Some people have a long and winding road when it comes to their careers and finding happiness. They work several different jobs in various fields and spend years searching for the right fit.And then there's Sherali Najak.Najak is doing what he's wanted to do since the age of 15 -- producing a television show. He is the senior producer of live and remote broadcasts for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's esteemed Hockey Night in Canada, which is the equivalent to Monday Night Football in the United States. The show spotlights Saturday night NHL games for Canada's hockey obsessed fans, with ... view article details

Interview Basics  Despite the etiquette, formality, and inevitable fear factor, job interviews can actually be enjoyable as well as extremely informative. In an interview, where you and the prospective employer begin a mutual relationship based on observation and communication, you have just as much power as the interviewer. So forget the high stakes and have fun.The focus for both sides should be on the immediate benefits you can add to and get from the company. Use examples; emphasize thought processes rather than results; and turn negatives into positives.Research, research, researchBe read... view article details

Creative Approaches to Layoffs  It's the classic layoff problem. Relief from bottom-line pressure on the one hand; and low morale, bad publicity, and the loss of talented employees on the other. In the face of an economic downturn they believe to be temporary, companies need to be resourceful in looking for alternatives to the traditional layoff. In the past, some large employers forced to layoff workers have pulled together some very creative approaches to this dubious issue. Consulting powerhouse Accenture announced a voluntary sabbatical program known as 'Flexleave.' Offered to about 1,400 ... view article details

Michelle Babineau of Boston, Mass. has been laid off three times in seven months. The dot-com veteran has been through it all: the conference with a terse manager and human resources representative; the company-wide announcement led by a weeping CEO; and the 'let-go' meeting at an offsite location. Her third job lasted five days. 'The CEO quit on the day I started,' Babineau said.Can they do that? Unfortunately, they can - and do. There are a few protections for employees, however. Understanding the implication of laws your employer has had to consider helps you to position yourself as well as... view article details

From CNN Money and the compensation experts at Salary.com6. Market research analyst Why it's great If you want to know what the next big thing is, this is your field. Before launching a product or service, companies turn to market research analysts who collect and evaluate data about consumer wants, needs and buying habits. You get to work on a huge variety of projects: In a single day you might run a taste test on a new vodka flavor, evaluate a re-branding campaign for a hot dog and analyze political polling data. What's cool Testing products before they hit the market. You talk to lots of pe... view article details

Working in a nonprofit organization brings both material and nonmaterial rewards. Although some nonprofit organizations do not pay (or are unable to pay) market wages, the benefits of working in a nonprofit often outweigh the drawbacks for many employees.In the United States, nonprofit or charitable organizations such as foundations, churches, arts organizations, universities, and even some hospitals, are exempt from federal income taxes. Although the range of their services is rather broad, these groups have in common a mission to provide a benefit to a constituency that is more important tha... view article details

The gap between the rich and the poor has been widening for the past 30 years.  The World Inequality Report uncovered that since 1980, the top 0.1 percent of wealth owners, about 7 million people, accounted for as much of the world's growth as the bottom half of the adult population — roughly 3.8 billion people. Below is a list of the top 10 richest people in the world, including their net worth for the year 2018, as well as the previous year, according to Forbes. This list makes it glaringly obvious that the gap between the rich and poor is at its highest level in decades with no signs of nar... view article details

Broadly, the engineer's job is to apply scientific and mathematical principles to solve problems and/or fill human needs. This can range from planning a bridge to sending a person in space to inventing medical instruments. Since an engineer's solution should be fully functional, economical, and compatible for human use, an engineer's job may also consist of testing for these many critical factors.Engineering is a field broken down into specialty areas, including but not limited to: Aerospace engineering, biomedical engineering, chemical engineering, electrical engineering, environmental engine... view article details

Most people think of games as fun entertainment. But searching for a job and getting hired is a game too, and it's one that many people have been playing for far too long in these tough economic times. And one of the big problems is many of the people playing don't know the rules.So says Skip Freeman, author of Headhunter Hiring Secrets: The Rules of the Hiring Game Have Changed...Forever, who is this week's Salary Talk guest. As a professional headhunter himself and president of an executive search firm, Freeman tells Aaron and Wendy the stunning truth: that many people don't know what they'r... view article details

Q. My performance review is coming soon, and I would like to learn more about the do's and don'ts of performance reviews. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.A. The review process is normally broken down into two parts. The first is spent discussing your overall performance during a defined 'performance period.' The second part of the process is how much you will receive based on your performance.I always advise managers that employees should never be surprised by their review. The purpose of a performance review is just that: to review an employee's performance. In other words, your manag... view article details