culpwrit

 
During my first few jobs, pay raise timing was a mystery–sometimes surprising me by coming earlier than expected and other times coming long after annual anniversary dates to which most raises are tied.  Today, agencies and companies do a better job of on-boarding employees and clarifying the performance review timing and ensuing salary increases.  Still, […]

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   Kevin Donnellon   
Personal branding is in, and much of this is driven by the tough job market, the glut of exceptional talent and the growing social technologies that can power your personal brand.
I completely endorse personal branding as a consultant, former agency owner and corporate PR VP who believes that “if you don’t stand […]

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  Sara Sanderson

Recently, I participated in the webinar “Landing a PR Job After School” hosted by the Plank Center for Leadership in Public Relations.  The webinar covered topics such as what employers seek in candidates, the types of jobs available and how much students can expect to make in entry-level positions.
What are employers looking for?
All […]

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   Tom Ciesielka   
Our agency just had its fourth intern finish her program with TC Public Relations.  Jessica’s leaving was bittersweet.  Bitter because our interns do very important work that helps the account executives get the job done and sweet because we celebrated her time here.
I remember my first internship.  I was finishing a degree […]

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  Rita Hoey Dragonette    
Following is the second part of a series based upon a panel discussion by successful women graduates of Northern Illinois University assembled by Denise Schoenbachler, Dean of the Business school on the topic of:
Lessons from the Front: If We’d Only Known this Back Then!
Part Two focuses on comments from Rita Hoey Dragonette, Dragonette […]

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Career trepidation is building as college graduations get under way.  In the “good old days”, most college seniors knew where they would be working their fist job before the end of their final semester.  Today, most estimates suggest only two in five 2010 grads already have landed jobs, mostly internships.
Over the past year, I’ve talked with several students whose ultimate career goals are […]

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To celebrate Women’s History Month last month, the Women in Business Professions student group at the Northern Illinois University College of Business hosted a panel discussion of successful women graduates to discuss insights.
The intention was to share hard-won lessons learned on the job that with soon-to-be-grads to allow them to benefit from their experience and […]

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While the quality of resumes, cover letters and interviews continues to improve, some major gaffs continue to derail potential employment consideration.  
During my recent visit to Indianapolis, I talked with David Shank, APR, Fellow PRSA, CEO of Shank Public Relations Counselors, Inc., who just completed his summer intern hiring cycle.  Among other observations, David asserted the TV talent show […]

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During a break at the recent Arthur Page Society conference, I talked with an agency head and corporate PR VP about the incredible talent coming out of college PR programs.  We agreed that entry-level hiring decisions are hard to make, so the “little things” become increasingly important. 
Actually, the “little things” are deal makers or breakers in job […]

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   David Grossman 
Never underestimate the power of listening – really listening. 
Think you’re good at it?  Like all skills, there are multiple levels of mastery.  How do you know you’re a pro at listening?
Check first to see whether you’re good at the basics.  Growing up, I learned the catch-phrase, “Stop.  Look. Listen.” to keep me safe […]

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