Company directors on not-for-profit boards are often required to make substantial donations to the cause, or to elicit substantial donations from their network. Those that can’t or won’t become major benefactors are, more or less subtly, removed from the boardroom. But does this model sit well with current notions of directors’ responsibility and the professionalization …

Are you in this situation? You and your boss just don’t seem to connect and work well together. It isn’t that you are having knock down fights. It’s just that you know things could be better. You don’t want to look for another job. So you have to figure out how to make it work. …

Does this sound familiar? You’ve spent the last several years working hard but never seem to get ahead. You’ve avoided the corporate ax, all right. You’ve seen others come and go and, at times, you’re grateful just to have a job. But there are some moments when you cannot help but admit that you feel …

How can you ramp up quickly and start getting results? There are few career moments as exciting, and these days as perilous, as being promoted from an individual contributor to a manager. Here are seven career tactics with quotes from professional who have successfully moved into management. 1. Begin your transition before you start the …

Marcia Zidle, a certified career strategist and business coach, works with high-potential, high-impact executives, managers and professionals to advance their careers and grow their leadership capabilities. Marcia, CEO of, Leaders At All Levels, has over 25 years of leadership, operations, and consulting experience with businesses as well as non-profits, government agencies, healthcare providers, and community …

The Essence of Story work This post is the last in a series about Creating your Leadership Story—how you can learn to see your original systemic story; how, particularly in high stakes situations, it inserts itself into your present day leadership behavior; and how, if desired, you can change your story. The fundamental premise is …

Purpose of this Effective Career Management Blog Are you a manager, administrator, technical professional, or support staff who wants to… Advance your leadership and your career. Find a new direction or a more suitable career path? Survive the next round of pink slips and come out as a winner? Get that competitive edge in searching …

I’m Marcia Zidle and I’m the host of this blog. You can read more about me next to my picture in the sidebar. This blog will be about various aspects of career management, will focus especially on practical tips and tools, and will include posts from guest writers. You can learn more about this blog …

In these turbulent times where outcomes are unpredictable, those who lead dynamically are succeeding. Dynamical leaders pay attention to three conditions to ensure an effective, highly functioning organization: coherence, resilience, and fitness. The leader who masters these conditions will achieve what others say is impossible!

Moses, Dorothy, and the Hero’s journey We have been focusing on leaders’ deep systemic stories–how they were formed, how they shape your leadership behavior, and how you can learn to see, and if you desire, change them. In this post, we will look at the larger cultural context for our individual stories. Making Meaning through …