Iberdrola USA (formerly Energy East) is a Fortune 500 company that serves 2.9 million public utility customers with energy, primarily electricity and natural gas.
In 2007 the Spanish electrical company Iberdrola agreed to purchase Energy East. The deal closed on September 17, 2008, valuing each Energy East share at $28.50. This represents a premium of 20.2% over the average share price for the 30 days prior to the offer announcement.[1] On December 7, 2009, Iberdrola announced it was renaming the company as Iberdrola USA.
CEOs and HR executives concerned with the high costs of turnover in their companies now have a new set of tools at their disposal to slash those costs significantly – and to introduce a new level of professionalism to their organizations. The Retention InstituteSM offers key HR executives and other professionals an online certification program designed to tame the turnover tiger, improve productivity, boost careers and enhance competitiveness.
Based on the Rethinking Retention ModelSM developed by retention expert Dick Finnegan in association with Tarsus Group plc, the tools and their processes bring program participants together with executive managers to apply the proven strategies and tactics leading to improved retention for the company and certification as Retention Experts, entitled to add the CERP designation (Certified Employee Retention Professional) to their names. The Retention Institute has also applied for status as a provider of SHRM re-certification credit.
“The most important feature of this program,” states R.D.Whitney, founder and CEO of parent company Tarsus Online Media, “is that candidates will not only learn the absolutely most effective employee retention techniques but as part of the certification process they will apply them directly to their organizations in real time, for real results. Candidates then become retention champions who bring successful retention strategies to other parts of the organization, repaying the certification investment many times over.”
Unique to the program are the Retention Model’s process-driven solutions which deal with employee turnover in much the same way as companies currently manage sales, service, quality, safety and any other aspect of running the enterprise.
This communication contains forward-looking information and statements about Energy East and Iberdrola S.A. and their combined businesses after completion of the proposed transaction. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts. These statements include financial projections and estimates and their underlying assumptions, statements regarding plans, objectives and expectations with respect to future operations, products and services, and statements regarding future performance. Forward-looking statements are generally identified by the words "expects," "anticipates," "believes," "intends," "estimates" and similar expressions. Although the managements of Energy East Corporation and Iberdrola, S.A. believe that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, investors and holders of Energy East Corporation and Iberdrola, S.A. shares are cautioned that forward-looking information and statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties, many of which are difficult to predict and generally beyond the control of Energy East Corporation and Iberdrola, S.A., that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied or projected by, the forward-looking information and statements. These risks and uncertainties include those discussed or identified in the public documents sent by Energy East and Iberdrola, S.A. to their regulators and under "Risk Factors" in their annual and quarterly reports filed with the SEC. Except as required by applicable law, neither Energy East nor Iberdrola, S.A. undertakes any obligation to update any forward-looking information or statements.
In addition to the risks and uncertainties set out in SEC reports or periodic reports, the proposed transaction described in this release could be affected by, among other things, the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstances that could give rise to the termination of the merger agreement; the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against Energy East Corporation and others related to the merger agreement; failure to obtain shareholder approval or any other failure to satisfy other conditions required to complete the merger, including required regulatory approvals; risks that the proposed transaction disrupts current plans and operations and the potential difficulties in employee retention as a result of the merger; and the amount of the costs, fees, expenses and charges related to the merger.
Energy East is a company incorporated under New York State law and its shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange. It is the parent company for a group of companies dedicated to production, distribution and sales of electricity and natural gas in five states in the northeast of the United States: New York, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Connecticut.
Energy East has 1,825,000 electric points of supply, a transmission network of 13,243 kilometers and 125,613 kilometers in distribution, and in 2006 it distributed a total of 40,450 gigawatt hours (GWh). The company has a generation capacity of 555 megawatts (MW).
Energy East also carries out gas distribution, with 920,300 points of supply. It has a distribution network amounting to 39,657 kilometers and last year distributed 5.20 bcm. It also has a gas transport network of 295 kilometers.
All incremental costs borne by either Iberdrola or Energy East to consummate the
Proposed Transaction will be expensed, with no cost being allocated to Energy
East subsidiaries.
Iberdrola currently estimates its transaction costs at approximately $24 million,
which mainly consists of investment banking and lawyer fees (and excludes costs
associated with Iberdrola's equity offering that raised the equity needed to close
the Proposed Transaction in the capital rnarketsj. To date, Iberdrola has expensed
$8 million of such costs.
Energy East currently estimates its transaction costs at approximately $20-22
million, which mainly consists of investment banking and lawyer fees. To date,
Energy East has expensed $4.4 milliou of such costs.
Neither Energy East nor Iberdrola has estimated the cost of potential transfer
taxes or other taxes associated with the Proposed Transaction.
Neither NYSEG nor RG&E will seek to recover from their ratepayers any of the
costs incurred to consummate the Proposed Transaction, or any acquisition
premium.
According to a recent Brookings Institute study, 85 percent of American companies’ assets are human talent – not machinery, electronics or other tangibles. This means leaders must shift their thinking from past strategies to meet today’s needs by creating effective employee relationships, and with much less stress. Energy drainers such as divisive cubicle walls and harsh paint colors can have a negative impact on the bottom line.
So, how does today’s leader remove the energy drainers from the workspace, and then focus positive energy on improving creativity, interdependence and profitability? The answer can be as simple as changing the color of the walls.
These transformational solutions should be easy to implement, inexpensive and results-oriented. The following suggestions are based on Feng Shui principles, which will help you build a 21st Century bridge to higher employee retention and job satisfaction while increasing productivity, efficiency and profits.
1) Remove energy draining barriers. Human resources matter – they are your biggest asset. Evaluate workplace surroundings to see what is hampering your employees’ ability to concentrate and be productive. Is there clutter everywhere? Are there boxes to be tossed, papers to be filed and inefficient organizational tools? The fact is, even in this electronic age, we are drowning in paperwork and clutter. Find ways now to eliminate the clutter and organize their space so your employees can focus.
Are cubicles and walls standing in the way of communicating with others and resolving problems? Reorganize your employees’ workspace by tearing down those walls or replacing them with something clear so their space is more expansive rather than caged. The last thing most Generation X, Millennials and Generation Y workers want to do is sit in a cubicle for the rest of their lives.
2) Paint the walls. Look at what is going on around you, in your office surroundings and workplace environment. Are their certain areas that provide calm and others where chaos rules the day? Paint the walls a different color. Each color provides energy and has either a positive or negative effect on productivity and relationships.
Get rid of that impersonal white or gray, and replace it with calming light green or blue in chaotic high tension areas. These colors work well in IT areas, hospitals, manufacturing and deadline-oriented spaces such as newsrooms. In areas that are customer- and employee relations oriented, or have any contact with clients, paint the walls a soft earth tone such as light terra cotta. This color enhances communication.
3) Communication is key. While technology provides instant access to everything and everyone, it also limits the employee’s ability to communicate and connect with others. The advances technology has provided in the form of instant communication are great except they are also impersonal connections, void of any feeling or emotion. Great care must be taken to compensate for its hard-edged impersonal energy.
Because communicating electronically is very impersonal, surprise an employee or client with an actual phone call instead of texting or emailing. Stop by her desk in person. If you receive a phone message from someone – return it. You automatically receive some satisfaction or emotional connection through hearing the message but the person that called is still electronically impoverished, waiting for your return call.
4) Create harmony through music. While there is a massive amount of research done on the negative side effects of noise pollution, there is even more written about the positive impact and benefits of specific types of music, when listened to regularly. Research shows that certain kinds of music can improve self-perception, reduce anxiety, produce a feeling of calm, while increasing creativity and productivity.
Some of the most beneficial music is classical music, such as compositions by Mozart, Bach and Handel. New Age music has also been shown to be helpful, and there are a number of New Age composers who create music for very specific needs such as calming, learning, healing, creativity, success, and even enhancing self-esteem.
Playing the right music throughout your workplace can make a huge difference in the attitude of your employees and their productivity. Just remember, you can control of the selection of the music based on the objectives of the workspace it is used in.
5) Add life to the workplace environment. If your daily routine is filled with computers, big screen communications, iPods, cell phones and other electronic devices, make sure you balance all of that hard, impersonal energy technology with something living. Plants, small indoor trees and aquariums provide great living energy in the workplace.
Choose plants that reach upward (not downward like ivy) to energize the health of the business, the flow of new ideas and income. They should be placed in the east and southeast area of rooms, offices and desks. Make sure they are well cared for at all times and replace them immediately if they look sickly. Aquariums can be any size and shape, and will serve a business well if they have at least eight fish of a golden color and one black fish to absorb any negative energy. If the black fish should perish, replace it immediately. An aquarium’s energy will serve the company best if located in the north or northeast of an entrance or office. It can also be used as a clear spacer between employees to replace cubicle walls.
Employee retention need not be a dilemma in today’s environment. It just needs a different approach. Begin your leadership transformation by being aware of the differences in doing business with a whole generation of new employees - and then creating transformational change through using a few basic Feng Shui principles.
one thing that experts seem to have a unanimous opinion is on the importance of employee retention.
The survey of Michael Page Middle East shows that companies recognise the importance of employee retention, with 94 per cent placing the same or more emphasis on such strategies in comparison to 2010.
“Most are focussing employee retention efforts on developing strong leadership and clear communication strategies, followed by career development & planning and training & development. [However], few will prioritise salary reviews as a way of retaining employees,” the survey elaborated.
“Employee retention is and has always been important for companies to look at. It is imperative for growth, expansion, profitability, business continuity, service delivery consistency and succession planning. However, now the market is picking up, companies need to take extra care to retain their top staff and perhaps look at how up-to-date their retention strategy is,” said Qazi.
“Retention of employees is of key importance to all companies, both in the region and around the world. Facing an ongoing shortage of talent, retention of the qualified employees becomes a challenge but, also a need that should be addressed by each company and should be included as a priority in their HR Strategy,” added Sakellariou.
Matt Gribble, Managing Director of Michael Page Middle East, commented: “We are already seeing a more competitive job market with greater competition for available candidates and greater retention challenges for existing employers. Clients need to adopt proactive recruitment strategies to source the best talent. Whilst demand for quality candidates is increasing it will still be the candidates that differentiate themselves at interview that secure the best jobs. This means applying for roles they are suitably qualified for, being well prepared in terms of company and industry research, being able to provide strong examples of their achievements within the key selection criteria and a clear indication that they understand and are ready for the challenges of the role.”
In 2007 the Spanish electrical company Iberdrola agreed to purchase Energy East. The deal closed on September 17, 2008, valuing each Energy East share at $28.50. This represents a premium of 20.2% over the average share price for the 30 days prior to the offer announcement.[1] On December 7, 2009, Iberdrola announced it was renaming the company as Iberdrola USA.
CEOs and HR executives concerned with the high costs of turnover in their companies now have a new set of tools at their disposal to slash those costs significantly – and to introduce a new level of professionalism to their organizations. The Retention InstituteSM offers key HR executives and other professionals an online certification program designed to tame the turnover tiger, improve productivity, boost careers and enhance competitiveness.
Based on the Rethinking Retention ModelSM developed by retention expert Dick Finnegan in association with Tarsus Group plc, the tools and their processes bring program participants together with executive managers to apply the proven strategies and tactics leading to improved retention for the company and certification as Retention Experts, entitled to add the CERP designation (Certified Employee Retention Professional) to their names. The Retention Institute has also applied for status as a provider of SHRM re-certification credit.
“The most important feature of this program,” states R.D.Whitney, founder and CEO of parent company Tarsus Online Media, “is that candidates will not only learn the absolutely most effective employee retention techniques but as part of the certification process they will apply them directly to their organizations in real time, for real results. Candidates then become retention champions who bring successful retention strategies to other parts of the organization, repaying the certification investment many times over.”
Unique to the program are the Retention Model’s process-driven solutions which deal with employee turnover in much the same way as companies currently manage sales, service, quality, safety and any other aspect of running the enterprise.
This communication contains forward-looking information and statements about Energy East and Iberdrola S.A. and their combined businesses after completion of the proposed transaction. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts. These statements include financial projections and estimates and their underlying assumptions, statements regarding plans, objectives and expectations with respect to future operations, products and services, and statements regarding future performance. Forward-looking statements are generally identified by the words "expects," "anticipates," "believes," "intends," "estimates" and similar expressions. Although the managements of Energy East Corporation and Iberdrola, S.A. believe that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, investors and holders of Energy East Corporation and Iberdrola, S.A. shares are cautioned that forward-looking information and statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties, many of which are difficult to predict and generally beyond the control of Energy East Corporation and Iberdrola, S.A., that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied or projected by, the forward-looking information and statements. These risks and uncertainties include those discussed or identified in the public documents sent by Energy East and Iberdrola, S.A. to their regulators and under "Risk Factors" in their annual and quarterly reports filed with the SEC. Except as required by applicable law, neither Energy East nor Iberdrola, S.A. undertakes any obligation to update any forward-looking information or statements.
In addition to the risks and uncertainties set out in SEC reports or periodic reports, the proposed transaction described in this release could be affected by, among other things, the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstances that could give rise to the termination of the merger agreement; the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against Energy East Corporation and others related to the merger agreement; failure to obtain shareholder approval or any other failure to satisfy other conditions required to complete the merger, including required regulatory approvals; risks that the proposed transaction disrupts current plans and operations and the potential difficulties in employee retention as a result of the merger; and the amount of the costs, fees, expenses and charges related to the merger.
Energy East is a company incorporated under New York State law and its shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange. It is the parent company for a group of companies dedicated to production, distribution and sales of electricity and natural gas in five states in the northeast of the United States: New York, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Connecticut.
Energy East has 1,825,000 electric points of supply, a transmission network of 13,243 kilometers and 125,613 kilometers in distribution, and in 2006 it distributed a total of 40,450 gigawatt hours (GWh). The company has a generation capacity of 555 megawatts (MW).
Energy East also carries out gas distribution, with 920,300 points of supply. It has a distribution network amounting to 39,657 kilometers and last year distributed 5.20 bcm. It also has a gas transport network of 295 kilometers.
All incremental costs borne by either Iberdrola or Energy East to consummate the
Proposed Transaction will be expensed, with no cost being allocated to Energy
East subsidiaries.
Iberdrola currently estimates its transaction costs at approximately $24 million,
which mainly consists of investment banking and lawyer fees (and excludes costs
associated with Iberdrola's equity offering that raised the equity needed to close
the Proposed Transaction in the capital rnarketsj. To date, Iberdrola has expensed
$8 million of such costs.
Energy East currently estimates its transaction costs at approximately $20-22
million, which mainly consists of investment banking and lawyer fees. To date,
Energy East has expensed $4.4 milliou of such costs.
Neither Energy East nor Iberdrola has estimated the cost of potential transfer
taxes or other taxes associated with the Proposed Transaction.
Neither NYSEG nor RG&E will seek to recover from their ratepayers any of the
costs incurred to consummate the Proposed Transaction, or any acquisition
premium.
According to a recent Brookings Institute study, 85 percent of American companies’ assets are human talent – not machinery, electronics or other tangibles. This means leaders must shift their thinking from past strategies to meet today’s needs by creating effective employee relationships, and with much less stress. Energy drainers such as divisive cubicle walls and harsh paint colors can have a negative impact on the bottom line.
So, how does today’s leader remove the energy drainers from the workspace, and then focus positive energy on improving creativity, interdependence and profitability? The answer can be as simple as changing the color of the walls.
These transformational solutions should be easy to implement, inexpensive and results-oriented. The following suggestions are based on Feng Shui principles, which will help you build a 21st Century bridge to higher employee retention and job satisfaction while increasing productivity, efficiency and profits.
1) Remove energy draining barriers. Human resources matter – they are your biggest asset. Evaluate workplace surroundings to see what is hampering your employees’ ability to concentrate and be productive. Is there clutter everywhere? Are there boxes to be tossed, papers to be filed and inefficient organizational tools? The fact is, even in this electronic age, we are drowning in paperwork and clutter. Find ways now to eliminate the clutter and organize their space so your employees can focus.
Are cubicles and walls standing in the way of communicating with others and resolving problems? Reorganize your employees’ workspace by tearing down those walls or replacing them with something clear so their space is more expansive rather than caged. The last thing most Generation X, Millennials and Generation Y workers want to do is sit in a cubicle for the rest of their lives.
2) Paint the walls. Look at what is going on around you, in your office surroundings and workplace environment. Are their certain areas that provide calm and others where chaos rules the day? Paint the walls a different color. Each color provides energy and has either a positive or negative effect on productivity and relationships.
Get rid of that impersonal white or gray, and replace it with calming light green or blue in chaotic high tension areas. These colors work well in IT areas, hospitals, manufacturing and deadline-oriented spaces such as newsrooms. In areas that are customer- and employee relations oriented, or have any contact with clients, paint the walls a soft earth tone such as light terra cotta. This color enhances communication.
3) Communication is key. While technology provides instant access to everything and everyone, it also limits the employee’s ability to communicate and connect with others. The advances technology has provided in the form of instant communication are great except they are also impersonal connections, void of any feeling or emotion. Great care must be taken to compensate for its hard-edged impersonal energy.
Because communicating electronically is very impersonal, surprise an employee or client with an actual phone call instead of texting or emailing. Stop by her desk in person. If you receive a phone message from someone – return it. You automatically receive some satisfaction or emotional connection through hearing the message but the person that called is still electronically impoverished, waiting for your return call.
4) Create harmony through music. While there is a massive amount of research done on the negative side effects of noise pollution, there is even more written about the positive impact and benefits of specific types of music, when listened to regularly. Research shows that certain kinds of music can improve self-perception, reduce anxiety, produce a feeling of calm, while increasing creativity and productivity.
Some of the most beneficial music is classical music, such as compositions by Mozart, Bach and Handel. New Age music has also been shown to be helpful, and there are a number of New Age composers who create music for very specific needs such as calming, learning, healing, creativity, success, and even enhancing self-esteem.
Playing the right music throughout your workplace can make a huge difference in the attitude of your employees and their productivity. Just remember, you can control of the selection of the music based on the objectives of the workspace it is used in.
5) Add life to the workplace environment. If your daily routine is filled with computers, big screen communications, iPods, cell phones and other electronic devices, make sure you balance all of that hard, impersonal energy technology with something living. Plants, small indoor trees and aquariums provide great living energy in the workplace.
Choose plants that reach upward (not downward like ivy) to energize the health of the business, the flow of new ideas and income. They should be placed in the east and southeast area of rooms, offices and desks. Make sure they are well cared for at all times and replace them immediately if they look sickly. Aquariums can be any size and shape, and will serve a business well if they have at least eight fish of a golden color and one black fish to absorb any negative energy. If the black fish should perish, replace it immediately. An aquarium’s energy will serve the company best if located in the north or northeast of an entrance or office. It can also be used as a clear spacer between employees to replace cubicle walls.
Employee retention need not be a dilemma in today’s environment. It just needs a different approach. Begin your leadership transformation by being aware of the differences in doing business with a whole generation of new employees - and then creating transformational change through using a few basic Feng Shui principles.
one thing that experts seem to have a unanimous opinion is on the importance of employee retention.
The survey of Michael Page Middle East shows that companies recognise the importance of employee retention, with 94 per cent placing the same or more emphasis on such strategies in comparison to 2010.
“Most are focussing employee retention efforts on developing strong leadership and clear communication strategies, followed by career development & planning and training & development. [However], few will prioritise salary reviews as a way of retaining employees,” the survey elaborated.
“Employee retention is and has always been important for companies to look at. It is imperative for growth, expansion, profitability, business continuity, service delivery consistency and succession planning. However, now the market is picking up, companies need to take extra care to retain their top staff and perhaps look at how up-to-date their retention strategy is,” said Qazi.
“Retention of employees is of key importance to all companies, both in the region and around the world. Facing an ongoing shortage of talent, retention of the qualified employees becomes a challenge but, also a need that should be addressed by each company and should be included as a priority in their HR Strategy,” added Sakellariou.
Matt Gribble, Managing Director of Michael Page Middle East, commented: “We are already seeing a more competitive job market with greater competition for available candidates and greater retention challenges for existing employers. Clients need to adopt proactive recruitment strategies to source the best talent. Whilst demand for quality candidates is increasing it will still be the candidates that differentiate themselves at interview that secure the best jobs. This means applying for roles they are suitably qualified for, being well prepared in terms of company and industry research, being able to provide strong examples of their achievements within the key selection criteria and a clear indication that they understand and are ready for the challenges of the role.”