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Firing blamed on bug: Wrongful-termination lawsuit by St. Francis employee says software installed porn links

Respiratory therapist David Farr claims he lost his job with St. Francis Hospital and Health Centers last year over an infection that never harmed a patient. Hundreds of pornography links found in a computer Farr shared with six other therapists prompted the hospital to fire him. However, Farr said he never knew the links existed, according to a lawsuit he filed in federal court over his dismissal. The therapist blames poor computer security for allowing malicious porn-promoting software from Russia…

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VOICES FROM THE INDUSTRY: Increased export scrutiny requires corporate-wide plan

While federal laws restricting exports of goods and technology have been in existence since the 1940s, companies and individuals have increasingly faced civil and criminal penalties that include millions of dollars in fines, prohibition from future exporting and even prison terms. flagged and identified on the denied party list? Simply put, is the end user of the product or technology identified by the U.S. government as one banned from receiving such technologies? Customer service representatives need to know whether the…

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Golf club member tees off investors: Lawsuit over $7.4M in losses casts light on little-regulated world of penny-stock promotion

By the time he graduated in 1985, Tony Altavilla ranked third in career touchdown receptions at Wabash College in Crawfordsville, an all-male institution that likens itself to the best conservative liberal arts colleges of New England. His star rose again recently, when the member of Carmel’s Crooked Stick Country Club led a committee that helped the Pete Dye-designed course score the 2009 U.S. Senior Open Championship. But the Wabash man and golfing buddy of the affluent now finds himself in…

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Health network leaders pursue big dreams: Advocates: Statewide system for transmitting patient records would improve care

Technology experts, doctors and politicians this week will discuss the possibility of interconnecting the handful of computer networks in Indiana that allow doctors to exchange patient information. They say a network reaching every corner of the state could save money, boost care and reduce medical errors while keeping Indiana at the front of the national pack for this technology. However, none of the health-information network leaders who will convene for a summit this week in Indianapolis expects the network to…

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Geographic restrictions could backfire for PERF: $105 million fund carries lots of potential, risks

By restricting the new $105 million Indiana Investment Fund I to deals within state lines, Gov. Mitch Daniels hopes to simultaneously spur economic development and earn a spectacular return for Indiana’s retired public employees. But venture-capital experts warn it’s nearly impossible to have it both ways. “You need to be very, very clear what your objectives are when you invest [pension] money. Is it for economic development or to help the pensioners earn better pensions?” said John Taylor, vice president…

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RETURN ON TECHNOLOGY: How much freedom is enough? Or too much?

Jams Surowiecki (en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/The_Wisdom_ of_Crowds) would like you to look deeply into your business soul and choose between chaos and high walls. For that matter, so would I. It’s a decision worth thinking about. The right choice could remake your enterprise. The wrong one could, too. Surowiecki is just one of several thinkers pondering whether organizations do better with top-down plans, processes and hierarchies, or with loose controls and chaotic creativity. His book, “The Wisdom of Crowds,” maintains that large…

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Proposed resource center targets science, tech, math: BioCrossroads wants to help build strong foundation Pulling things together

Only 64 percent of Indiana’s fifthgraders passed the latest ISTEP+ test in science. A little better-76 percent-passed the math component. Unfortunately, as children advance in grades, their ISTEP+ math scores worsen. By eighth grade, only 64 percent passed the math portion of the test. Yet, economic development officials in Indiana-and much of the country-want young students to choose to study in college areas of advanced manufacturing, life sciences, informatics, agribusiness and an array of disciplines that require a strong foundation…

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ECONOMIC ANALYSIS: Beware of battles brewing among health care giants

Coming up with simple metaphors and images that faithfully represent the issues involved in the way we pay for health care in our country is a challenge. But one keeps coming to my mind: the kitsch Japanese sci-fi classic “Godzilla vs. Rodan,” where two giant monsters duke it out breathing fire and smashing buildings as the residents of Tokyo quake in fear, waiting to see who will win. Some similarly big battles are brewing in the health care business these…

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DANIELS’ DEAL CLOSERS: IEDC generating jobs, but economy shares part of credit

It would have been big. Just last month, a team of officials from the Indiana Economic Development Corp. and The Indy Partnership, its local equivalent, were furiously negotiating with South Carolinabased fire-engine maker American LaFrance. Intrigued by a mix of economic incentives and Indiana’s central location, American LaFrance considered moving its operations to Marion County. In formal negotiations, the company dangled promises of 653 jobs and a capital investment of $18.5 million. State records don’t reveal what incentives Indiana offered…

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EYE ON THE PIE: Let’s tax phone, Internet, TV usage

Felicity Futenmouth and I went to graduate school together. Her career in economics focused on consumer services provided by such first-class firms as MegaMedia, MegaMarkets and MegaMercenaries. We became reacquainted lately at our class’s 35th reunion. Over a nightcap of hot chocolate and biscuits, she enticed me with a coy question: “How do you feel about local taxes?” “I am all for them,” I responded. “If you don’t have local taxes, you don’t have a strong claim on the responsibility…

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Plug in professionals when tasks seem overwhelming:

Running a small business is daunting, to say the least. Small-business owners wear many hats and are expected to be a master of everything: from hiring workers to coordinating group health coverage, from developing marketing materials to hitting sales goals, from assessing technology needs to making tax and insurance payments, from issuing invoices to paying vendors-all while keeping an eye on cash flow. Whew. Larger businesses may rely on individuals or entire departments responsible for each task. For small-business owners,…

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RETURN ON TECHNOLOGY: RFID security not as secure as you think it is

I work in a building that makes me use a cardkey to get into the building’s back stairway. I can’t even use a physical key. I must use the card I was issued. I fumble for the thing every morning. One morning, to my astonishment, I noticed that if I pushed hard enough on the door as I opened it, it would hit the end of its travel and thereafter stand open by itself. The first person through in the…

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Entrepreneurs keep day jobs: Moonlighting helps owners mitigate startup risks

Inventions at various stages of development are scattered around Qamar Shafeek’s ranch-style home on Indianapolis’ east side. An unnamed doohickey attached to a curtain rod pulls drapes open and shut along with the sliding glass door. A voice box gadget tells the single father when the garage or side doors open, alerting him to his children’s comings and goings. And a plastic pinwheel with tennis balls attached to the ends is making its way from a napkin-sketch idea to a…

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VIEWPOINT: To be a logistics leader, state needs a plan

Indiana is poised to become the country’s logistics center. Recently, there has been a lot of discussion on that topic. Now is the time for business, government and education to come together and make it happen. SupplyNet 2006-the recent statewide conference that brought together not only transportation, distribution and logistics industries, but also representatives from manufacturing, retail, information technology, government and academia-detailed the broader picture of supplychain management. As a cutting-edge business strategy, supply-chain management integrates internal and external logistics…

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Good banking relationship can help business:

Capital is the lifeblood of any business. But fresh infusions of money are particularly important for startup and small businesses, since they often can’t fund new equipment, employees or facilities out of their cash reserves or profits. The top three sources of new capital for small business are owner’s equity (33 percent) bank loans (20 percent) and trade credit (15 percent). Let’s focus on bank loans and simple ways that small-business owners can improve their chances of getting a loan…

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My Favorite Cigar Bar: Bar offers stogies with its scotch Liquor license helped cigar store attract customers who may linger

“Cheers” in Brownsburg? Regulars at My Favorite Cigar Bar say it’s just like that fictional Boston watering hole “where everybody knows your name”-or like it would have been if Cheers had sold cigars as well as drinks. Hendricks County’s version of the popular pub occupies an old-fashioned brick storefront at 36 E. Main St. The brainchild of Brownsburg couple Bruce and Lisa Freestone, it is-as the name suggests-both a bar and cigar shop. “We’re the only such cigar store in…

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Mira banquet honors excellence in Hoosier high tech: TechPoint awards often precede market success

TechPoint’s Mira Awards, which were to be handed out May 19, celebrate excellence in Hoosier innovation. The annual awards banquet also serves as a pretty good bellwether of who’s poised for a big payday. For example, TechPoint honored Indianapolis-based medical device-maker Suros Surgical Systems Inc. with a Mira award three years before Massachusettsbased Hologic Inc. acquired Suros for $240 million in April. In 2003, TechPoint also recognized Carmel-based banking software-maker Baker-Hill. California-based Experian bought Baker-Hill last August for an undisclosed…

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Area construction employment surging: Workers stay busy as industry experiences 15 consecutive months of job growth

Building tradesmen in central Indiana don’t need a mind-numbing jobs report to tell them construction workers are in high demand. They need not look any further than their apprentice programs and union halls to gauge the industry’s health. The way the barometer works is simple: Full apprentice classes mean contractors are hiring and empty union halls mean they’re working. “When the benches are empty, that’s a good thing,” said Mike Kerr, a principal at locally based contractor F.A. Wilhelm Construction…

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WEB REVIEW: Is e-mail marketing the answer for you?

If you’re running a business, there’s a good chance you’ve been frustrated with marketing. You’ve spent time and money on ads here and there, but the results were unpredictable-or worse-questionable. You’re in the phone book because you feel you have to be, but the cost goes up year after year. Word of mouth works, but it’s too slow. Direct mail works, but it’s too expensive. Radio and TV are difficult to do well and nearly impossible to track for results….

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Stadium architect beats ‘dark horse’ status: Experience with other sports arenas wins HKS first pro football project

The imprint HKS Inc. will leave on the city with its design of the new Indianapolis Colts stadium will reshape downtown for years to come. But the high-profile project is also significant for the Dallas-based architectural firm because it represents the first time HKS has designed a professional football arena. Any questions the selection team might have had about the firm’s credentials were quickly put to rest, however. “[They] came and visited and said, ‘When you guys start looking for…

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