February 2007
Vol. 25, No. 2
InterAction

18How Did You Get Your Job?
20Career Advice: A Snapshot Survey
24Creative Career Development
26Down the Path: Career Advice \ue001rom a CEO

In our quest to \ue000ocus on the truly great need o\ue000 those we serve, many o\ue000 us o\ue000ten spend
less time \ue000ocusing on our own career development needs. Yet meeting those needs is
integral to ensuring long-term job satis\ue000action and employee retention. This issue o\ue000

Look for the March issue of Monday Developments,
honoring International Women\u2019s Day by highlighting
innovative projects promoting women and gender
equality around the world.

Working in Relie\ue000 and Development:
Career Development and Other
Human Resource Challenges

In our quest to \ue001ocus on the truly great need o\ue001 those we serve, many o\ue001 us o\ue001ten spend less time \ue001ocusing on our own career development needs. Yet meeting those needs is integral to ensuring long-term job satis\ue001action and employee retention. This issue o\ue001 Monday Developments is devoted to addressing a \ue001ew aspects o\ue001 this important topic.

Anyone interested in a career in the \ue000eld o\ue001 relie\ue001 and development has grappled with the question: How can I break into the \ue000eld, and once I do break in, what can I do to create a success\ue001ul and rewarding career path? Dan Curran o\ue001\ue001ers advice on \ue000nding that \ue000rst job, and how to determine i\ue001 this line o\ue001 work is really the right one \ue001or you. A number o\ue001 InterAction members o\ue001\ue001er insights \ue001rom their own experiences: explaining how they got their current jobs and courses o\ue001 action that have helped them with job searches at di\ue001\ue001erent points in their careers. Several human resources o\ue001\ue000cers also o\ue001\ue001er thoughts on the topic. Hilary Nalven sits down with InterAction President and CEO Sam Worthington to discuss his personal career development experience. David Meltzer o\ue001 the American Red Cross discusses ways in which volunteering has helped many people determine where their particular interests and skills lie. A training program \ue001or graduate students in the Boston area demonstrates one way that has proven success\ue001ul in giving students critical \ue000eld experience be\ue001ore they graduate.

While the struggle to \ue000nd that \ue000rst job and rewarding career path occupy the minds o\ue001 all who work in relie\ue001 and development, human resources pro\ue001essionals \ue001ace a number o\ue001 other challenges. Simply \ue000nding basic data such as salary in\ue001ormation and HR policies can be di\ue001\ue000cult. Alison Smith o\ue001 the Personnel Co-op discusses their e\ue001\ue001orts to help HR pro\ue001essionals overcome that hurdle and create use\ue001ul networks \ue001or in\ue001ormation sharing. But the challenges are also broader: strengthening diversity (discussed by Karyn Trader-Leigh), stress management \ue001or aid workers (John Scha\ue001er), creative career development (Meredith Richardson), and some good sources o\ue001 help \ue001or HR pro\ue001essionals working on overall strategy and plans to make the most o\ue001 the HR resources at their disposal (Jonathan Potter).

Obviously this is a huge area with many more issues than can be covered in this short space. But through this edition, we hope to provide you with some use\ue001ul insights \ue001or the on-going e\ue001\ue001orts to make sure that good people \ue000nd good jobs and that organizations are able to provide environments that ensure sta\ue001\ue001 retention and development.

Nasserie Carew, Director
Josh Kearns, Advertising & Sales
Julie Montgomery, Publications
Robyn Shepherd, Media

InterAction
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Washington, DC 20036

Monday Developments is
published 12 times a year by the
Communications Department o\ue001
InterAction, the largest alliance o\ue001
U.S.-based international development
and humanitarian nongovernmental
organizations. With more than
160 members operating in every
developing country, we work to
overcome poverty, exclusion and
su\ue000ering by advancing social justice
and basic dignity \ue001or all.

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