On Friday, May 13, 2011, information professionals and graduate students from across North Carolina gathered at the Joseph Bryan Jr. Auditorium at Guilford College in Greensboro for CareerWise 2011. This career focused event was jointly sponsored by the North Carolina Chapter of the Special Libraries Association and the North Carolina Library Association’s Round Table for Ethnic Minority Concerns Roundtable (REMCo) and  Reference & Adult Services Section (RASS).

Mary Scanlon, Business Librarian at Wake Forest University, and Kathy Makens, Head of Adult Services at the South Regional Branch of the Durham County Libraries, gave a presentation entitled Social Networking for Career Advancement: it’s not your teenager’s Facebook. This talk provided important tips for managing and optimizing your professional presence on social networking sites, and provided insight into helpful tools that can be used to make the job search more efficient and successful.

Ellen Shlom, Area Sales Manager for Belk, Friendly Center, talked to the group about appropriate dress for interviewing and in the workplace. Ellen gave many helpful tips about looking your best so that you feel confident and project a professional image. To illustrate Ellen’s points, several members of NCSLA and NCLA modeled clothing during the presentation.

After a break for networking and snacks, attendees participated in a panel discussion on career and job seeking advice. The panel included human resources and hiring professionals representing public, academic and corporate libraries.  Kim Hailey of the Greensboro City Public Libraries, Tiffany Allen of the UNC Chapel Hill Library System, and Mariel Christian of RTI International all provided invaluable tips on resumes, cover letters, and interviewing. The panelists took many questions from the audience, making for an interactive and highly relevant session.

CareerWise 2011 was a great opportunity for professional development and Networking!