Insights lane
Some professionals arrive with the network, the vocabulary and the benefit of the doubt. Others build all three while doing the job. These articles are for the second group, and for the employers who keep overlooking them.
First-Generation Professionals
October 13, 2026
Employer health costs are projected to jump 8.2% in 2027, the biggest rise since 2003, and many workers will pay a larger share. Why it's happening, what changes to look for, and…
First-Generation Professionals
October 12, 2026
Employers are planning raises of about 3.2% to 3.5% for 2027, and fewer are giving everyone the same slice. What the budgets really say, what "peanut butter raises" are, and how to…
First-Generation Professionals
October 11, 2026
The first rung of the ladder is the part going missing. What Stanford's payroll research and the New York Fed show about young workers and AI, what it means if you have…
First-Generation Professionals
October 10, 2026
Layoffs are low, hiring is lower, and millions of people are somewhere in the middle. What the official numbers actually say, who is getting squeezed, and how to search when the market…
First-Generation Professionals
October 9, 2026
You want out and you're staying anyway. That's not weakness, it's math. What job hugging is, what the quit numbers say, why staying costs more than it feels like, and how to…
First-Generation Professionals
October 8, 2026
You tailored the résumé, wrote the cover letter, hit submit, and heard nothing. Sometimes the job was never open. Why companies keep postings up with no one hired, what the numbers say,…
First-Generation Professionals
October 7, 2026
Your title is the same and your check still clears, but your meetings, your projects and your manager's attention are disappearing. What quiet cutting is, the words companies use for it behind…
First-Generation Professionals
October 7, 2026
Part 2 of 2. What New York City, Illinois and California make employers tell you about AI screening, what Mobley v. Workday means for applicants who were graded and passed over, and…
First-Generation Professionals
October 6, 2026
Part 1 of 2. AI now sits between your application and a recruiter at almost every step: resume ranking, LinkedIn and Indeed agents, chatbot interviews and scored video interviews. What each tool…
First-Generation Professionals
October 2, 2026
Most raise budgets are set in the fall, at about 3.2% for merit in 2027. How to time the ask, what number to bring, what California law gives you, and what to…
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