview are also a distraction.

2. Watch your mouth. No matter how casual the interview is, or even if the hiring manager curses during the interview, under no circumstances is it okay for you to swear in an interview.

3. Take pride in your appearance. Wear a suit (unless you were instructed otherwise). Iron your clothes and make sure they are free of pet hair. Get a haircut if needed and make sure your nails are clean. Dress to fit in with the culture of a company – if it’s a fashion company, you can add more accessories; if it’s a bank, you might want to stick to conservative colors such as black, blue or gray. First impressions are everything, especially if you are interviewing for a customer facing role.

4. Admit a real weakness. As a hiring manager, I don’t want to hear that you are a perfectionist or that you work too many hours. That is a strength – if I could have a whole team of workaholic perfectionists, I would be in my glory. Admit a technical weakness or true personal weakness that you are working to improve that is not critical to the job description.

Examples: “My Excel skills are intermediate, but I’m working to become more advanced in functions such as Pivot Tables or VLOOKUP by taking a training course.” Or, “It can be difficult for me to see the long range implications of decisions, so I remind myself to slow down and consider if a choice is in line with company strategy.”

5. Don’t cut yourself short in terms of salary. If you’ve discussed a rate with your recruiter, that is what the recruiter submitted you to the client at. If that rate was $35/hour, don’t tell the interviewer you will take $30/hour, or that is what you will get. If your recruiter told you not to discuss salary, tell the interviewer that your recruiter is handling salary negotiations on your behalf and you are most concerned with the opportunity itself.

6. Let the interviewer talk. Do not interrupt the interviewer when they are talking – even if they ramble or interrupt you. Include sufficient detail in your answers, but keep it to the point. Ask questions about the company – people love to talk about themselves.

7. Show enthusiasm. If you want the job, be excited about it. Ask when they will be making the hiring decision and let them know you are interested. Smile.

8. Be ready to discuss details, how you’ve handled situations in the past and quantify results. You may be asked for specifics on your work history or behavior. If your resume says that you achieved a cost savings, be prepared to tell the interviewer how much and how you accomplished it. In behavioral interviewers, you might be asked about how you dealt with a difficult co-worker or a time when you failed. The belief in these “STAR” types of interviews is that past behavior predicts future behavior.

9. Be prepared for a background check. If you have a criminal record, be up front about it with the interviewer or recruiter when they ask you. A lot of times, the company will allow hiring someone with a criminal record depending on the circumstances – but lying is considered falsifying an application and will immediately disqualify you. Don’t assume the charges won’t show up – they almost always will. If you have something on your record, ask the recruiter for a copy of your background check so you know exactly what is on it.

10. Be prepared for a drug test – potentially even a nicotine test. If you do drugs, quit doing them at least a month before the interview. Don’t assume that drinking apple cider vinegar will help you pass a drug test. Don’t add anything to your drug test sample in hopes of neutralizing a positive results – tests can check for these adulterants. Nicotine testing is legal – more companies are choosing not to hire smokers due to a higher cost of benefits.

Bonus: In a panel interview, don’t be surprised if there is one interviewer who has an aggressive interviewing style. It is not uncommon for companies to use the “stress interview” style to see how a candidate reacts under pressure. This person may be direct, arrogant, even outright rude. Keep your cool and deal with them as you would a difficult customer.