The Catalyst Vol.12


Quarterly NEWSLETTER July 2012 VOL. 12 Provided By:

Genetic Aberrations Seen as Path to Stop Colon Cancer —nytimes.com More than 200 researchers investigating colon cancer tumors have found genetic vulnerabilities that could lead to powerful new treatments. The hope is that drugs designed to strike these weak spots will eventually stop a cancer that is now almost inevitably fatal once it has spread. Scientists increasingly see cancer as a genetic disease defined not so much by where it starts – colon, liver, brain, breast – but by genetic aberrations that are its Achilles’ heel. And with a detailed understanding of which genetic changes make a cancer grow and thrive, they say they can figure out how best to mount an attack. They caution that most of the drugs needed to target the colon cancer mutations have yet to be developed, but they say they are building the road map that they hope will lead them to new treatments. Read More Temps: 3 Reasons to Hire Them Right Now —forbes.com Ten years ago, Dan Pink wrote a seminal book predicting that America was becoming a “Free Agent Nation.” Today, depending on whose statistics you believe, anywhere from 10 million to 42 million people in America are now freelancers. Or choose your preferred term: Temps. Contractors. Freelancers. Contingent Workers. Independent Professionals. No matter what you call them, businesses today are getting stuff done with non-permanent talent who have some serious chops. In fact, Harvard Business Review recently reported that 58 percent of companies plan to use temporary employees at all levels over the next few years, and according to the American Staffing Association, U.S. staffing companies employed an average of 2.8 million temporary and contract workers per day in 2011. Read More Steffanie Reyes Senior Recruiter Lab Support, Houston Steffanie joined Lab Support in November 2001 in a Full Desk role, which includes both recruiting and business development responsibilities. She eventually transitioned into a full-time Recruiter role and now is Senior Recruiter at the Houston office. Steffanie has a bachelor of science degree in environmental science with a chemistry focus, and prior to Lab Support worked for an environmental toxicology lab. In her current role as Senior Recruiter, Steffanie has a challenging mix of responsibilities, including: passive/active recruiting; sourcing referrals from clients and former/current employees; conducting résumé seminars to major universities in the area; generating orders; and counseling employees and clients on the job market, technical skills needed, and market outlook. Because she’s a tenured recruiter in this market, clients contact Steffanie for their high-level needs. They know she will send the best qualified candidates, and many times they only need to interview one person because of her great track record of candidates. Clients, candidates, and professors alike reach out to her team to see what the norms are in the industry – they give them the “real” stats. Steffanie loves that she has a true impact on the lives of their candidates who she assists in their careers. She still keeps in touch with many of them and some are now managers who she places new candidates with. She is also gratified that her clients see an undeniable value in working with Lab Support – they save time and money in the long run. When she’s not in the office, Steffanie greatly enjoys spending time with her family (husband and five-year-old daughter) and their French Bulldog; keeping active, especially swimming (to escape the Texas heat); cooking/baking – making healthy, vegetarian comfort food; and relaxing.							Brazil to build first algae-based biofuel plant phys.org Read More USDA Exceeds First Lady's HealthierUS School Challenge Goal usda.gov Read More Device Connectivity Is Key To Health Care IT Revolution medicaldevicestoday.com Read More Alzheimer's reversed? UCI researchers report stem-cell study ocregister.com Read More You May Never Need to Clean Your Car Again, Thanks to New Coating Technology sciencedaily.com Read More The following Industries expect to have an increase in projects that may result in additional contract staff* within the time frames below: 4–6 months: Contract Testing Lab Petrochemical 6–9 months: Environmental Personal Care Products 9–12 months: Chemical Materials Science Food and Beverage *This insight is based on our comprehensive July 2012 survey of contract staffing buyers. The full report is titled, "Lab Support Index." The above results are from the report and are related to buyers' strategies for managing staffing resources. Through our dedicated divisions, On Assignment (NASDAQ: ASGN) has the ability to provide a complete range of staffing solutions to meet the needs of most areas within life sciences. Our Lab Support and On Assignment Engineering divisions fill short- and long-term, contract, contract-to-hire, and direct hire science and engineering positions. While our Sharpstream division offers international executive and middle management retained search services. Through our clinical research division, Valesta, we provide resourcing solutions that include functional outsourcing as well as contract, contract-to-hire, and direct hire options.

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