Visibility at work is no longer optional—it’s essential for effective collaboration, recognition, and career growth. Yet alumni and working professionals of all ages and stages -- especially those in Gen Z and those who are underrepresented, neurodivergent, or uncomfortable with in-office socialization -- struggle to connect beyond their immediate teams.

This session discusses step-by-step, research-backed strategies drawn from Steve Dalton's best-selling Penguin Random House books that make networking easier, more structured, and more inclusive—helping every professional proactively build the relationships that lead to stronger mentorship, advancement, and community.

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Steve Dalton is a nationally recognized career expert and the creator of the “proactive networking” system at the heart of The 2-Hour Job Search. First published by Penguin Random House in 2012, the book has sold over 100,000 copies and is trusted by job seekers and career coaches around the world for its clear, step-by-step approach to building professional relationships that lead to job offers.

Dalton is also the author of The Job Closer, which expands his time-saving, framework-driven approach to cover the full job search journey—from career selection to offer negotiation—and integrates AI tools to simplify complex, time-consuming tasks.

Prior to becoming an author, Dalton was a career coach at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, where he helped thousands of MBA students over 17 years navigate an ever-changing job market. Before that, he was a twice-promoted strategy consultant at A.T. Kearney and a consumer brand marketer at General Mills—experience that gives him a broad and practical perspective on what today’s employers truly value. Through his company, Contact2Colleague, Dalton now helps individuals and organizations apply his structured methods to improve internal mobility, advocacy, and long-term career growth.

His work has been featured in the Harvard Business Review, The Wall Street Journal, and Fast Company, and his instructional videos are among the most viewed on YouTube for job seekers. He holds an MBA from Duke University and a chemical engineering degree from Case Western Reserve University, and lives in Durham, North Carolina.