Crain's Chicago Business articles from May 2003

Crain's Chicago Business archives from May 2003

Slow market rebound delays GATX recovery.(Annual Meetings)(GATX Corp.'s CEO Ronald Zech)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2003... Byline: James B. Arndorfer At GATX Corp.'s annual meeting last year, CEO Ronald Zech predicted the airplane and rail car lessor's business outlook would rebound in 2003. He revised that prediction in his remarks at this year's annual...

Big Ed's second act: power broker; Brennan stars in boardroom dramas.(News)(AMR Corp.'s Edward A. Brennan )
May 5, 2003... Byline: STEVE DANIELS It's been eight years since Edward A. Brennan unceremoniously retired as chairman of Sears, Roebuck and Co. following a stormy decade at the Big Store. Mr. Brennan's tenure is still subject to the judgment of...

Aon insiders tap into IPO controversy; Corporate governance experts are crying foul.(News)(Aon Chairman and CEO Patrick G. Ryan makes $17 mn investment in insurance company)
May 5, 2003... Byline: ALBY GALLUN Several Chicago corporate titans have found a way to earn a lot more than directors' fees for sitting on Aon Corp.'s board. As the Chicago-based insurance company helped launch a new Bermuda-based reinsurance...

O'Hare controllers, feds weigh safety; NTSB will not investigate until it gets more info.(News)(air traffic control system in Chicago)
May 5, 2003... Byline: PAUL MERRION The National Transportation Safety Board is holding off on any investigations of the air traffic control system in the Chicago area until it gets a formal request to intervene. Last week, the union for air traffic...

Profile: Homebuilder's new president finds land acquisition his biggest challenge.(Real Estate)(William Ryan Homes searches for subdivision sites)
May 5, 2003... Byline: BOB TITA The hardest part of Michael Hardin's job isn't building houses; it's finding land to build them on. The newly promoted president of the Chicago-area North division of William Ryan Homes is scouting subdivision sites as...

FMC Tech drills deep to offset aviation slump.(Annual Meetings)(deep-sea rigs firm reports earnings)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2003... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY Deep-sea oil exploration and production are buoying the results at FMC Technologies Inc. The Chicago company is the world's biggest builder of deep-sea rigs (priced at about $7 million), with nearly one-fourth of...

Industry disarray spells opportunity for Navigant.(Annual Meetings)(consulting industry struggling)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2003... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY Turmoil in the consulting industry last year led to some opportunistic deal-making for Chicago-based Navigant Consulting Inc. In 2002, the company paid about $48 million in cash and stock for a series of...

Tech Solutions seeking security in federal work.(Annual Meetings)(Technology Solutions Co. bids on Homeland Security contracts)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2003... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY With demand for technology consulting from the private-sector still soft, Technology Solutions Co. is hoping to land some government work. The company recently started a federal government consulting practice...

A white elephant tramples Harvard; Burb's tough sell: closed Motorola plant.(News)(cell phone manufacturing and distribution plant shut down)
May 5, 2003... Byline: BOB TITA The silence these days at Motorola Inc.'s Harvard plant is broken only by mowers, commandeered by landscapers who continue to cut the lawns surrounding acres of empty parking lots and vacant gray buildings with green glass...

Wheels wobbling at Chico's law firm; Altheimer cuts back, seeks merger amid client woes and partner defections.(News)(searching for a merger partner )
May 5, 2003... Byline: STEVEN R. STRAHLER Everything is on the table at Altheimer & Gray. Hit by a downdraft in client work, the Chicago-based law firm headed by politically ambitious Gery Chico is slashing jobs and salaries, withdrawing offers to...

Quote of the Week.(Quotes)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2003... Ed works like a dog. Exelon CEO John W. Rowe on the style of director Edward A. Brennan PAGE 1

Late News.(Illinois legislators to pass laws on telecommunications market)
May 5, 2003... TELECOM SHOWDOWN ON DOCKET THIS WEEK Illinois regulators and legislators will vote this week on two measures that could dramatically alter the competitive landscape of the state's telecommunications market. In a special joint committee...

Yucaipa's first in line for Dominick's.(News)(Dominick's Finer Foods may be sold by Safeway)
May 5, 2003... Byline: JAMES B. ARNDORFER More than four years after selling Dominick's Finer Foods at a premium, California-based Yucaipa Cos. LLC is emerging as the leading candidate to buy back the troubled supermarket chain from Safeway Inc. ...

Datebook.(Calendar/Datebook)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2003... WEEK OF MAY 5 MAY 5: Career Resource Center Inc. presents Resume Preparation and Presentation. 10:15 a.m. Career Resource Center, Grove Cultural Campus, 40 E. Old Mill Road, Suite 105, Lake Forest. Free. (847) 295-5626. MAY 6: Career...

Real Estate Review: Industrial vacancies climb as manufacturers struggle.(Real Estate)(Chicago's industrial property market)
May 5, 2003... Byline: ALBY GALLUN The Chicago-area industrial property market continued to bounce along the bottom in the first quarter amid a slumping economy and war jitters. The overall vacancy rate for industrial space in the nearly 1...

Executive Moves.(People)(Ernst & Young's new director of investment advisory services group )
May 5, 2003... CONSUMER SERVICES Paul Zalatoris, 42, to president at Sport Source International Inc. in Clarendon Hills, from global business director at Wilson Sporting Goods Co. FINANCIAL SERVICES Brad Szczecinski, 36, to director of the...

PROPPING UP BUSINESS: Heavier lifting; Contractors must work harder to get fewer jobs.(Real Estate)(Chicago-area construction companies face struggle)
May 5, 2003... Byline: ALBY GALLUN After feasting during the late 1990s building boom, Chicago-area construction companies are hungry again. Amid a slumping economy and a glut of office, industrial and hotel space, contractors and subcontractors are...

Saving Sara Lee: It's time to make tough decisions.(Opinion)(doesn't expect to meet earnings expectations)
May 5, 2003... Sara Lee Corp.'s fading fortunes are a puzzle, especially considering the Chicago company's well-known consumer brands like Hanes, Playtex, Jimmy Dean meats and, yes, Sara Lee cheesecake. But during the tenure of CEO C. Steven McMillan, the...

New Borg CEO aims to drive overseas biz.(People)(BorgWarner Inc.'s new chief executive officer, Timothy Manganello )
May 5, 2003... Byline: KELLY QUIGLEY As Timothy Manganello settles into the chief executive role at BorgWarner Inc., he's counting on new technology and rising overseas sales to offset weaker demand from U.S. automakers. Mr. Manganello, 53, a 14-year...

MB Financial pushing ahead with acquisitions.(Annual Meetings)(net income reached $46.4 million in 2002)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2003... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY The deal-making continues at MB Financial Inc., one of the most aggressive bank acquirers in the local market. Chicago-based MB followed up its 2001 merger with Mid-City Financial Corp. with the acquisitions last...

To win feds' transportation cash, hit ground running.(Opinion)(multiyear funding legislation for public transportation)
May 5, 2003... Byline: Douglas L. Whitley Congress is about to undertake one of its most important legislative missions of the decade, and the outcome will have a great impact on Illinois' economic viability. Federal legislators are starting to...

Arthritis drug holds key to Abbott uptick.(Annual Meetings)(Abbott Laboratories' new rheumatoid arthritis drug, Humira)
May 5, 2003... Byline: SARAH A. KLEIN Abbott Laboratories is counting on its blockbuster rheumatoid arthritis drug Humira and a hoped-for full-scale reopening of its Lake County manufacturing plant to bridge a dry spell in its drug development efforts...

Before Carty fouled out, he talked a good game.(Commentary)(AMR Corp.'s CEO Don Carty forced to resign)
May 5, 2003... Byline: Joe Cappo If you have any question about AMR Corp. CEO Don Carty deserving his forced resignation from the parent of American Airlines, you probably did not hear this: "As you would expect under the circumstances, we've been...

BANKRUPT UAL GETTING SET TO HIRE; Early retirements may deplete ranks this summer.(News)(several thousand employees to retire by June 30th)
May 5, 2003... Byline: PAUL MERRION The new labor agreements at United Airlines are expected to generate thousands of early retirements by June 30, leading the beleaguered carrier to cautiously start hiring again after laying off almost a third of its...

Trademark pizza at this city trattoria, er, bistro.(Dining/Restaurant Review)(North Side restaurant called Bella Vista)
May 5, 2003... Byline: ANNE SPISELMAN Dan and Linda Bacin have made a name for themselves with Bacino's pizza, and they used to have a lovely North Side restaurant called Bella Vista. Now they've renovated their downtown pizzeria, added upscale menu...

Pfizer to shut Skokie plant.(Briefs)(1,500 jobs in Skokie will be shifted)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2003... A plant closing in Skokie stands to wipe out the last vestiges of the local G. D. Searle & Co. pharmaceutical empire. New York-based drugmaker Pfizer Inc., which acquired the facility when it completed its $60-billion purchase of Searle owner...

Chicago Observer: Going to the well one more time: Brennan's in yet another thicket.(Briefs)(AMR Corp.'s new chairman, Edward A. Brennan )
May 5, 2003... Byline: Steven R. Strahler With Edward A. Brennan top of the news again-the former Sears Roebuck & Co. chairman last month was named chairman of troubled American Airlines' parent AMR Corp.-a lawsuit filed in Elkhorn, Wis., seems more...

State biz agency thinking smaller; Budget, goals shrink at DCEO.(News)(Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity new Director, Jack Lavin)
May 5, 2003... Byline: GREG HINZ First it was too fat. Then too lean. Then too fat again. Can they finally get it just right? That's the challenge at the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity as newly installed Director Jack...

Slowdown in apartment market tugging at Amli.(Annual Meetings)(poor economy, low interest rates prompt people to buy not rent )(Brief Article)
May 5, 2003... Byline: ALBY GALLUN Hammered by the slumping apartment market, Amli Residential Properties Trust says it will make enough money this year to pay its dividend-barely. The sluggish economy and low interest rates-which encourage people...

Pension costs don't dim Fortune's profit outlook.(Annual Meetings)(Fortune Brands Inc. expects double-digit earnings growth)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2003... Byline: JAMES B. ARNDORFER Fortune Brands Inc., which makes products from Titleist golf balls to Jim Beam bourbon, is predicting that the soft economy and rising pension costs won't derail its double-digit earnings growth. CEO Norman...

New wrapper, new woes; Mail Boxes franchisees fret over UPS changeover.(News)
May 5, 2003... Byline: KEVIN DAVIS Mail Boxes Etc. franchise owners are about to find out whether doing business under the UPS name will deliver better profits or send customers packing elsewhere. More than 3,000 of the 3,300 Mail Boxes Etc. stores...

Spike in costs squeezes profit margins at Stepan.(Annual Meetings)(Stepan's net earnings fell 40% to $2.3 mn)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2003... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY Lower raw material costs last year benefited specialty chemicals producer Stepan Co. This year, those costs have reversed course, squeezing profits. In the first quarter, Northfield-based Stepan's net earnings...

'Think young' is mantra for Trib brand VP.(News)(Tribune's new vice-president of brand management)
May 5, 2003... Byline: MARY ELLEN PODMOLIK Crain News Service James Ellis sees himself as an adman, and if his latest assignment at Tribune Co. yields the anticipated results, the company's newspapers will attract younger readers and the advertisers that...

Dialing up greater effort to end sexual harassment.(Opinion)( Dial Corp. settles EEOC $10 million class-action lawsuit)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2003... Every company has made its share of bum hires. If employees prove lazy or incompetent, management fires them. And a similar fate awaits workers-no matter how nice or well-behaved-who just aren't up to the job. Unfortunately, corporate...

Conventions.(Calendar/Datebook)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2003... WEEK OF MAY 5 May 5-6: United Nations/World Bank Procurement Opportunities, Hilton Chicago, estimated attendance 1,000. May 6-7: Chicago Gift and Home Sample Sale, Merchandise Mart, estimated attendance 1,500. May 6-9: Consumer...

Region needs the freedom to trade in Central America.(Opinion)(free-trade agreement with 5 countries in Central America)
May 5, 2003... Byline: Marc J. Lane President George W. Bush is leading a brand-new "coalition of the willing.'' Once again, its troops are under fire and, once again, they deserve our unconditional support. The president has opened negotiations to...

Gambling foray's a good bet for Wells-Gardner.(Annual Meetings)(Wells-Gardner Electronics Corp. )(Brief Article)
May 5, 2003... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY A bet on the gambling industry is paying off for Wells-Gardner Electronics Corp. Ten years ago, when CEO Anthony Spier arrived, it was a manufacturer of video terminals for the amusement arcade market, but under...

Daley-Evans connection isn't merely ceremonial.(Opinion)(history of relationship between judge Timothy J. Evans and Mayor Richard M. Daley)
May 12, 2003... Byline: Joel Weisman The honorable Timothy J. Evans of the Circuit Court of Cook County asked Mayor Richard M. Daley to raise his right hand the other day and swore the mayor into his fifth term. It was about as friendly, jovial and...

Exelon turns to cost cuts to grow profits; During slump, acquisitions too risky.(News)(Company Profile)
May 12, 2003... Byline: STEVE DANIELS With its acquisitive ambitions sidelined by a slumping electricity market, Exelon Corp. is turning to a more painful form of profit growth-cost-cutting. Since its 2000 merger with Philadelphia-based Peco Energy...

AmEx offering credit lines through SBA.(Small Business)(American Express Co.; Small Business Administration)(Brief Article)
May 12, 2003... American Express Co., which over the past several years has been increasing its products aimed at entrepreneurs, is now joining the U.S. Small Business Administration lending program. The New York-based financial services giant will offer...

Long odds for mayor's casino play; Plan faces legal, financial hurdles.(News)(Richard M. Daley pushes for casino in Chicago, Illinois)
May 12, 2003... Byline: BOB TITA If Mayor Richard M. Daley gets his way, Chicago would become the first U.S. city to own a casino. It's a distinction that's drawing more questions than accolades at the moment. A decade after his last push to put a...

O'Hare bill goes to House floor.(Briefs)(Illinois House Executive Committee passes bill related to airport expansion)(Brief Article)
May 12, 2003... The Illinois House Executive Committee passed a bill that would clear the way for the city of Chicago to acquire property for a $6.6-billion expansion of O'Hare International Airport, and to move forward with the project essentially free of...

SARS outbreak sapping Motorola's energy.(News)(Brief Article)
May 12, 2003... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY A deadly virus threatens to undercut the nascent recovery in Motorola Inc.'s markets. On May 1, International Data Corp. in Framingham, Mass., reported that global sales of cellular telephone handsets spurted a...

Quote of the Week.(Quotes)(Brief Article)
May 12, 2003... I've lost everything; it's over and that's it. Divine Inc. investor Aleksander Szlam PAGE 1

Late News.(includes retail vacancy rate declines)
May 12, 2003... APARTMENT MARKET HEATING UP HERE Amid a booming real estate market, four local apartment complexes are set to change hands in transactions worth a combined $227 million. Chicago-based Alliance Holdings LLC has agreed to buy Stonegate...

Profile: Dot.com executive gets mileage from expediting visa application process.(Technology)(VisaNow.com Inc. founder and President Robert Meltzer)(Company Profile)
May 12, 2003... It was never about eyeballs. For founder and President Robert Meltzer, VisaNow.com Inc. was all about the need-and therefore a business opportunity-to streamline the cumbersome paper chase involved in visa applications. His...

Navy seeks bidders to keep house; Great Lakes job valued at $100 mil.(News)(Great Lakes Naval Training Center maintenance contract on offer)
May 12, 2003... Byline: PAUL MERRION Now hear this: The U.S. Navy is taking bids from private firms to maintain the Great Lakes Naval Training Center. With 1,628 acres, 1,153 buildings and 50 miles of roads, keeping the sprawling military base 35...

Looking to buy battered Bauer on the cheap; L. L. Bean first in line, others expected.(News)(Eddie Bauer could be acquired by L.L. Bean Inc.)
May 12, 2003... Byline: ALBY GALLUN As distressed merchandise goes, Spiegel Inc.'s Eddie Bauer chain looks like an enticing purchase for L. L. Bean Inc. Yet it will take some sharp tailoring to create a good fit-assuming that Bean wins what could be a...

Chicago Observer: All of them will now claim credit for putting hizzoner over the top.(Briefs)(fund raiser for Mayor Richard M. Daley discussed)
May 12, 2003... Byline: steven r strahler A fund-raiser for Mayor Richard M. Daley-as if he needed another one-is set this week at a rather offbeat venue: Manny's Coffee Shop & Deli. Its Roosevelt Road locale is more familiar to the discount crowd who...

Changing demographics shrink Enesco's base.(Annual Meetings)(Enesco Group Inc.)(Brief Article)
May 12, 2003... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY Revenues at Enesco Group Inc. are shrinking as the collectibles supplier searches for new customers. The small independent gift shops that have been the mainstay of Itasca-based Enesco's business have been in...

Edgar's Kemper woes; Insurer's fate a factor in ex-guv's call.(News)(Jim Edgar; Kemper Insurance Cos.)
May 12, 2003... Byline: GREG HINZ and STEVE DANIELS The financial collapse of a storied local firm, and former Gov. Jim Edgar's connection to it, are contributing factors in Mr. Edgar's abrupt decision not to run for the U.S. Senate. Mr. Edgar on...

Driving schools teach immigrants rules of road.(Small Business)
May 12, 2003... Byline: JOHN T. SLANIA A good place to get a sense of Chicago's vast cultural diversity is at one of the many private schools teaching immigrants to drive. They come from India, Mexico, Poland, Russia and South Korea, among other...

Spamming hits the bottom line; Unwanted e-mails cost time, money.(Small Business)(Industry Overview)
May 12, 2003... Byline: BILL CLEMENTS It's a good bet most entrepreneurs are underestimating the cost of junk e-mail. Estimates of the financial impact of spam-in lost employee productivity for opening and deleting unsolicited e-mails and in system...

EASY ACCESS IS NORM: Security check; Hospitals haven't filled Rx for high-tech measures.(Technology)(Industry Overview)
May 12, 2003... Byline: SARAH A. KLEIN Hospitals-like health care itself-are part reality, part illusion. They exist to treat real ailments but are sometimes misperceived as places where patient care always takes priority over cash and mistakes never...

Minuteman goes east to stay cost-competitive.(Annual Meetings)(Minuteman International Inc.)(Brief Article)
May 12, 2003... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY Minuteman International Inc. is looking abroad to maintain its pricing edge. In a bid to trim costs and fatten profit margins, President and CEO Gregory J. Rau said before the recent annual meeting that the...

Executive Moves.(People)
May 12, 2003... CONSUMER SERVICES Timothy O'Brien, 40, to president of the retail group at Vienna Beef Co., from senior vice-president of the retail sales group. Also, Jeff Oziemkowski, 42, to president of the Chipico Pickle Co. division, from senior...

A better read on Naperville; Dailies jockeying for circulation in affluent suburb.(News)
May 12, 2003... Byline: JEREMY MULLMAN After booming for more than two decades, Naperville has grown itself into a news battleground. When the Chicago Tribune ended its Naperville-specific zoned section in March, the Arlington Heights-based Daily...

Chicago debut costly for U.S. Cellular.(News)
May 12, 2003... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY Start-up costs for its entry into the Chicago market are squeezing U.S. Cellular Corp. Last August, U.S. Cellular spent some $618 million to acquire the PrimeCo Wireless Communications LLC franchise in the Chicago...

Self-employed stung in search for insurance; Health coverage tougher to find at affordable rates.(Small Business)
May 12, 2003... Byline: LISA BERTAGNOLI Ellen Malloy, a trained chef and restaurant publicist, has no trouble recruiting new clients. Finding a new health insurer has been a different story. Ms. Malloy was insured under a group policy when the...

For USG's CEO, bankruptcy paying off.(News)(USG Corp.'s CEO William C. Foote is discussed)(Company Profile)
May 12, 2003... Byline: JAMES B. ARNDORFER Bankruptcy Court has turned out to be a surprisingly comfortable place for USG Corp. CEO William C. Foote and other top executives of the Chicago-based wallboard maker. Last year, USG paid Mr. Foote a...

A town-gown venture sows seeds of change.(Commentary)(Evanston, Illinois discussed)
May 12, 2003... Byline: Joe Cappo The first of two parts Even though Evanston has been hemmed in for years, it has recently added acreage to its tax rolls without annexation, and-as a byproduct-ended up with a regenerated and vibrant downtown. ...

Work-at-home-fathers becoming less unusual; New technologies allow more dads to avoid the office.(Small Business)
May 12, 2003... Byline: JENNIFER MARTIN It was one of those years Joe Feldmann recalls with amusement, though he certainly wasn't laughing at the time. Mr. Feldmann, then a CPA, and his wife, a physician, decided to keep their full-time jobs after...

Asian market infuses life into Littelfuse's revenues.(Annual Meetings)(Brief Article)
May 12, 2003... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY A move to cut costs by moving production to Asia has produced a sales bounce for Littelfuse Inc. In the first quarter, sales at Des Plaines-based Littelfuse, a maker of power-regulating fuses, saw sales in the...

Over the long haul, rival's demise is benefiting USF.(Annual Meetings)(Brief Article)
May 12, 2003... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY The liquidation last year of Consolidated Freightways Corp. in Vancouver, Wash., is lifting results at USF Corp., the Chicago trucking firm that changed its name from USFreightways Corp. at its May 2 annual meeting....

Investors angry over Flip's flops; Tech entrepreneur faces a steep climb back after Divine's stunning collapse shreds his credibility.(News)(Andrew "Flip'' Filipowski )
May 12, 2003... Byline: JULIE JOHNSSON The first time Andrew "Flip'' Filipowski lost a company, his ouster played out as farce. When an estranged business partner appeared at Naperville-based DBMS Inc. on a March morning in 1987 with armed security...

Driving ambitions; Entrepreneurs slipping behind the wheel as high schools cut driver's ed.(Small Business)
May 12, 2003... Byline: JOHN T. SLANIA Lauren Rennecker wants to get her driver's license when she turns 16 this summer, but her high school's driver's education program has placed a speed bump in her path. Limited class size means Ms. Rennecker can't...

Analysts still wary, but investors forgiving Nicor.(Annual Meetings)(Brief Article)
May 12, 2003... Byline: STEVE DANIELS Nicor Inc.'s stock price is creeping back up nine months after revelations of an accounting scandal sent shares plummeting. "I make no excuses for what happened,'' Chairman and CEO Thomas Fisher said at the...

Trib ready to shed FCC restrictions.(Annual Meetings)(Tribune Co.)
May 12, 2003... Byline: JEREMY MULLMAN With the advertising market in recovery and expenses slashed, Tribune Co. is turning its attention to regulatory matters. CEO Dennis J. FitzSimons hopes this will be the year that regulators at the Federal...

Insuring Aon investors against directors' deals.(Opinion)(Company Profile)
May 12, 2003... Some directors of insurance powerhouse Aon Corp. are making the most of their insider status at the company. It's a disturbing practice that should immediately be halted. The question is: Will Aon do the right thing and stop it? As Crain's...

A cushier taxi ride; New venture to challenge powers Checker and Yellow.(News)
May 12, 2003... Byline: GREG HINZ A taxi company that promises a more comfortable ride is about to hit the streets, posing the biggest challenge in decades to Chicago's long-dominant cab franchises. Chicago Carriage Cab Co., run by a Russian emigre...

Prepare before deciding to fly solo.(Small Business)(launching home businesses)
May 12, 2003... Byline: JENNIFER MARTIN After watching colleagues launch home businesses, many full-time workers may be tempted to fly solo. But for those who don't plan to become telecommuters with full-time salaries, the decision requires careful...

City's not just tilting at windmills; Field Museum testing prototype.(News)
May 12, 2003... Byline: BRIAN McCORMICK Tapping into Mayor Richard Daley's pledge to allocate at least 20% of the city's energy bill to renewable sources within the next five years, at least two projects aim to make Chicago the first U.S. city to generate...

Seeking heavenly returns? Go hire a church manager.(Opinion)
May 12, 2003... Byline: Lester Munson Whether it's a school district or a non-profit or a trade group, there's an inevitable moment of frustration in every meeting when someone says, "We should be running this thing like a business.'' A couple of people...

Conventions.(Calendar/Datebook)(Calendar)
May 12, 2003... WEEK OF MAY 12 May 12-15: Society of Manufacturing Engineers, Hyatt Regency Chicago, estimated attendance 2,000. May 13-14: North American Rink Conference and Expo, Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, estimated attendance 1,000. ...

USG bankruptcy makes perks harder to swallow.(Opinion)(Brief Article)
May 19, 2003... The payment of retention bonuses to the CEO of USG Corp. and other top executives borders on abuse of the bankruptcy process. The maker of wallboard filed for Chapter 11 protection two years ago in the face of mounting asbestos liabilities....

How Earnings Are Calculated.(News)
May 19, 2003... The format Crain's Chicago Business uses to forecast earnings of Chicago-area companies is produced in conjunction with Thomson Financial, a unit of Canada-based Thomson Corp. Using its database of analysts' estimates, Thomson Financial...

Book discounter dons new cover; Glenview to test traditional format.(News)(National Book Warehouse Inc.)
May 19, 2003... Byline: JOHN T. SLANIA National Book Warehouse Inc. is known mostly as a discount seller of leftover inventory from publishers and retailers. Its no-frills stores peddle titles for up to 80% off list price. Publishers and mainstream...

Quote of the Week.(Quotes)
May 19, 2003... The money boys got together and got their way. Political observer Charles Wheeler on the power of big business in Springfield PAGE 4

Late News.(local briefs)
May 19, 2003... ILLINOIS COALITION SPENDING PROBED The Blagojevich administration is scrutinizing several years' worth of state grants managed by the Illinois Coalition, and the non-profit technology promotion group says it is facing upwards of $300,000...

Phone rivals court a legal donnybrook; SBC rivals want order blocking price hike.(News)
May 19, 2003... Byline: JULIE JOHNSSON The courtroom battle over whole-sale telephone rates in Illinois promises to be as drawn-out and complex as the General Assembly's action in doubling those rates 10 days ago was quick and clean. New York-based...

Ailing stock exchange mulls shift in control; New leaders seeking to broaden ownership.(News)(Chicago Stock Exchange)
May 19, 2003... Byline: STEVEN R. STRAHLER With seat prices off more than 90% and trading volume also down sharply, the money-losing Chicago Stock Exchange is proving the adage that nothing concentrates the mind like a hanging. This week, the exchange...

When ad agencies don't care, it's clients who suffer.(Opinion)
May 19, 2003... Byline: Rance Crain I've always held the view that the creative department was the only part of an advertising agency that doesn't believe in selling. Now I learn that the rest of the agency isn't very good at it, either. We all know...

Earnings rebound bypasses local biz; Woes of heavy industry weigh down region.(News)
May 19, 2003... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY As profits return to companies around the country, the industrial heavyweights that dominate Chicago's economy are still waiting. While net income at the companies making up the Standard & Poor's 500 Index is...

Newell Rubbermaid aims to seal in sales growth.(Annual Meetings)
May 19, 2003... Byline: James B. Arndorfer After two years of cutting production costs, dumping laggard business lines and pumping up marketing, Newell Rubbermaid Inc. is showing some sales growth. Sales excluding acquisitions and divestitures rose 3%...