Volume 29 Number 7	May / June 2004

Career Planning and Development Workshop

Douglas Yazell and Jud Hedgecock speak
at the Career Path Forum opening event for CPAD.

The most recent in a series of career workshops sponsored by AIAA was held on Saturday, March 26th at the Gilruth Center. Following the format of the previous workshops, this event attracted 37 participants who were treated to a keynote address from former Apollo-era flight director and manager Glynn Lunney. The event targeted an audience 1-5 years out of college, and some co-op students also attended. A panel of experienced engineers from a variety of disciplines and companies got the day going quickly by talking about their career paths and how they got where they are today. Several of the members spoke of how AIAA had helped them in their careers, especially in knowing key people from other local area aerospace companies. Other presentations during the day related to Managing Your Money, Business Etiquette, Performance Appraisals, and Financial Planning. As with previous years, the financial sessions are always highly regarded by the young professionals who don't learn those lessons during their college years. During the initial panel session the attendees appreciated the candidness of the experienced people on the panel. The highlight of the day was hearing the career thoughts of Glynn Lunney, especially regarding integrity, a subject that is not often spoken of as being so important to a career. He also made sure he talked about balancing your life, as he spoke highly of his children and grandchildren. Overall the event was a big success, with other career workshops sure to follow in coming years.