What kind of vegetable-based appetizers are good? I'm going to a holiday party and the host asked me to prep veggies but I really don't want to do the boring carrot, celery, peppers + dip thing.

I am in a leadership role that I am new to. There is only one person in the company above me (my supervisor) and I am the only person at my level. My supervisor is new as well, both to the company and to this level of leadership. We were both experienced in our prior roles. I'd thought we were working together effectively until last week. On three different occasions, she told me, "good girl," in response to me completing a task or answering a question. All three times it was just the two of us in a meeting about a complex situation. The first two times happened in the same meeting and while I was surprised, I fluffed it off. After the third time, it's all I can think about. You say that to a child or a dog, not a respected employee (or any kind of person!). I'm feeling like it's time to get out as fast as I can, and also that I need to let her know this is not ok. Am I wrong?

I have been with my job for 10.5 years and loved it until the company brought in a new COO last August, who is a racist, discriminatory person. He has been in cahoots with the HR manager and senior execs to oust me since he got here. He put me on in inaccurate PIP for 90 days and it ends on 1/11/24 which I refuted. I have come to the realization that this is not the place for me but I have not found a job as of yet. I am still looking but need to get out before the PIP expires. The options are to find another job ( I haven’t gotten 1 single interview yet) or start a business. I am very good at what I do) but question the ability to have an income stream for the first 3-6 months (how long it would take to get my business off the ground). I know that he plans on terminating me at the end of the PIP, but put me on it for the company’s protection. I feel like I am between a rock and hard place right now. I don’t want a termination to be on my record but I also can’t afford to leave without finding a job. i never thought in my wildest dreams that I would ever be put on a PIP as I have never been put on 1 before. I have been working for over 40 years. I plan to issue a written response right after Christmas. I didn’t do it before as I need my medical insurance throughout this year and didn’t want to risk being terminated and lose the insurance. Timing is very important. i have spoken to a couple of employment attorneys and 1 or 2 believe I have a discrimination case. Any advice or insights would be appreciated..

Will be let go at the end of the year for reasons that are not me - senior mgmt doesn’t value the role of operations, financial troubles, not our first round of layoffs. And I’ve made peace with leaving but in trying to find something new, have gotten no interviews at all. Probably applied to 70 jobs or so so far. That’s what is hurting my confidence. I know I can do well and in interview but having a hard time getting in the door. Any advice or services that have worked to successfully get you an interview?

I need advice on: execs who agree to an approach, yet (seem to) task people in their org to something different, who should manage cross-team turf wars and managing aggressive communications/actions. We are working on a new project for which there is no precedent. It’s very early, we’re at the vision stage seeking strategic alignment with execs… my exec and their exec agreed on this approach. Then, this persons exec tasked them with a deliverable that is contrary to this approach. I was out sick. I personally Messaged this person (assigned with the deliverable) to let them know that I could not meet for our first 1:1, (not knowing they had a deliverable for my project) and my slack status clearly said i was out. That didn’t stop the person from writing a message in a public forum that I was unwilling to partner—a group whose support I will need to deliver bold visions. When I met with them after returning for illness, that is when I came to know that they have a deliverable they want me to green light. This is deliverable is contrary to the approach dictated by the exexs. It’s too soon to agree on on the tactics. This direction was given by their VP— 2/3 levels above this person. This person said they were given this task by the same VP that proposed this strategic alignment approach. This person accused me of not helping with the deliverable. Something they did not communicate until 3 days before its deadline. I do not have a single email, slack, calendar invite, etc stating this deliverable. Further, this task is contrary to what the overall program has ageed to, a meeting that I was privy to, and this person was not. Their communications were heated, aggressive, and disrespectful. They explained a concept to me, then, when I was silent (not wanting to get trapped into agreeing to a scope of work that was not my place to agree to, which was clearly her MO for our first 1:1) they assumed that I didn’t understand. They said in a very snarky tone: “well I don’t know how to explain this to you any further, it’s very simple, if you don’t understand this I don’t know what to say.” I feel this is unprofessional communication. On insight is: they indicated that they came up with this same idea years ago, despite not knowing (and being privy to) leadership conversations that say what the idea is… that seems lilke classic turf wars. I often tolerate very bad behavior. How can I stop this before it gets out of hand? It seems they are threatened by my role and intend to continue speaking to me in this manner. My belief is, if you wouldn’t speak to an executive that way, don’t Speak to me that way. i am empathetic To their feeling of being left out, but specifically, I need advice on how I should manage the situation.

I am a soon to be qualified accountant and I have seen great disparities between different companies in their accounting department. Unfortunately, I did not qualify via a big 4 company or a top 50 accounting company. I have worked for both private and FTSE listed companies and have noticed a difference in their accounting methods/styles. I have spent the majority of my career as an assistant accountant. However, my new role is focused on management accounts and client reporting. I am nearing 30, and I am very worried I am lacking core accounting experiences that would put me in a favourable position with employers. My current employer does not have a distinct hierarchy/support systems for promotions or any development opportunities. I would like to be in a position where I can know the integral parts of accounting which will allow me to be confident in taking on a management role. I have seen all the finance directors have been ex big four auditors / ex auditors in general so they have a wide breadth of knowledge. How can I improve my accounting knowledge , so I can learn about all departments and begin to think as a strong accountant. I would appreciate if someone could provide advise on how to climb the ladder in accounting . My interest do lie in treasury accounting but I believe I have mistakenly joined this company without thinking about the development opportunities available to me. What is the normal career path of an accountant? I graduated in 2019 . How can an individual become a strong accountant and differentiate themselves from their competitors? Thank you in advance.

I graduated in MS in Supply Chain Management August 2023. I have enormous experience in leadership role in fast moving shipping company based in Asia Pacific. Currently, support family owned Real Estate Investment company where I am in charge of all investment portfolios as a project manager. I am competitive, full of vigor with analytical skills and emotional intelligence. I really want to move career in Supply Chain Management. The only thing that has stood my way is “Fear” of my 63 lifelong experience that can offer so much insight into everything. Please provide me real feedbacks. ?