Jupiter, FL, Oct. 19, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sweat Equity Connection, Inc. today announced its beta launch of sweatequityconnection.com, the world’s first and only online marketplace connecting early-stage, start-up businesses with talented executives and service providers seeking new career or project opportunities and willing to take all or part of their compensation as equity in the new ventures.
The new site, with its unique Talent Match Technology (TMT), directly addresses two national challenges: the current shortage of financial capital to hire talent and spur new business growth, and the high unemployment keeping many of America’s accomplished executives sidelined or underemployed. It launches at a time when the U.S. Small Business Administration credits small business, including start-ups and other new ventures, with 65% of the country’s net new job growth over the past 17 years.
Sweatequityconnection.com helps new company owners, founders, investors or recruiters conserve capital and retain top-quality talent by paying recruits with sweat equity compensation, essentially a piece of the business. And with the U.S. jobless rate at 16.5% in September, including those who have stopped looking for work, the site will open up new opportunities for executives, managers and independent service providers who are unemployed, underutilized or looking for much greater career challenges with the "skin in the game" that equity provides.
"Sweat Equity Connection will help American businesses grow and put people back to work," said Founder and Chief Executive Kenneth J. Kwit. "With the beta launch of our site, we’ve opened a new, distinct, easy-to-use and neutral online marketplace focusing on non-traditional employment arrangements, such as sweat equity compensation. As Americans maintain their focus on business and work, and government officials highlight job creation, we encourage early-stage businesses, as well as executives and service providers, to register at the site, post their information and begin the unique matching process that can lead to vast and exciting new opportunities for both groups." Registration and use of the site is free during the beta period.
"A highlight of the new site," Kwit noted, "is Sweat Equity Connection’s Talent Match Technology, a proprietary matching engine with custom-weighted algorithms to create and rank the very best matches between Talent Seekers and Providers. Our matches are based on many attributes and assessments beyond the usual functions, skills and experience utilized by traditional job search sites, including our use of entrepreneurial, psychological and cultural factors.
"Finding the right candidate or position from traditional job sites is like finding the proverbial ‘needle in a haystack,’" Kwit added. "By comparison, TMT brings Sweat Equity Connection’s Talent Seekers a ‘haystack of needles’ by focusing on higher quality matches, while helping Talent Providers ‘own their future.’ "
As the company continues to build out the site, Kwit said he anticipates expanding or adding a number of features, including a robust entrepreneurial Resource Center that includes advice articles and white papers, a moderated discussion board with searchable archives, news, professional service offerings, and an "Ask an Expert" feature.
Kwit has proven the sweat equity compensation model to other start-up ventures by creating Sweat Equity Connection last September and using equity in the company to hire both a seasoned, talented management team with more than 80 years of business experience and a leading interactive marketing agency. An attorney, Kwit is a seasoned and accomplished entrepreneur with over 40 years of management experience in leading start-up, high-growth and turnaround companies, including Sonoma Vineyards (creating the Rodney Strong, Piper-Sonoma and Windsor Vineyards brands), Expressions home furnishings and two e-commerce businesses, FurnitureFind.com and Winesource.com. He has an extensive background in working with venture capital and private equity firms, as well as leading lending institutions.
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About Sweat Equity Connection
Sweat Equity Connection, Inc. owns and operates sweatequityconnection.com, the world’s first and only online marketplace matching early-stage, start-up businesses and other new ventures with executives and independent service providers willing to work for all or part of their compensation as equity in the new ventures. The site uses a number of features to differentiate it from traditional employment outlets, including Talent Match Technology, a proprietary matching engine with special algorithms to weigh certain data points and create more accurate, customized searches. Sweat Equity Connection also provides a host of entrepreneurial and career resources for both start-up businesses and executives, including a Resource Center and professional service offerings. The company was founded in September 2010 by attorney and entrepreneur Kenneth J. Kwit using the sweat equity compensation model, and the web site made its beta launch in the fourth quarter of 2011.