Ask a Manager

A reader writes: What do you make of employers asking job applicants about their high school performance? Besides the fact that I barely remember SAT or other score results from high school or college, is this even a real way to see how someone would perform at work? It feels infantalizing and not the best […]

A reader writes: I currently have a job that is hybrid/remote, with emphasis on remote. I go into the office when needed, but that may be once every couple of weeks. I fell into this during Covid and I love it for so many reasons, from the lack of a commute to the vastly improved […]

A reader writes: I’m in early stages of interviewing for a new position. This would be a change of sector for me, and at a much smaller organization, so I honestly can’t tell from the job description if I should think of this as a lateral move or more of a step-up. What kinds of […]

A reader writes: I’m searching for a job in the real workplace for the first time — previously I’ve only been family-employed and self-employed. So I have work experience, but not necessarily in an official workplace context. I’ve been job-searching for four months and haven’t gotten a job yet. I’m moving to a different state […]

A reader writes: I’m trying to look for a new job, but it feels like the scale of doing so is interminably large. I’m expecting to apply for at least 30-40 jobs before I even get one interview. It’s that competitive out there. But for each application, I’m expected to research a company and it’s […]

A reader writes: I organized adult weekends (aka, orgies) for several years. The part I enjoyed the most turned out to be the project and event coordination: sourcing locations, keeping the books on payments, communicating with vendors, tracking the budget, managing food, etc. I’d like to do more of that professionally, but I’m not sure […]

A reader writes: I was in law school, but between middling grades and some very personal issues, have since decided to pivot to paralegal work. I’ve noticed that with the job applications I’ve sent out that have actually gone somewhere (no offers yet), the cycle has been as follows: – I get a request for […]

A reader writes: My brother in law was laid off in March. He was part of the mass layoffs in the tech industry. Since then, he has applied to a lot of jobs. Like, A LOT. As of one week ago, he has applied to exactly 700 jobs. I know the exact figure because of […]

A reader writes: I’m a senior level director with 25+ years of experience and two degrees. A colleague suggested I apply for an open position at a very prestigious organization so I did. When I started the process, I was excited, but by the time I was done, I was frustrated and uninterested in the […]