[EVENT RECAP] Young Professionals Network Conference 2019

By Josh VanNamee
Vaco, Director – Talent Solutions
 
The Young Professionals Network hosted its second annual conference on Nov. 21 at the Raleigh Convention Center. This year’s focus was “Capitalizing on Your Strengths.” Together, a group of nearly 300 young professionals welcomed Candice Webb as the keynote speaker. Webb is the Meredith College director of StrongPoints. She works with students and professionals to identify and use their strengths to reach their goals. Each participant took their own StrengthsFinder Assessment to learn which of the four strength domains best described them. Check out some of the biggest takeaways of the day:
 
Building Your Brand (Domain: Influencing)

• Social media IS connected to the hiring process. Your social media brand can impact your professional career whether it is getting or maintaining a position. Excessive pictures of drinking, drugs, violence, guns, illegal activity, bad mouthing employers, poor writing skills can all impact job opportunities as well as your current job. (Megan Johnson, career coach, Duke University – The Fuqua School of Business)

• You don’t have an obligation to “friend” your supervisor or colleagues. If you want your personal social media to stay private, your company/associates should respect that, but be mindful there are still ways they can see your activity through tags, mutual friends, screenshots, etc. (DeShelia Spann, marketing manager, Lenovo)

 
Designing Your Dream Team (Domain: Relationship Building)

• Finding mentors always needs to be in an area of development, both personal and professionally. It’s fundamental to find people who think differently than you. (Jim Kissinger, sales director, Nationwide Insurance)

• Don’t neglect the word “personal” in your personal advisory board. Your board is all about you and what you need to develop. (Rachel Hardin, director, SAS)

 
Measure What You Manage (Domain: Strategic Thinking)

• There are moments in your career where different opportunities present themselves. What are your strongest skills? Capitalize on them and listen to yourself. (Angela Connor, founder and CEO, Change Agent Communications)

• Understand what your habits are in difficult situations. Know yourself and know your weaknesses. Make sure your weaknesses don’t hinder your ability to make a leap forward. (Will Barfield, CEO, Barfield Revenue Consulting)

 
Making Moves (Domain: Executing)

• Lean on the power of your people. Surround yourself with a team of individuals that are different, yet similar. You will be amazed at how these folks will push you to be a stronger employee, a better leader, and a better person. (Maggie Kane, executive director, A Place at the Table)

• Don’t just do a job. Do something you love. Make the risky move even if people tell you that you’re going to fail. There were 50+ people that told us the North Hills project wouldn’t work, but we knew it felt right and knew it had potential. We took the risk, and reaped the reward. (Mike Smith, president, Kane Realty Corporation)

• Your business career is not linear. You will one day have to make a pivot. You will indeed make mistakes. Learn from them and fail forward. Every mistake you make is your roadmap to glory and success in the future. (Melisse Shaban, CEO, Virtue Labs)