Learn from Leaders: Takeaways from Our April 6 Event

Our April 6 held the second section of our two-part series on Challenges in Career Advancement. Our panel brought the male perspective to gender-equality in the workplace. The first session, held last fall, offered the female perspective. Our distinguished panel contributed to wide-ranging discussions and the over 80 attendees were able to leave the session with practical tips and general ideas for advancing a career.

Career Tips and Ideas for Advancement

If you missed the event, below is a summary of six key takeaways from the conversation with our panel.

How to choose a mentor: Look for someone who can push you

Don’t look for someone who is just like you. Instead, panelists said that you’ll find the most opportunity to grow by seeking out someone who can challenge you and even tell you things about yourself that you might not want to hear.
Describing mentorship as a broad range of activity, Provost Willard Gingerich said that mentorship is not often a formal relationship. For example, don’t discount the advice of family, friends, or a spouse. Mr. Jeff Indivieri-Gant noted that it’s frequently interactions with his own team members that have helped him grow as a leader.

Interview tips: Persuade, inspire…be succinct

To impress a hiring manager or search committee, be succinct in your responses. Also be strategic about the number of questions you ask because you don’t want them to distract from your overall pitch, panelists advised. The hiring team doesn’t only need to understand that you’ve been successful managing the tasks in your current role, instead you must also persuade and convince them that you are the person who can master the new role to take the position forward, said Dean Greg Cant.

Be strategic about what you share

Dr. Ron Sharps said he once gave advice to a mentee who was about to start a business, recommending that she use caution with the information that she shared with friendly competitors. Business owners must protect their processes, client lists, and personnel, he noted. After getting her business off the ground, the mentee came back to Dr. Sharps and said his advice on over-sharing was one of the most valuable tips that she received in starting out.

Be strategic managing relationships as well

The key to excelling in a role is to successfully manage relationships, said Dean Cant. This includes your supervisor as well as colleagues and subordinates. He urged attendees to be systematic in their attention to these relationship, being thoughtful especially to understanding what specifically a supervisor expects. Being strategic and mindful about relationship management will keep an employee from bumping into walls and will smooth their path to accomplishing objectives.

How to support others in their growth

The panelists also noted the value of serving as mentors to others. In his career, Mr. Mark Fleming said he has found it important to make himself available to junior colleagues seeking advice. In some industries, there are networks in place to facilitate thoughtful career building relationships such as clerkships in the judiciary.

Supervisors also support a colleague’s advancement in an institution. For example, a supervisor can find ways to spotlight an employees work or give them opportunities to demonstrate their skills to peers as well as institution leaders, said Dr. Leslie Wilson.

Another way to support individuals reporting to you is to connect them with education and training opportunities, said Dr. Sharps. The most valuable experiences, he noted, do not simply one maintain their current role. Instead, the most transformative training or educational experience will help one stretch skills and knowledge, advancing and broadening possible career paths.

Be flexible and open to risk

For attendees seeking to take their careers to the next level, Dean Cant noted that advancement comes from a willingness to take risks and be flexible. Multiple panelists shared examples of putting themselves forward for positions they ultimately did not secure or accepting offers in potentially undesirable locations or circumstances. The repeated willingness to try new things helped the panelists to build robust resumes and attain leadership roles.

Dr. Pennington shared parting words with attendees, urging them to seek out and seize new opportunities. “Put yourself forward to take risks and go out there for these positions,” she said.

Thank You Panelists and Attendees

The event attracted more than 80 participants. The panel was moderated by Dr. Karen L. Pennington, Vice President of Student Development and Campus Life and it featured a welcome by Dr. Allyson Straker-Banks, Associate, Vice President for Student Academic Services, Student Development and Campus Life.

Panelists included: Greg Cant, Ph.D., Dean of the Feliciano School of Business, Mr. Mark Fleming, JD, University Counsel, Mr. Jeff Indivieri-Gant, Director of Admissions, Dr. Willard Gingerich, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Ronald Sharps, Ph.D., Associate Dean, College of Arts, and Leslie Wilson, Ph.D., Professor, College of Humanities and Social Sciences.

This event was the second half of a two-part series. The first part was held in November and included an all-female panel of Montclair State leaders who discussed challenges and opportunities for women in the workplace.

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