Spring Conference & Annual Meeting Chairman

The work of organizing the 2004 Spring Conference is well under way. I have taken on the responsibility of working with our President, Gary Ebben in the development of the agenda for the conference. I am excited by the opportunity to help design and arrange this conference. Past NARMS conferences have been well received by the membership. Last year’s attendance of 375 was 150 more than any previous conference. The Broadmoor was a fabulous location. But it is time to move on to 2004. This conference will be held at the beautiful Chateau Élan just north of Atlanta, Georgia. We expect another record turnout and may top 400 as NARMS continues to grow.
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NARMS Hires New Human Resources & Training Director

I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself. My name is Cheryl Bloczynski and I am joining the National Association for Retail Marketing Services as the Director of Human Resources & Training. I joined NARMS National Office on September 3rd. I have 6 years experience in the Human Resources area of retail grocery operations most recently as the Human Resources Administrator.
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To Have… Or Not To Have. An Employee HANDBOOK

Most merchandising & marketing companies have some form of employee handbook or policy manual. Handbooks (or “fact books” as I like to call them) serve many valuable purposes: they can present the organization’s philosophy, goals and strategic plans; they can provide management an opportunity to inform employees about all the information that will be important to them. Handbooks are also helpful in providing consistency in administering the company’s policies and procedures.
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Legal Hotline

You can reach Tom Tucci through the NARMS Legal “Hotline” Just go to NARMS.com and point and click on the Legal Hotline Icon.

The first fifteen minutes are on NARMS and after that a company must discuss additional time and fees with Tom. Tom is a partner in the law firm of Fabyanske, Westra & Hart, P.A.

Employee or Independent Contractor: Can You Make the Switch?

It has been my pleasure to provide guidance over the last few years to NARMS members through the NARMS Legal Hotline and at the last two annual conferences. Throughout this period it has become quite apparent to me that the single most important and difficult issue facing NARMS members concerns classification of merchandisers and demonstrators as employees or independent contractors. For those of you who have spoken to me or heard me speak at a conference, you know that determining whether an individual is correctly classified as an employee or an independent contractor is a determination fraught with uncertainty and far reaching consequences. You should also know that there is no way to guarantee that a determination is correct until that determination is challenged by the IRS or similar government or administrative agency.
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A New Member of NARMS Family Of Services

Members have asked NARMS to help them find companies that will accept subcontracting assignments. The Subcontracting Neighborhood has been constructed and is now a resident on NARMS.com. It is located under the Fast Find section on the left rail on any page of NARMS.com.

It is an electronic web-based search engine for NARMS members looking for other NARMS members who will accept subcontracted projects. Companies who have joined the neighborhood have designated their areas of operation by primary service area codes and secondary service area codes.
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Health Costs Slam Firms Again

Editor’s Note: I have posted this newspaper article in our Newsletter because it is very reflective of the health care issues throughout the US. Although the article sites southeastern Wisconsin I think the information is applicable to all NARMS members.

The cost of health insurance in Southeast Wisconsin continues to soar, with premiums for small businesses jumping a staggering 24% for the coming year, a new survey shows. The premium increase for larger business - those with 100 or more employees - is nearly 18%, according to the survey of 130 southeastern Wisconsin businesses by Frank F. Haack & Associates, a Wauwatosa insurance brokerage. The increases mark the fourth straight year that health insurance premiums have grown by double-digit percentages, and there is no indication that such increases will slow in coming years. The bottom line: Nearly everyone in southeastern Wisconsin covered by an employer-sponsored health insurance plan will pay more for health care in 2004.
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Have you visited NARMS.com lately?

If you have, you noticed changes on our website. The Subcontracting Neighborhood can be accessed under the Fast Find section on the left rail on any page of NARMS.com.

The announcement of the NARMS 2004 Annual Meeting and Conference is at the bottom of our homepage. You can link to the website of the Chateau Elan Winery and Resort, the site of our conference. Watch this area for more information as the conference nears.
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Health & Beauty Care Marketing Conference

The first joint program with GMDC was a tremendous success. Twenty-seven NARMS members had over 400 appointments with the HBC manufacturers attending the GMDC - HBC Marketing Conference. This partnership has already paid dividends for the members of NARMS. The visibility of the Service Solutions Forum was not only beneficial for the attending NARMS members, but also it provided NARMS an opportunity to promote the benefits of our entire Industry. Our new strategic plan calls for NARMS to partner with others when it provides positive results for our members. GMDC did just that. We have been invited to participate in GMDC’s GM Marketing Conference on June 4-8, 2004 in Orlando, Florida. This conference will have over 400 general merchandise manufacturers in attendance. Look for details later this year. Below is what some of our members said about their experiences while attending the Service Solutions Forum. They speak for themselves.
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The Recruiter A National Database of 30,000 Field Personnel

A Summary of Users of The Recruiter

Representatives from twenty-three member companies were surveyed about their experiences with The NARMS Recruiter. Most firms (18) were seeking full-time or part-time merchandisers. The rest were looking for product demonstrators or independent contractors for merchandising and mystery shopping.

The members used a number of different criteria when searching The Recruiter. The most common include area code and zip code. Several found that using the partial zip code was useful and others were happy to learn they could use this procedure. A few searched by specific skills and retail experience.
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