Alison Beckwith Consulting

Huffington Post: They also Serve-Caregivers Of Veterans Keep Our Nation Strong

Alison Beckwith — Mon, 14 May 2012 02:57:02 +0000

A 2009 study by CNA’s Center for Naval Analyses found that seriously wounded, ill and injured service members need a caregiver for an average of 19 months. In addition, it found that three out of four caregivers had to quit or take time off from work or school to provide this support. This year, the Pentagon Federal Credit Union Foundation (PenFed Foundation) decided to honor military caregivers at our Eighth Annual Night of Heroes Gala in Washington, D.C., later this month. We asked a few of these “heroes at home” to submit videos on YouTube to tell their stories. Click here for the full story.

About.com: Jobs for Returned Peace Corps Volunteers

Alison Beckwith — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 15:27:55 +0000

The National Peace Corps Association, which supports Returned Peace Corps Volunteers and the Peace Corps community, has launched a new website called the Next Step Job Finder for job searching Returned Peace Corps Volunteers and employers looking to hire them. Click here for the full story.

Huffington Post: The Peace Corps -The Ultimate Resume-Booster

Alison Beckwith — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 17:18:02 +0000

There has always been a connection between Peace Corps Volunteer service and jobs, although until recently that connection has been underappreciated. The experience of 200,000 Volunteers provides compelling evidence that Peace Corps service helps individuals develop flexibility, empathy, cross-cultural and language skills, all of which are invaluable attributes for job-seekers in today’s highly dynamic global economy. Click here for the full story.

Small Biz Technology: Cross-training Employees Is Essential In Small Business

Alison Beckwith — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 16:00:51 +0000

When office and school furniture manufacturer OFM wanted a way to make employees more efficient, it turned to its own resources for internal cross-training. Creating “OFM University,” the company began cross-training employees on such operations as accounting, inventory, graphics, and shipping. This reinvigorated workers and created a workforce prepared to take over each other’s responsibilities. Click here for the full story.

Dust Magazine: Africa Rural Connect Launches Young Farmers Idea Contest

Alison Beckwith — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 16:04:31 +0000

Through the Young Farmers Idea Contest launched by the National Peace Corps Association, the African diaspora and volunteers alike are invited to share their ideas on new ways to engage youths in sub-Saharan Africa under the age of 18 through educational projects, community-building initiatives, and social programs, all centered around agriculture and farming. Click here for the full story.

Credit Union Business Magazine: OFM University

Alison Beckwith — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 16:18:05 +0000

Last week, I received an e-mail from Alison Beckwith, a media relations executive with OFM, Inc., a furniture manufacturer based in Holly Springs, N.C. Alison had news of “OFM University,” an in-house effort to help cross train its employees in order to make the team more productive. Click here for the full story.

Profile Magazine: Look Ma, No Cubicles!

Alison Beckwith — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 15:20:44 +0000

Implementing unique designs for each department helps serve varying job requirements, but also “dresses” the different subcultures within a company. “Within our business itself, our sales department needs a closed-door environment because they’re doing relationship building, and I want them to feel comfortable and able to speak to customers in a way that’s not looked at by others like they’re not doing their work. So [office designs are] very much segmented within the businesses themselves,” says Blake Zalcberg, chief operating officer of OFM, Inc., one of the nation’s leading office- and school-furniture distributors and wholesalers with headquarters in Holly Springs, North Carolina, and operations in Phoenix and Taiwan. Click here for the full story.

Office Newswire: NC-Based Furniture Manufacturer Launches “OFM University”

Alison Beckwith — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 15:22:10 +0000

OFM, a leading office and school furniture manufacturer, distributor, and wholesaler, recently launched a new program called “OFM University” that offers cross-training opportunities through classes and lectures to every employee within the company on how the business operates. Click here for the full story.

AllAfrica.com: Volunteers Use Web to Collaborate With African Farmers

Alison Beckwith — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 01:18:54 +0000

Africa Rural Connect (ARC), a program by the National Peace Corps Association (NPCA), the nation’s leading nonprofit supporting Returned Peace Corps Volunteers and the Peace Corps community, is getting a major boost from a new partnership with the nonprofit agricultural organization IFDC. Under the partnership, volunteers with NPCA and IFDC will share information about agricultural markets on ARC to help farmers find new business while moderating online discussions about new techniques in farming and other agricultural practices. Click here for the full story.

CBS News: Financial Struggles Common Among Military Families

Alison Beckwith — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 01:22:00 +0000

They’re called the “sea of goodwill,” said Kate Kohler, a West Point graduate and Army captain who is the chief operating officer of the PenFed Foundation, a nonprofit that helps troops with financial literacy, housing and emergency needs. She said their hearts are in the right place but so many of these organizations are just giving handouts and not trying to fix the underlying financial problems the troops face. Although Kohler’s organization also gives emergency loans and grants, most come with some required financial literacy training. Click here for the full story.