From an Ally who’s living it.

Every issue features a Vanguard Story, first-person, from an Ally a few steps further down the trail. It's consistently our most-read writing, not because it's polished, because it's true.

Vanguard Story

Beyond the Circumstantial: Building an Intentional Network

One of the hardest parts when I needed to quit a job was realizing that too much of my social life was intertwined with my workplace. My external network was weak to non-existent and non-work friends were dispersed across the country. So, I made intentional changes and then quit.

The purpose of a school or office was never explicitly designed to make friends, build networks, and support our social needs as humans. 
School is an education system. The office is for getting a job done.

Written by Rachell Thompson • Raleigh-Durham, NC

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The Field Report

Evidence, Not Opinion

Every issue carries a Field Report. It's not a recap and it's not our take. It's proof: labor-market data, Outpost dispatches, named Ally results. If it can't be sourced to a stat, an event outcome, or a real person, it doesn't run.

• No advice

• No opinion

• No recaps for their own sake

• Runs every issue, regardless of that week's subject

The Field Report

Remote Work Didn't Isolate This Team. It Brought Them Together.

A management scholar followed one professional services firm as it moved from office work to mostly remote work, through 2024. The study drew on 275 interviews and about 330 hours of observation. Most staff ended up working from home four or five days a week.

She expected their working relationships to break down, as much of the research on workplace relationships predicted. They didn't.