Today's number: 5.6%

How much U.S. home prices rose in the second quarter from the year-earlier period, the slowest pace in four years, and down from a gain of 7 percent in the first quarter, according to the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight.

Bloomberg News

Today's money tip

The individual retirement account still remains one of the safest ways to save for the future. A number of Web sites help sort out different IRA account types and the respective tax rules that apply. One is Banksite.com, located at www.banksite.com/investments/ira-test.htm. It offers a "One-Minute IRA Test" to see whether an IRA is right for you.

Knight Ridder News Service

Today's career tip

Want to help your Generation-X employees thrive? Don't micromanage them, Bruce Tulgan says in Generation X: The Manager's Pocket Guide. "If you micromanage Xers, you will send them out the door as fast as they can find another job," Tulgan says. "The best way to keep Xers focused and motivated is to teach them to micromanage themselves."

John Eckberg

Today's mover

•R. Foster Duncan has been named to the Good Samaritan Hospital Foundation Board. Duncan is the executive vice president and chief financial officer for Cinergy. He will serve a three-year term.

Shirley Dees

Today's Company: Promark Co.

Outplacement Pioneers: Bob and Nell Shick founded Promark Co. in 1968 as an executive search firm. Ten years later, under the leadership of their daughter Nancy Conner, the company became Cincinnati's first outplacement agency. Promark has continued to grow within this specialty, working with workers in their new search process and helping them through the emotional impact of losing a job. It also provides executive coaching and spousal relocation services.

Global Connections: The company is a member of Outplacement International (OI) Partners, which allows Promark to tap into a network of complementary services all over the world.

Branching Out: Based in Walnut Hills, Promark has offices also in Dayton, Ohio, Columbus and Mason.

Community Ties: The company's 16 employees have backgrounds ranging from small business ownership to P&G management experience. Many devote many hours to community service and sit on the boards of not-for-profit organizations such as the Urban League and New Perceptions.

Jenny Callison