Business Philosophy/Identity - Most companies tend to have a unique identity and philosophy. For some companies, they pride themselves on giving back to community. Some are focused on making as much money for their employees as possible. And others are focused on providing a great work environment and being a place people want to work. Finding a business with a philosophy that matches your values will make getting up for work in morning much more enjoyable!

Management Style - Some managers give their employees wide lattitude to make decisions. Others want to be involved in details and have more control over everything that's going on.

Degree of Trust - In some companies, people openly trust each other and share information with their co-workers. At other companies, people are secretive and even distrustful.

Understanding of Personal Issues - It's possible for a company to be focused on performance, but to still be generous with its employees in times of personal need (such as when someone has a sick family member).

WAYS TO DETERMINE CORPORATE CULTURE

It's often possible to get a sense of a company's culture by looking at their web site. They may include speeches from their senior managers or news items discussing company initiatives that indicate cultural values. Before interviewing, it's a good idea to think about values you'd want a company you work for to have, and if it's not obvious to you company has them, ask person you're interviewing with what company's philosophy is on issue. Ask for examples to be sure interviewer isn't just selling you on company and can provide facts to back up their assertions. By asking culture questions and showing that you are interested in making sure you and company fit well together, you're also communicating to interviewer that you're a professional and that you are looking for a job that really makes sense for you.

Hopefully by now you're excited about idea of integrating continual learning into your career. How can you do this? Well for one thing, successful people tend to maximize a concept that Human Resource professionals call "job stretch." Job stretch is difference between what your skills are now and skills that are required to perform a certain set of functions. Successful people seek to make their job stretch as wide as possible while still being able to do their job really well. This means volunteering for that project at work that you might have to spend some extra time researching to be able to do well. And it means applying for jobs that require slightly more expertise than you currently have, rather than slightly less. Having job stretch can make your work more engaging and exciting.

Another way to integrate continual learning is through formal education. This includes taking classes, earning degrees and certifications, reading, and generally absorbing knowledge in all ways possible. It used to be that taking classes meant committing to lengthy courses at a local university, which also required spending more time away from your family and loved ones. With invention of Internet, it's now possible to take classes online from accredited universities and technical schools. We have done some research and found a number of high quality online education offerings. To find out more, visit this web page: http://www.jobsearchinfo.com/degrees.htm