Careers Books

Meeting and Event Planning for Dummies provides detailed instructions and lists and made organizing an event simple and successful. Do not be without this incredible resource.

This book is perfect for the meeting planner who is just starting in the field. It's filled with helpful hints and lists valuable web sites.

This book is a great resource for career changers as well. I've worked in Biotech R&D my entire career, but now I'm looking for a position in marketing. An MBA gave me a solid understanding of the field but "Career Opportunities in Biotechnology and Drug Development" has given me the industry specific vocabulary and knowledge to focus my search. I only wish I had read it sooner!

Having worked in biopharma marketing and business development management for over 30 years, I am often asked by young professionals working in biotech R&D what positions they might pursue successfully on the business and marketing side of the business. I feel comfortable sharing what the roles, rewards and expectations are for business and marketing functions but don't have the background of actually moving from R&D myself to understand their current positions and the questions they should be asking. In the future, I will now recommend Toby Freedman's book to help them find the position that best fits their background, skills and temperment. I was especially impressed with the extremely valuable information about career ladders inside functions in all divisions as well as great insights where those with "Research bench" experience can move successfully. This book is not just for newly graduated life scientists but for those desiring a transition after years in a function. I was amazed with the breadth and depth of the myriad career paths covered and quality and accuracy of those positions I hadn't expected the author would have understood as well as research.

Many college graduates, and even professionals, often wonder whether working for the pharmaceutical or biotechnology industry is appropriate for them. I am a recent graduate who faced that question. The career and development office at my school recommended Toby Freedman's book "Career Opportunities in Biotechnology and Drug Development". It is the best source of information I have encountered to guide me through the almost endless possibilities of career options in the health care and life sciences industries. By interviewing more than 200 industry executives, she provides in an easy to read format all the information necessary to determine if a career in this industry is for you. It is fun to read and it provides great insight. I highly recommend it.

Career Opportunities in Biotechnology and Drug Development by Toby Freedman, Ph.D. (http://www.careersbiotech.com) is an invaluable tool for anyone pursuing a new career or currently working in biopharma.

Applying for a job is a job in itself. When starting this process, it is difficult to remember everything that needs to be researched and considered for this important life decision. Executive support Web sites like TheLadders.com offer helpful pieces of information, but in this book Dr. Freedman seems to have included everything the job-seeker needs.

The writing style is direct and personal, allowing for quick and enjoyable reading. By the end of Chapter 3, the reader can have a personalized list of to-do items that will increase confidence, and set a realistic expectation of the job seeking experience. Chapter 5 covers the Informational Interview concept. It is a key step in networking that I first learned after paying a career consultant $3,000 after I left clinical practice. Networking is how many people gain entry into biopharma. Part 1 of this book prepares the reader to start networking effectively.

Part II of the book is chaptered by career area over the life cycle of the biopharma product. The reader will gain a clear understanding of each step and how they depend on each other. Chapters are full of definitions and detailed explanations of each role, as well as educational and experience requirements for candidates. Each chapter creates a day-in-the-life-of-this-job picture with pros and cons of the job. Section titles such as "Are You a Good Candidate for Regulatory Affairs?" help readers match position requirements with their personal traits. There is even a list of personal characteristics in each chapter to help rule out a position.

I read the career chapters out of order, starting with the career paths I had always intended to explore. Within the first few paragraphs of each chapter, I was able to decide if this position could work for me. Some of the positions that have always sounded like a fit for me by their name were not even close after gaining the full picture.

Relative salaries and potential career path / job security coverage is realistic and helpful. There is equal weight of discussion across positions from Basic Research roles to CEO and from Discovery stage to Commercial Operations. It even includes Law, Recruiting, and Consulting roles, and advice for non-scientists.

Dr. Freedman interviewed more than 200 people working in biopharma to write this book. In a few hours, readers can leverage this extensive experience for their career planning.

Paul Martinetti, MD
President
Network of Researchers, Doctors, and Scientists
Nords.com

So you have a degree in biology or experience in a sector of the biological sciences...what can you do with it? Until I read this book- I pretty much thought i could only 1) go to grad school or 2) become a lab tech.

The book is very helpful in detailing what you can do with your biology degree and even more helpful in helping you decide if this job or that job type is suitable for you.

Book includes flowchart diagrams of where people within the biotechnology and pharma industry can move to in their careers starting from a number of positions ranging from lab technicians and post docs to customer support. Also quite helpful- a list of what traits do and don't' suit a particular career and what to expect of that career choice.


I wish I had this earlier!

After 20 years in a very competitive global financial institution, I only WISH this book had come out 10 years ago. I am now in a highly visible and quite senior role, and this book rings ever so true. Though it sugar coats nothing, the insights and advice are not cynical, whatever your level in the organization. Even its occasionally Machiavellian bent is (sadly) realistic. The only thing I would caution: the whole premise of the book is that success is defined as amassing more power and more wealth. If you are not motivated by power and wealth, this book will not resonate. That said, for most I suspect, it is well worth the 2-3 hours of reading time!

This is one of those few business books that you can read more than once. D'Alessandro makes one key point with this book - you don't get to the top by being great, but by not screwing up. This point is made through countless stories that he tells about his career.

D'Alessandro is not arrogant, like many (if not most) other business authors. Rather, he is hilarious. I lost count at how many times I laughed so hard, interrupted my wife, and related a story from this book. This is what I want out of a career guide - a book that conveys it's point so well, and in many different ways, that you can't help but to remember it.

If you work in the real world, and need a career guide (trust me, you do), then this book is for you. I have recommended it to others several times, and have been thanked often for the referrals.

I have read this book twice and have also recommended it for Managers working on my team as well. David D'Alessandro presents great advice for anyone in any business environment about building and maintaining your reputation or brand. The person's on my team who have read it are also big fans. I recommend this book for anyone in business - especially anyone out there who subscribes to the "I am the way I am, and my colleagues need to learn to accept me for who I am" way of thinking - I would say this one is especially for you. No matter where or when, you are constantly being evaluated by your co-workers, higher ups, and those that work for you. This book helps make sure you understand that reality, and provides context and serious, useful advice on how you can leverage the environment to your advantage. If you are just entering the marketplace - you should absolutely buy it now. I would recommend for anyone who has been around for a while as well. I read a lot of business books - I have always found this one valuable and am always recommending or buying it for members of my organization.

Definitely worth reading for the war stories alone! But I've never quite understood the urge to publish in people who by all evidence were focused above all on personal power and financial success. D'Alessandro strenuously maintains that the ambitious executive's aim should always be the good of the organization and those involved with it, but it's hard to see who really benefited from the de-mutualization of John Hancock, over which he presided, other than John Hancock executives: same could be said of the later sale of the company to Manulife Financial (oddly, also run by a D. D'Alessandro, no relation). At least, such is the general view, especially among those who were pink-slipped.

Still, although we're not getting the whole story of a career here - it's a how-to, not a history - there is certainly a pleasing openness in describing many events and relationships, and the author's rise from that grocery store in Utica. He is naturally interested in the stories of other famous names in business and has found some great anecdotes: for instance, about John H. Patterson the founder of NCR: he had, quoting Mark Bernstein, "an absolute genius for firing people," including the executive who discovered he was fired when he found his office furniture on the NCR front lawn - in flames. . . But lesser mortals also are noteworthy, including the interviewee in the Chinese restaurant who thought the slim, tortilla-like moo shu pancake was a hot towel and slapped it on her face...

Good cautionary tales about "loose lips sink ships," such as the consultants who lost a multi-million dollar engagement when some of their private discussions came to the wrong (or right) ears...I'm pretty sure I know which firm that was, having (full disclosure!) been a computer consultant at John Hancock, and later Manulife, for several years.

And I really like his classification of meetings into three types: Staff, Get-something-done, and Combat!

D'Alessandro is rightly proud of his Italian ancestry (at least we have one thing in common!), but does not come over as a total Machiavelli. However, there is a certain ruthlessness: he is not at all the forgiving type. The word "Vendetta" springs irresistibly to mind. In fact, one section's heading makes an explicit reference - "You can enjoy a dish best served cold."

All in all, a pretty good read, and I'm sure very useful to the young aspiring executive...not exactly for me, as I never headed that way, being more of a technician/practitioner.

This book is gold for any employee. And it's worth its weight in diamonds for any business owner.

Running your own company makes you most of the time thinking about your clients, your finance and yourself. Then there are also your employees that do the job for you. Wrong! They are aware of their career just like you are aware of your own company.

This book gives you great advise about building a career and for anyone being at the top of the company already, it makes you recognize talent. So, unless you're somebody who wants to keep your current job for the next 30 years, grab a copy of this book!

Every parent and grandparent, every mentor, every Sunday school teacher, every educator should a copy of this book. This should be taught to our children.

I am 54 years old and was raised in a way that the poetry and stories mean something to me because of the era in which I was raised. Purity was prized, discipline by spanking was administered and appreciated in time because the alternative was much worse, which created self-discipline in most things. Honesty, responsibility, compassion, courage and faith have been lost in the last twenty years with the "me" generations getting everything they want with instant gratification. The children of today are about to come crashing down hard with the realities of life without virtues. It isn't easy. Nothing is free, and Bennett has compiled a tasteful way of learning some of the lessons without experiencing them personally, which I can tell you, my generation has experienced in spades. Sure, he could have put other stories in that could have expressed it differently, but these were the stories that moved him most, and when we write our "Book of Virtues" we can add the stories that mean the most to us. Reading the "American Book of Poetry" is where it started. Keep up the reading. Keep up the digging and striving for the virtues listed in the book. America needs people of virtue, people of honesty, even people of faith, because right now, the selfish "Gen-X" generation and their children are about to get our nation blown up by the very arrogance the British had that said we know better because of who we are and what we know. Sadly, they know nothing. They have no true hardship or challenges that forge the steel in their spines. Most can't even throw a punch, because violence has been bred out of them. Well, wake up, people, the world is violent, the world is harsh and tough, and without the virtues of self-discipline, faith and courage, they won't have the perseverance to survive.

This is at least the 10th copy I have purchased of this exact book.
Great for all ages, especially for us senior citizens that like to get transported back to our school years. Bennett is a fabulous author and I have bough his books of virtues & morality for my kids and grandkids.
I may buy another dozen for gifts in the future.

This book was well received for Christmas by our daughter and son-in-law. May they enjoy it for years to come, now that they have a new little family...Excellent service, by the way, from PAM, at EQUALITYBOOKS. I'll do business there again in the future.

This is a must read for every person and a must have for every library. B of V is a book filled with moral lessons that remind us of principles we were taught while growing up. Children and adults can glean from it's wisdom.

Do you want to be a millionaire? This book is called the get rich quick club by Dan gutman. This book is about a group of kids who want to be Millionaires so they try to get a real UFO so they can take a picture of it and gives it to a newspaper reporter so they can be millionaires. But will they be rich? Will they ever get to see a
Real UFO? Well you will have to read this book to find out!
I like this book because it starts with this really weird dream
It is about... you thought I was going to tell you right?
That's why you should read the book to find out. Another
Reason I like this book is because it has this really
Exciting part that you do not want to miss. This book is
A humorous book. I shouldn't tell you anything
Else because I might tell you the secret! I recommend this book
To people who like money. I hope you enjoy this book.
If you read it!

The Not So Well Club!


Will the 5 boys get rich by selling a fake U.F.O picture or will they not get rich by
selling the picture!

The Get Rich Quick Club is about 5 boys find an idea of a fake UFO picture and they plan to sell it to get money. The boys don't make it, but they all have fun. One of the kids tells the people that the picture is fake. What will happen next?

I think the author's purpose is to tell kids to be truthful and to entertain kids.

My favorite part of the book is when the boys start the get rich quick club because the boys all try to think of funny ideas to get rich. For example, they tried to create a fake UFO picture using house supplies. The picture kind of worked...they didn't get rich, but they got famous.

I recommend this book because it is funny. It also shows kids how they can make money.
By: Julia

Have you ever wondered about UFO`s or the secret of the universe? Well there is a book with adventuresome kids who experience all of this. This great book is titled The Get Rich Quick Club. This marvelous book is by the famous Dan Gutman.
This book is all about a girl who loves money and who`s role model is Bill Gates who was the richest man in the world. Her name is Gina Tumulo and she made a oath to make her first million dollars by the time she is twelve. The problem is that she is eleven and time is running out. Then one day she goes to the tree behind her house and finds her friends Rob, Quincy, Eddy, and Teddy. They decide to form a club to make a million dollars. Then they decide to snap a phony UFO photo.
I would rate this book 4 out of 5. I would recommend this book for anyone between the ages 7 and eleven. I enjoyed it a lot. I hope you read it.

by Sean

FADE IN...You network, network and network some more. Just keep smiling as you get S%$@!. The book really is excellent and a must read before taking the leap to LA. As part of the rules, I really shouldn't be letting you know about it. The book will not tell you how to get that luck break, but it will save you some pain along the way. I would also suggest Hollywood 101: The Film Industry for a excellent break down of the various jobs that are need to make a movie. FADE OUT

When I bought this book, I was prepared to read the words of someone who had watched Swimming With Sharks and The Player one too many times. However, this is not a book that teaches you how to be a player. This is a book that teaches you how to get noticed. You can tell that "Anonymous" knows his or her stuff about how to set yourself apart in Hollywood-- by playing by the right rules. There are insightful tips in this book that it would take three years worth of meetings to realize yourself. It is like the Hollywood version of Strunk & White's Elements of Style. Don't leave the east coast without it.

I am a writer and found this book to have helpful information in it for me. It is geared towards the film industry but is a good read with some good information if you are a writer, actor or in the entertainment industry or want to be.

This book not only specifically applies to how one should comport themselves in "the Biz", but has lessons that apply to all industries across the board. A must-read for all who choose to succeed. Buy it! You won't waste your money.

The Hollywood Rules - this book has a special aura about it. It encourages you to understand your talent and how it will most likely be perceived and handled by those in power who can enhance/create your career in movies. It brings Hollywood to your living room for some brief moments, making you believe that you can find the way to whatever you're striving for. And not only that - it shows you the way, providing that you are prepared to work hard, play by the rules, break the rules, and dream on until you make it [...]

In the neighborhood of Marshfield Lake, seventh-grader Kaitlyn Sweeney has a monopoly on babysitting. Good thing, too, since she's saving up for a trip to Wonder World with her two best friends, Liesel and Maggie. They've been planning and saving for it since fifth grade, but Kaitlyn worries that Liesel may not save all the money she needs in time.

So when someone offers her twice her regular fee to take a last minute job, Kaitlyn feels guilty, but compelled to lie to the parents who had already booked her for that night, saying that she's sick and can't come.

This is the first step in the Babysitting Wars. A new girl, Nola, moves in on Kaitlyn's turf, and everybody loves her. Suddenly, super-competitive Kaitlyn is getting no jobs at all, and she's determined to prove herself the best babysitter around. But what happens when her competition gets in the way of her friendship with Liesel and Maggie?

A quick, fun read, I adored the easy flow of the author's style, and felt disappointed that there is no series based on Kaitlyn and her friends. They're a riot!

Reviewed by: Allison Fraclose

While this book isn't exactly what I'm doing, taking a position overseas, it was the main reasoning behind finishing up the last leg of my education overseas. It was a very well thought-out, researched book, written by two women who had worked extensively overseas and had real life experiences of many women who had worked overseas also. It ranged from journalist to big business. It covered many aspects, from making sure its for you, how to land the gig, preparing for the move, settling in, working well overseas and surviving culture shock at the same time and even moving back to your home country and dealing with repatriation. It had some great ideas, tips, resources such as other books and websites, and was very, very helpful. I highly recommend it and am very glad I purchased it. It will be a big help and I plan on taking it with me as a resource when I start law school abroad in the Fall.

Hi, I recently read this book and then interviewed the authors for a feature on ExpatWomen.com. I was so impressed with both the book and the authors that I contributed the following (unsolicited) review to The Telegraph UK site (subsequently published 14 May 2008). I hope it helps you learn more about the book and decide if it is the right book for you. Wishing you success abroad, Andrea Martins, Director, ExpatWomen.com.

"Could Rhonda Byrne be wrong? Could there really be another Secret? According to C. Perry Yeatman and Stacie Nevadomski Berdan, the authors of Get Ahead By Going Abroad: A Woman's Guide To Fast-Track Career Success, there is indeed another secret: working abroad gets you up the career ladder faster - especially if you are a woman struggling to break through the proverbial glass ceiling at home.

Perry and Stacie are living testimony to the power of working abroad. Perry was a 25 year-old account executive making US$25,000 a year when she moved from Baltimore, Maryland to Singapore to accept her first job overseas. Ten years later, with additional stints in Moscow and London, Perry catapulted to earning US$500,000 per year and found herself touring exotic cities with global CEOs and former heads of state like Margaret Thatcher. Today, Perry is one of the top fifty executives at Kraft Foods, the second-largest food and beverage company in the world.

Stacie moved to Hong Kong the day after her wedding, at age twenty-seven. She took up a vice-president position at Burson-Marsteller - the world's leading PR firm. Upon her return to Washington, D.C. only three years later, Stacie became a global managing director. By the age of 34, she was named a partner in WPP, Burson-Marsteller's parent company and ranked in the top 1 percent of the largest communications conglomerate in the world. Today, Stacie is a successful author and a sought-after speaker and consultant.

But it is not just Perry and Stacie who have shot ahead by going abroad. To prove their theory, the authors conducted a global online survey of more than 200 women who had spent significant time abroad. A convincing 85 percent agreed that going overseas had accelerated their careers. Now that's a figure not to be scoffed at.

As a former expat in Indonesia and Mexico, I loved reading Get Ahead By Going Abroad because it took me up close and personal with Perry, Stacie and other similarly successful expat women - who share insights never normally offered to anyone outside an expat exec's trusted inner circle. I also enjoyed the fact that the book is written differently from your standard how-to fare: it intersperses advice, checklists and get-ahead tools with loads of quotes from the 40 women the authors interviewed in-depth to make their material "real".

Whilst aimed at the niche female market, this book is a must-have for anyone wanting to: land an international assignment; negotiate the best possible contract; know what to expect when they arrive; and strategically transition themselves into a premium position upon repatriation.

If you fancy a stab at accelerated success, doused with the excitement of living in a foreign land, Get Ahead By Going Abroad is definitely one of those books you should Google today."

What a great book for the career woman, with a lot of ambitions. It outlines how overseas assignments can help in achieving a much faster path towards the corner office - and have a lot of fun on the way. The book is full of stories from very succesful women, who have bolstered their career by working abroad and also peppered with the funny tales it has brought to their lives. A great read.

I really enjoyed reading the tips, research and stories by these impressive women.

This all new guide by international career women brings a whole new light and love for the saying "the world is your oyster". With a collection of personal experiences and case studies with tactical how to's this book will tell you how to land that international assignment to fulfill your wanderlust. A great read to give you that push to leap towards the global career you have always wanted no matter your age or stage of life.

We ordered multiple copies and are using them as a business tool for a "Women's Council" withing our company. The book has received excellent reviews from the women who are attending, which has also prompted a "Career Session" attended by over 200 women! Not only is this book a great tool for any woman in a business setting, but the motivational content is indispensable for anyone who desires personal success as well. The reading is easy to understand, applicable to daily living and includes interesting insights.

I admit, this this the first personal branding book I got (the only one in the bookstore), but it's a great way to start learning about the philosophy.

I don't think men should be put off by what's written on the cover, since Roffer's methods are pretty much applicable to anyone. Her writing is very learned, practical and authoritative, but her style is friendly and not unnecessarily enthusiastic.

Right now, thinking about it, "Make A Name For Yourself" can be more geared towards women if it had a section on "managing expectations and realities." There is still some discrimination towards women when it comes to their careers and the kinds of work they seek. So, if I were a woman, I'd like to get a few tips (or a whole chapter) on how to maximize my personal branding efforts so that employers will see my strengths and potential first, and my gender next.

Apart from that, a wonderful, wonderful book.

I bought this book a while ago, but still refer to it and the plan that I mapped out. It has you really look into the brands that you relate to that currently exist to see what the values are of that brand. Practical tips on everything from thinking about your real values or skills to presenting yourself professionally as a woman.

Tips are practical and can be used immediately and really help with mapping out a performance plan and development milestones without the preachy tone of the goal setting, quiz, and other leadership and development books that have you focus on one thing at a time. For a queen of multi-tasking, this was the way to go.

At the outset let me say that I read this book from the perspective that the reader was a professional such as an attorney or CPA. And that branding oneself would be basically branding their small business.

Are you responsible for the marketing function in a small business? Do you have a written business plan and a written marketing plan? Is your marketing plan working? Could your marketing plan be working better? Maybe your marketing efforts would improve by focusing those efforts so your small business can develop a brand?

This book is short sweet and simple. It explains how to "brand" your small business. It describes the 8-step process in a well-organized and easily understood way. In a nutshell, it says to set goals and devise a plan as to how to achieve them.

Maybe that message is obvious. And maybe someone might say there was no need to even write this book since the message is so simple and obvious. But some people might not have heard or thought of what this book has to say. And the author has done a wonderful job saying it. 5 stars!

The good thing about this book is that I know that Robin Fisher Roffer does actually work in the branding space and she works with some big companies. So it's a far cry from a bogus self-help book that some of these other tooting horns and walking in front of the parade (no offense if your book includes those words) often portend to offer. In the first couple of chapters she suggests you fill out some forms and begin to package your personal brand strategy. The only thing I wish is that she had used REAL people rather than "Mary Beth" Or "Jillian" who are either composites or made-up characters. Her chapter 5 about recruiting a squad of brand cheerleaders goes along with my advice in my SUCCESSFUL RECAREERING book to create a personal board of advisors....NO INDEX makes me sad -- because I really think that people who are on a quest (potential readers of this kind of book) want an index to check out and refer back to. Some references to a page in your planner type of thing date this a bit for any Gen X or Gen Y user who is heading to social networking sites like Myspace.com or Youtube.com for their videos and bios and brand building. What a difference six years makes...could be a lifetime in Internet Years in the new Digital Economy. Looking forward to meeting the author some day -- and seeing what she says about updating some of the goodies in here.