Career Resources Specialist Laveda Joseph has been noticing that at Wake Technical Community College, her female students are often unaware of the gender inequality that exists in the “real” world. Despite recent momentum toward equal pay, and the #MeToo movement, Joseph doesn’t see awareness increasing on campus. Anne Tomkinson, Senior Manager of Human Resources and Operations at D.C. Public Charter School Board, shares Joseph’s passion for helping young women prepare for the realities of the workplace. That’s not to say they accept status quo. On the contrary—the advice they share here should help young women advocate for themselves, build their confidence, and understand how to react when faced with inequality.

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Any employer recruiting for tech talent will likely have their own take on what the tech skills gap looks like at their organization, but closing the gap is essential. Alexandra Levit, Chairwoman of Career Advisory Board, workforce consultant and author of several career-related books, says it’s important not just to identify tech skills, but to also take very concrete steps to train your existing employees in applied technology skills. That might be through internal coursework, bringing in a consultant or having employees do self-study. Alexander spoke at SHRM 2018, presenting “The tech skills gap is more complicated than you thought, but closing it is within your reach.” We interviewed her to dive deeper into what employers need to understand about the complexities of the tech skills gap and how they can close it at their own organizations. Continue Reading

Majoring in English and unsure of where to go after college? Vicky Oliver, author of 301 Smart Answers to Tough Interview Questions (Sourcebooks, 2005) has great advice for English students and grads. Having studied English herself, she knows firsthand how the degree is worth it and where it can take you. Here we hope her tips help you learn how to use your degree and unique experiences to get you the job of your dreams.

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If you are starting a summer internship you’re most likely very excited, but also nervous. Here we offer some expert advice from Dr. Robert Shindell, President & CEO of Intern Bridge and Pam Baker, Founder & CEO of Journeous. These experts want to help you get the most out of your internship. In our interview with them, we discussed how you should approach the program, how to overcome the trickiest parts of getting started, how to avoid some of the most common mistakes, and what you can learn from even a poor internship experience.

Watch the full half-hour interview with Shindell and Baker at https://youtu.be/WGS-1apIpCA. 

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Entry-level job seekers and employees can learn from Katherine Manuel, a seasoned expert in innovation, to become a more employable candidate or a more valuable employee. Manuel is Senior Vice President of Innovation at Thomson Reuters and she has passionate advice for entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs to break down hurdles and drive new business. If you are looking for innovative jobs or want to contribute more creatively to your organization, our interview with Manuel provides insight into the importance of being an intrapreneur.

(Interview has been edited slightly for length and flow.)

What are the qualities and competencies of an intrapreneur? 

Katherine Manuel: One of the most important things that I look for are people that ask great questions. I do a lot of mentoring at the company for people that are just starting out in their careers. And it’s amazing that what differentiates people is not necessarily their wealth of experience, but it’s really the way that they ask the questions and what questions they ask. It’s showing that they understand what a business ecosystem looks like, where customers come in, where products meet their needs, and where services around those products can really increase the value of a product. Even just understanding how they best think about their career and what their long-term goals are, even if they don’t have it all mapped out, which I’d never recommend people do. It’s the thoughtfulness of the questions that they ask less than having a mastery of a topic. Continue Reading

If you looking for an internship or full-time entry-level job, you will find many opportunities within government agencies. A public sector career can feel different from a career in the private sector. To sort out the differences and help you understand whether to pursue a government job, we asked Jamey McNamara, the Deputy Chief Human Capital Officer at U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). McNamara draws his advice here from years of experience developing employees and leaders, in recruitment and retention, performance management, compensation and benefits, and labor relations.  Continue Reading

As an entry-level employee who wants to grow professionally, you hear constantly that you must build your leadership skills. What does that even mean, and how do you know you’re building the right leadership skills? I interviewed Cy Wakeman, an international speaker on leadership and management, and President and Founder of Cy Wakeman, Inc. She has a fantastic and authentic philosophy of leadership, and I’ve shared major takeaways from our interview below, including what not to learn from your manager, how to request and handle feedback, and tips for women.  Continue Reading

Jobs in the aviation, airline and airport industries go beyond pilots and flight attendants. Often, these jobs provide competitive wages and travel benefits. Luckily, there are many open jobs, and recruiters are actively trying to attract recent college grads. The U.S. airline industry supports nearly 10 million jobs total according to Airlines For America (AFA). Continue Reading

There is a disconnect between employers and younger employees about the skills which are important in the workplace.

As far as I can tell, managers have almost always been, on average, older than their employees and those managers have almost always fretted about the lack of skills those employees bring to the workplace, especially younger employees. This isn’t a millennial phenomenon but an age-old generational phenomenon.

For a while now, I have noodled on why so many employers spend so much time and energy complaining about young adults and their lack of workplace-related skills. These employers want to pay these people entry-level wages, and yet they seem to forget that means that their employees will have entry-level skills. But maybe they don’t need to. Maybe the employees can have better skills before they report to their hiring managers. Continue Reading

Congratulations, you landed a job out of college! You’ve launched your career, but to make sure you keep going in the direction you want, keep your eyes on the ball. You (not your employer) are the owner of your career. I learned a few lessons early in my career that I share that career guidance here. Things worked out alright for me, but looking back I believe the following four points can increase your chances of starting off in the right direction and excelling in your chosen career. Continue Reading