Nearly half of workers in the United States have indicated that their relationship with their boss has been negatively affected by the economic recession, according to the recent Spherion Staffing Services Snapshot survey. This is a surprising aftershock from the recession and with bosses’ day approaching, not much is to be celebrated. Almost three-quarters of workers have indicated that the recession has weakened their relationship with their boss.

Monster conducted the 2010 Boss Day Survey for Spherion Staffing. In addition, the survey also indicated that more than 34 percent of employees say they are either somewhat or very dissatisfied with the relationship they have with their boss. The two biggest issues found was that bosses offer very little support with career development and there is continued eroded trust caused by the boss.

Bosses are not only falling short in support of career development, but in many cases they are hindering their employees’ progress. Thirty-eight percent of workers said that their boss is uncaring when it comes to their career development and almost a quarter said that the attitude from their boss has changed since the recession. Almost half of employees have also said that their boss often takes credit for their work or have thrown them under to bus in order to save him- or herself.

In regards to trust, many workers believe that their bosses have not been forthright and honest about job security. The study shows that about one in four workers feel as those their boss has been dishonest and more than half feel that their boss does not respect them as an equal professional.

DENVER -The leading worldwide provider of distribution facilities, ProLogis, recently announced that it has come to a definitive agreement with the affiliates of Blackstone Real Estate Advisors. The agreement is to sell a North American industrial portfolio which has minority interest in hotel property and interests of its property funds. The total purchase price will be $1.02 billion.

Approximately $600 million is expected to generate more than $1.6 billion of gross proceeds from the combination of this transaction along with year-to-date dispositions and contributions. Blackstone Real Estate Advisors previously announced that its 2010 expectation would be $1.3 to $1.5 billion. All net proceeds will be used in repayment of debt and to fund development activity.

Prologis’ assets that are being sold to Blackstone include a portfolio of nearly 180 industrial properties in North America. It also includes the minority interest in the Hilton New Orleans Riverside and the 20 percent interested in ProLogis North American Property Funds. Subject to customary closing conditions, the sales are expected to close in mid-November of 2010.

ProLogis will have retained preferred equity interest in the entity that is acquiring the PLD Industrial Portfolio which is about $190 million. ProLogis will earn a return at an annual rate of 7 percents for the first three years, 8 percent for the fourth year, and 10 percent thereafter until it is redeemed. At Blackstone’s discretion, partial or full redemption can occur at any time. Around $910 million of the purchase price was assigned to the PLD Industrial Portfolio.

Recently announced, ICV Partners has invested in Mallet & Company. ICV Partners is a private investment firm which is focused on investing in smaller middle market companies. Mallet & Company is a leading manufacturer of oils, ingredients and equipment used in the bakery industry.

The chief executive officer of Mallet & Company, Richard Mallet, is partnering with ICV Partners. Mallet’s father founded the company in 1939. The company manufactures advanced bakery solutions which are critical to the successful operation of commercial bakery lines. Mallet & Company primarily sells its products to large commercial bakeries and is based in Carnegie, Pennsylvania.

There are three key products that are sold by Mallet & Company. Those products include release agents, which are oil formulations used to coat baking pans and coat trays; equipment solutions such as automated oilers and greasers that spray release agents over trays and pans evenly and consistently; and, specialty ingredients such as emulsifiers, shortenings, and icing stabilizers.

The managing Director at ICV Partners, Ira Moreland, stated that “Our goal is to leverage their technological edge to grow the business and expand throughout North America and beyond. Mallet has a history of customer focused product innovation and a robust product development pipeline. ”

ICV Partners continue to show their successful through the acquisition of family owned businesses such as Entertainment Cruises and Marshall Retail Group. ICV has also acquired another commercial bakery company, Sterling Foods, which is the leading manufacturer of extended shelf life snack food and bakery products sold to the military.

A self managed real estate investment trust, Healthcare Trust of America, Inc. (HTA), recently announced that it has entered into a $200 million unsecured credit agreement. The administrative agent of this deal is JP Morgan Chase, N.A. and the syndication agents are Wells Fargo, N.A. and Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. The credit agreement is for an unsecured revolving credit facility with an initial term of 12 months with two and three month extension options.

The maximum principal amount can be increased by an additional $200 million after subject to financing being provided by the existing lenders or new lenders according to the terms of the credit agreement.

This agreement is reflective of HTA’s strong financial fundamentals and secure, stable growth. This credit agreement will allow HTA to have greater flexibility to expand its portfolio and to meet its needs in regards to its working capital. Since the beginning of 2010, HTA has acquired over $344 million in healthcare related and medical office assets including a 1.5 million square foot leasable area.

Healthcare Trust of America, Inc. is a publicly registered and non-traded real estate investment trust. HTA was formed in 2006 and since then has made nearly 70 geographically diverse acquisitions which have been valued at close to $1.8 billion. These acquisitions include 208 buildings and two other real estate assets. Currently, HTA’s portfolio includes 189 medical office buildings, 6 hospitals, 9 skilled nursing and assisted living facilities and 4 other office buildings in 24 states.

Six outstanding properties in Kauai, Hawaii were successfully sold at a live, on-site auction by Concierge Auctions, a New York City based luxury real estate auction firm. Five of the properties are located in a private, gated subdivision in Mali’e Wai and the sixth property is located on the exclusive Kauapea Road and is known as the Villa at Secret Beach. The buyers of these properties were represented by Russell Tucker of Turtle Cove Realty and Tiffany Spencer and Neal Norman of Koa Properties.

George Graham, CEO of Concierge Auctions, said that he was happy to have such a wonderful partnership with Koa Properties and he is very thankful for their completed sales they have had over the past six months. Graham reiterated that their relationship with Koa Properties is evident in the fact that both of the sellers were repeat clients who have been quite happy with the team oriented mentality, skill and enthusiasm of the Concierge team. Graham also said, “Buyers, sellers and agents who have experienced our performance first-hand have come to know our platform as an efficient tool to achieve market value for the most premier properties within a predetermined time-frame.”

Concierge Auctions had an extensive worldwide marketing campaign which resulted in over 90 showings of the properties and 19 bidders from the United States and Canada. The campaign lasted five weeks with aggressive sales efforts, broker outreach and public relations. All of this hard work resulted in nearly 2,000 visits to the auction’s websites from people in over 20 countries and 44 U.S. states led by California, Hawaii, Colorado and New York.

Currently, Concierge Auctions is taking applications from luxury sellers nationwide. The innovative auction platform used by the company offers a 60-day disposition solution from engagement to closing.

A lot on East College Street in downtown Oberlin, Ohio had been abandoned and vacant since the 1960s and has now been turned into a green mixed-used development. This development was made possible by the developer Sustainable Community Associate, Inc. and by a $5 million Net Markets Tax Credit allocation provided by Enterprise Community Investment, Inc. and a $9.75 million New Markets Credit allocation from MBS Urban Initiatives.

A subsidiary of U.S. Bank, U.S. Bancorp Community Development Corporation, provided the critical equity investment in both of the tax credit allocations. This development is the first main real estate investment in downtown Oberlin in more than 40 years.

This Oberlin development site features 32 residential units with 11 apartments which are reserved for people earning up to 60 percent of the area median income and 19 of the units are for sale. Four for sale commercial unites and more than 18,000 square feet of office and retail rental are also available with the development. In addition, this development is expected to create 30 jobs due to the new employment opportunities in the commercial space.

The Enterprise Community Loan Fund provided financing of $675,000 for pre-development and acquisition. The other sources of financing included funding from a local philanthropist and a HUD Special Project Grant. Oberlin College and other local organizations supported the project developer and helped to secure $1.4 million in tax increment financing. The tax increment financing will help to fund infrastructure improvements.

Lorain County has experienced growth in personal income and population despite the fact that the Cleveland Metropolitan area has seen a population decline over the past five years. Oberlin’s historic downtown district includes Oberlin College, Allen Art Museum, and the world class Oberlin Conservatory of Music.

For the past year, there have been an increasing number of Fortune 1000 board members becoming CEOs of the companies whose board they serve. From July 1, 2009 to the present, nine board directors have stepped in as permanent CEOs which is more than double the amount that occurred in the prior year. In addition, three board directions have been names interim chief executive officers this year which brings the total of director turned CEO for the name year to twelve.

According to John Wood, Vice Chairman and Global Managing Partner of Heidrick & Struffles’ CEO and board practice, as companies experience a period of disruption; many boards that are looking to replace the chief executive officer are increasingly turning to one of their own.

More and more boards are finding that bringing one of their own into a CEO position brings value assets to the company. Boards are able to move more quickly and achieve immediate results when they tap a board member for the CEO position. When a board names a board member as the CEO, they know that the individual is already familiar with the company, its business and its culture.

Boards are more likely to choose one of their own because that allows for less of a disconnection between the CEO and the board. By choosing a current board member as the CEO, it is a practical solution to the circumstances and is a less risky option. Typically, the member that the board wants to step into the CEO position is more than willing. In many cases, the board member is a retired CEO and now has the time to do this job. It is also appealing because they already have support of the board.

A division of Taylor Corporation, IGH Solutions, has announced that it entered into a strategic relationship with the leading virtual gift card company, Giftango Corporation. Both companies will work together in order to bring plastic and virtual gift card solutions to their customers.

IGH Solutions is the world’s largest provider of gift cards as ranked by the Nilson Report. According to Barb Cederberg, the CEO of IGH Solutions, the relationship between IGH and Giftango marks the importance of mobile and electronic gift cards in the market. The partnership between the two companies follows the announcement that the Taylor Corporation invested in the Series B round of Giftango Corporation. Giftango has plans to proceed with its continued expansion and growth into the digital gift card market.

The industry leading design and manufacturing expertise, IGH Solutions, creates custom and standard gift card packaging from the initial concept to the individual consumer customization and fulfillment. IGH is a global leader in plastic card printing, personalization and fulfillment with a strong emphasis on loyalty, gift and membership cards.

The digital eGifting Solutions Company, Giftango, offers many different platforms for resellers, merchants and mobile developers for their eGift card programs. Integrated with ten gift card processors, Giftango has patent pending technology which is focused on deliverability, management and security of stored value solutions. Merchants are able to manage channel sits, have promotions and track the deliverability that was not available before with stored value.

Texas’ largest public charter school holder, Responsive Education Solutions (ResponsiveEd), and the Autism Community Network (CAN) recently announced the first charter school focused on serving children with autism in Texas. The school will be called the Foundation School for Autism and will be tuition-free in San Antonio, Texas.

The school will provide parents of autistic children an alternative to expensive private schools. Every child with autism will be able to receive high quality, evidence-based autism intervention and education despite their parent’s income.

The Foundation School provides parents of children with autism an alternative to expensive private schools. The Executive Director of Autism Community Network, Jesse Franco said, “Autism knows no boundaries. Rich or poor, white collar or blue collar, families face a huge financial burden when confronted by autism.”

The school opened its doors officially in August of 2010 with three classrooms. There are currently 21 children with autism spectrum disorders that are receiving intensive early invention therapy. According to research, if a child receives early intervention therapies, appropriate and intensive therapy before the age of six then their chance of leading a self-supporting life nearly doubles.

The Foundation School students will receive one-to-one and group instruction which will include Speech Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Applied Behavior Analysis and other special sessions such as music therapy. Each child is given a customized plan in order to develop and improve areas such as verbal behavior, learning readiness, social communication, play, adaptive skills, classroom skills and academics.

ResponsiveEd is providing the infrastructure and the teachers for the school. Charter schools under ResponsiveEd are high quality, free schools that serve at risk students in grades 6 to 12 and students on college preparatory tracks from Kindergarten to grade 12.

Extended Stay Inc. recently announced that it had successfully emerged from chapter 11 bankruptcy. One hundred percent of Extended Stay Inc. was purchased for $3.95 billion by an investment group including Paulson & Co. Inc., Centerbridge Partners, L.P., and Blackstone Real Estate Partners VI, L.P. The group of investors purchased the company in connection with the Plan of Reorganization which was confirmed by the Bankruptcy Court in July of 2010.

Gary DeLapp is the president and CEO of HVM, LLC which is a separately owned company that manages the hotels throughout the United States and Canada. DeLapp said he was very happy that all hotels were able to stay open and operating during the restructuring process. HVM will continue to manage the portfolio of nearly 700 hotels despite the change in ownership.

Doug Geoga, who previously served as the president of Global Hyatt Corporation, will become the non-executive chairman of the Board with the close of the transaction. Will Kussell, the former president and chief brand officer of Dunkin’ Donuts, will also join the board.

The lead bankruptcy counsel for Extended Stay is the law firm of Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP with Lazard Ltd. serving as its financial advisor. The legal and financial advisors to the group of investors included Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP and Houlihan Lokey. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP provided legal advice to Blackstone and Centerbridge while Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and Kleinberg, Kaplan, Wolff & Cohen provided legal advice to Paulson.