What’s Next

Wednesday Webinars | Spring 2021
Learn with Life After Wake in our Wednesday Webinar series! Throughout the spring, we’re offering 30-minute webinars to help you cope, grow, learn, and connect. Register for one or all of the webinars, with all descriptions outlined below! We’ll record each presentation, so even if you can’t join live, you’ll have a chance to watch the content at another time.

• April 14th: Finding Your Strengths in the Unexpected
  Have you experienced a reassignment or realignment in job duties due to the pandemic? Are you longing for the “normal” days when your job description matched the work you were performing each week? John Champlin (’06, MBA ’15), Director of Engagement Programs in the Alumni Engagement Office at Wake Forest University, will discuss strategies for continuing to engage in work despite significant changes. He’ll stress the importance of continuing to focus and align your strengths on the work at hand to prevent disengagement and burnout.
• April 28th: Getting A Grip: How to Make Decisions for the Indecisive
  Do you struggle with decision-making and decision fatigue? Do you often find yourself stuck in analysis paralysis? Hear from a recovering decision-making-procrastinator about how to take control of your process of deciding. We’ll talk about how to squelch the confusion, how to overcome regret, and how to take a step forward.

Alumni Networking Conversations | Spring 2021
What does networking look like when events aren’t happening? If you’ve always dreaded in-person meet-ups, give these facilitated conversations a chance! Choose a topic that’s interesting to you and we’ll provide thought-provoking prompts and questions for you to reflect on with a conversation partner! We’ll switch questions and partners in several rounds of discussion to ensure you meet alumni interested in this same topic.

• April 13, 2021 at 12pm ET: On Leadership
  In this Alumni Networking Conversation: On Leadership, Andy Chan, Vice President for Innovation and Career Development at Wake Forest University will deliver a 20-minute Keynote Opening Address on Leadership in the Year 2021 before we pair alumni into 1:1 conversations.
• April 26, 2021 at 6pm ET: On Boundaries at Work
  If there’s one topic that we spend tons of time talking about with alumni, it would be boundaries. This balance is personal and elusive, but there’s a lot we can learn from one another. If this topic resonates with you, come chat with other alumni in 1:1 conversations.

May 12, 2021 | Alumni Book Group: Designing the Life You Want
For the next gathering of our Alumni Book Group, we will discuss 5 Steps to Designing the Life You Want, a Ted Talk based on the popular book, Designing Your Life by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans. From connecting the dots to find meaning, to identifying and reframing gravity problems, to choosing well to make yourself happy, we’ll talk through the 5 steps, share strategies, and make a commitment for what’s next for you. Space is limited to 12 alumni.

Summer 2021 | Wednesday Webinars: The Strategic Job Search
Join us for this power-packed Summer Series edition of our popular Wednesday Webinar series! We’re focusing entirely on creating a strategic job search plan. Whether your a recent grad who’s still job seeking or your a seasoned professional looking to make a change, this three-part series will help you frame your job search, update your materials, and create an actionable plan!

• May 26, 2021: Setting Your Job Target
  This session will be very interactive! We’ll do a career exploration activity and you’ll leave with a firm grasp of your Job Target.
• June 23, 2021: Building Your Toolkit
  Creating or updating all the materials you need to apply to jobs can be intimidating! We’ll share what you need to know in order to feel confident in your resume, cover letter, networking plan, and branding strategy.
• July 21, 2021: Landing the Job You Want
  This session ties everything together and helps you create your plan! We’ll offer tips on using job search sites, finding and applying online, and navigating the hidden job market. You’ll learn how to combine your networking and job application efforts together to land the job you want!

Open Enrollment | Five For Your First Five Online Course
Over five modules you will be introduced to the five key competency areas that we believe all young professionals need to master in their first five years after college; reflect on your values, skills, strengths, and learning goals; identify the people you need to have in your network; and create a plan for what comes next, for you. This self-paced course has been designed to accompany the book, Five For Your First Five: Own Your Career and Life After College, written by Allison E. McWilliams, Assistant Vice President for Mentoring and Alumni Personal & Career Development at Wake Forest University

Open Enrollment | JUMPSTART: A Job Search Strategy Prep Course
Between endless online applications and emails to networking contacts, the job search can feel like a shot in the dark. But it doesn’t have to be! There are effective tools and strategies known to increase success, and in this self-paced online prep course, we’ll break down what you need to know for your next job search. At the end of this prep course, you will have clarity on your job search target, a refreshed resume and LinkedIn profile, greater understanding of the strength of your network, and a plan for what’s next. This open enrollment prep course is entirely self-paced. You’ll have access to all the materials and we won’t remove you from the course after you finish.

Monthly | Job Seeker Accountability Group
Are you currently searching for your next job? Whether you’ve lost employment because of COVID-19 or you’re trying to plan your next career move, the job search process feels different right now. If you’re struggling to apply to jobs or network within your industry, this group is for you. Alongside a group of fellow Deacs, this group will provide support and accountability for alumni who are on the hunt for their next role. It’s a space to share your progress on your goals, get feedback from a career coach, exchange ideas about tools and strategies that are working, and build resilience during this emotionally tumultuous and occasionally discouraging process. We will meet online from 4-5pm EST on the third Thursday of the month.

Call to Conversation goes Virtual! Are you interested in attending or leading a Virtual C2C? Let us know you’re interested!

April 16, 2021 | Wake Forest Conference on Analytics Impact
The Wake Forest Conference on Analytics Impact is focused on the impactful use of analytics to solve problems in business, non-profits, government agencies and society. Speakers from industry, government and academia address success factors and impediments to analytics realizing its full potential as well as novel applications of descriptive, predictive and prescriptive analytics and the transfer of these to important new areas of application. The Conference is sponsored by the Wake Forest Center for Analytics Impact and the Wake Forest School of Business.

April 20, 2021 | Google Mail & Calendar: Customize and Accessorize
Learn new ways to customize the Google Mail and Calendar interfaces with labs and extensions, in addition to learning a few shortcuts. Facilitated by Beth Malone, Technical Learning Manager, School of Business.

April 22, 2021 | Market Insights Series: The Vaccine Rollout – An Operations Perspective
Join the Wake Forest MBA community in its second Market Insights Series program to gain insight from industry leaders in operations and logistics related to the challenges and opportunities of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout and distribution. School of Business Professor, Area Chair and Program Director Dr. Haresh Gurnani will moderate this timely and informative discussion with panelists Sarah Greenspon (‘17), Product Manager at FedEx Services; Dr. Gary Little, M.D., SVP Chief Medical Officer, Greater Charlotte Region, Atrium Health; and JP Norton (MBA ‘05), Director, Financial Planning & Analysis – Vaccine Manufacturing, Merck.

April 12- April 30, 2021 | Pro Humanitate Days 2021
Join Wake Foresters around the globe as we demonstrate our Pro Humanitate spirit by giving back to the local community. This year’s focus will be battling hunger and food insecurity. More information to come about how to show the world that #GoodWearsBlack!