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Move Sideways To Move Up

Ruth Kimbrough-Bent

A woman in a peach-colored sweater laughs during a meeting or training session, seated between two colleagues in a professional indoor setting.

Mar 26, 2026

Academic Assistance Program: Updated

North Carolina’s Employee Learning and Development Policy, formerly known as the Academic Assistance program, has been updated in a way that opens new doors for full-time, permanent university employees. The biggest change is the policy now covers noncredit courses, which means employees can use it to pursue professional certifications that directly support their job and…
A group of people practicing yoga on a sunlit lawn surrounded by brick walls, lush greenery, and agave plants.

Mar 23, 2026

Well-Being Isn’t a Perk — It’s a Professional Strategy

Research in organizational psychology consistently links well-being to strong job performance and engagement. As Stephen Covey points out in his book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, habit No. 7, “Sharpen the Saw,” focuses on “preserving and enhancing the greatest asset you have — you.” We sat with University Human Resources (UHR) wellness senior…
A photo collage featuring three images of Pablo Campos, a counselor at NC State. Top left: A professional headshot of Pablo, a man with curly dark hair, a beard, and glasses, wearing a red, yellow, and blue plaid shirt, smiling in a bright indoor hallway. Bottom left: An outdoor selfie of Pablo wearing sunglasses and a blue neck gaiter, tilted against a backdrop of jagged, snow-covered mountains under a blue sky. Right: A vertical shot of Pablo in profile, looking out toward a vast, sunlit mountain basin filled with snow, scattered pine trees, and rocky peaks.

Mar 20, 2026

When Your Brain Is In Survival Mode, Your Career Pays The Price

Pablo Campos has spent years helping people unravel the relationship between stress and identity. As a counselor at NC State’s Counseling Center, he works daily with students navigating pressure, performance and burnout and he’s quick to point out that the warning signs look different for everyone.  “We all operate with a bit of ebb and…
Headshots of Rebecca Zuvich and Meredith Towery. The left photo shows a blond Zuvich dressed in a black blazer and white tip. The right photo shows a blond Towery in a black blazer and black blouse.

Feb 24, 2026

How To Ask for and Champion Professional Development

Discover how employees can advocate for professional development opportunities and managers can empower their teams to ask.

Feb 24, 2026

Build Your Brand Before You Need It

Nikki Price, assistant dean for culture, talent and human resources in the College of Sciences, shares how she built a professional brand that commands attention.
A triptych of three smiling women, each in a separate portrait against a backdrop with the text "NC STATE UNIVERSITY." On the left, a woman with blonde shoulder-length hair wears patterned glasses and a light grey sweater. In the center, a woman with long black twisted hair and tortoiseshell glasses wears a black top over a green scarf. On the right, a woman with dark brown shoulder-length hair and a dark floral blouse.

Jan 29, 2026

Feedback Without Fear

Feedback shouldn’t be a “gotcha” moment, it should be a tool for growth. University Human Resources experts share the frameworks that make having difficult conversations easier and explain why leaders should model vulnerability by asking for feedback themselves.
Here is the alt text for the image: **Alt Text:** A word cloud arranged in the shape of a smiling face with heart-shaped eyes. The graphic is filled with multicolored words representing positive character traits and professional skills. Prominent words include "teamwork," "integrity," "resilience," "creativity," "empathy," "tenacity," "honesty," "collaborator," "courage," "growth," "kindness," "perseverance," and "self-starter."

Jan 28, 2026

Your Strengths, Your Goals, Your Growth

In the December edition of Pack Your Potential, we invited readers to share the qualities they most admire in themselves. But that was just a preview of a more meaningful process: individual goal setting.
A man with blonde hair and glasses, wearing a light blue shirt, is seated at a desk, gesturing with his right hand as he speaks to a woman across from him. The woman, who has dark hair and glasses and is wearing a white shirt, listens with a smile. They are in a bright office setting with a laptop, papers, and a calculator on the desk. The window in the background is covered with numerous sticky notes.

Jan 26, 2026

How To Have a Performance Conversation That Promotes Career Growth

Consider this scenario. Your supervisor asked you to step in at the last minute to lead a campus tour for prospective students. You’re familiar with campus, so you confidently share facts about buildings and programs. Later, you realize that you mixed up two department locations, gave outdated information about a student service and misstated details…
Smiling woman with an overlay of 4 icons

Nov 26, 2025

Set Bold Goals for 2026

Learn about setting SMART professional goals to accelerate your career growth journey.
Stylized image of Chris Vestal

Nov 26, 2025

Move Sideways To Move Up

Career success isn’t always upward—lateral moves build skills, adaptability, and long-term value.