Pardon me as I take a trip down memory lane.  Join me if you can.  Close your eyes.  Think back to when you were starting out as an early career professional.  Think back to your interviews and the things you learned from those experiences.  What did you learn?  Now think back to the early career professionals you have interviewed recently.  What have they said?  What have they done?  More importantly, have you been left shaking your head wondering...

In 2015, the SHRM Foundation launched a new scholarship competition in partnership with SHRM. We awarded five scholarships to attend the SHRM Annual Conference & Exposition in Las Vegas, Nevada, June 28-July 1, 2015.   Congratulations to the 2015 scholarship recipients whose profiles are displayed below.  We look forward to seeing you in Las Vegas! Northeast Cindy King, SHRM-CP, HR Director, Institute for Health and Recovery Danvers, MA   Southeast Jatisha Marsh, SHRM-CP, Employee...

On April 15, @shrmnextchat chatted with Poachable CEO Tom Leung (@TomL) about The Rise of Passive Talent Matching. In case you missed this amazing chat, here are all the tweets:   [View the story "#Nextchat RECAP: The Rise of Passive Talent Matching" on Storify]      ...

  It's no surprise that effective networking is one of the most critical aspects of a successful career.  You may dread awkward networking events, but there's no denying that they are an important source of building your professional network.  It all finally clicked for me after watching the Season 5 premiere of HBO's Game of Thrones on Sunday evening. Nerdy? Yes. Insightful? We'll see.. The first step towards effective networking at an event is being able to introduce yourself in an engaging and informative, yet concise manner. ...

  Recently, my HR Manager team did an exercise I found very empowering.  We called it "What’s your Superpower?" In essence, we wanted to understand what each team member was great at.  We wanted to define our "Superpower." We framed the discussion in terms of an area that you have deep knowledge in (employee relations, management development, leadership coaching, etc.), great utilization of a specific skill, or a keen ability to do something. Discovery of this Superpower could be based on your own self-assessment, feedback from others, and/or something you’ve had frequent success with. ...

If a merger or acquisition is on your horizon, prepare for one of the most challenging times in your HR career. Not only will you encounter competing cultures and potentially conflicting management styles, you will likely be working with incompatible Human Capital Management (HCM) systems. This makes it tricky when you need to get an accurate, single inventory of all the people and determine new roles, compensation levels and titles. Executives will also need to understand how much the new combination of talent will cost -- not an easy task when the data is floating around...

  Do you despise performance management time?  Do you despair at the thought of performance appraisal season?  Do you ever call in sick when asked to rate someone’s performance?  Rest easy.  You are among myriad professionals, supervisors, and other stakeholders who all cringe at the mere mention of the words "performance management."  Like you, I cringe when thinking about performance appraisal and, more importantly, performance management.  The reason is the entire process is wrought with pitfalls.  No matter what you do, how you do it, and when you do...

  In the book "The Cobler of Preston," Christopher Bullock wrote the famous line, "’Tis impossible to be sure of anything but death and taxes." As sure as we are about paying our taxes, one thing we’re often unsure about is getting tax relief. That’s why I wanted to share some information about a tax credit opportunity I learned about. The Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) is not a new program. It’s a Federal tax credit available to employers for hiring individuals from certain target groups. But did...

How to be a smarter HR buyer using the wisdom of your HR peers   On March 4, TrustRadius released a report called The Buyer’s Guide to Core HR Software. The report is based on the reviews of more than 290 real users and reveals several important trends in core HR software.  One trend is the desire for a core software to be intuitive, engaging, and have a user-friendly, social interface. HR wants software that they (and their employees) will want to use-not have to use. In the...

I am thrilled to announce that the 2015 Annual Conference app is now available for download for conference attendees! All you need to do is visit the app store (for iPhone/iPad users) or the android market or google play (for android users) to download. Simply search "SHRM 2015" to find the app then select to download and follow the instructions. You only need to login once using your user name (8-digit SHRM Member or Customer...

Professional counselors, including those working in Human Resource Management, have addressed a myriad of employee issues during the last several decades. Substance abuse and drug addictions have been one of the major challenges faced by professional counselors employed in businesses, educational settings, hospitals, mental health clinics and private practices. Today we are confronted with a new challenge as we witness the exponential growth of process addictions. Process addictions, often referred to as behavioral addictions, are defined as a relentless pursuit of...

  You’ve found yourself in a new role with a new company and you’re excited to make a lasting mark within the organization.  You’ve been trained on about 100 new processes and procedures and have seen some areas for improvement.  Your trainer or new manager has mentioned the need for change but says they have been too busy and haven’t been able to make them.  After you’ve performed the processes and procedures a few times and have a better idea of how or where you would like to make...

There are not enough words to convey my excitement to share with you that Coach K is the opening keynote at SHRM’s 2015 Annual Conference. There is not enough room in this blog to list all of his accomplishments but here are a few to illustrate what an amazing coach, leader, mentor and motivator Coach K is: He holds the title of Winningest Coach in NCAA Division in Men's Basketball History He is the first Division I men’s basketball coach to reach over 1,000 wins...

How to be a smarter HR buyer using the wisdom of your HR peers... On April 22, @shrmnextchat chatted with the CEO of @TrustRadius, Vinay Bhaghat (@VinayBhagat) about "What HR Really Thinks About Core HR Software." In case you missed the conversation, here are all the informative tweets from the chat:   [View the story "#Nextchat RECAP: What HR Really Thinks About Core HR Software" on Storify]  ...

  A few weeks ago, I posed a simple question to the people connected to SHRM’s LinkedIn page: Have you read the book Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg? I was looking for people to participate in a roundtable discussion of the book and the issues it raises about workplace equality for an upcoming issue of HR Magazine. I was thrilled—and a bit overwhelmed—by the strong and immediate response I received. I heard from more than 70 women and men from all over the world, from diverse family structures, many walks of life, and on various rungs of the corporate ladder....

  One-third of organizations (35 percent) have already hired college students to begin working before or after their graduation, according to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) Hiring of 2015 College Graduates Survey. Additionally, 71 percent of the organizations that have not hired any graduates yet are planning to do so, an 18 percent increase since 2013. However, with the increased demand for college graduates, 14 percent of organizations are experiencing more difficulty recruiting college...

A pause to reflect on linguistics and digital communications  April 23rd is English Language Day at the United Nations. It’s also the birthday of William Shakespeare. In 2010, the Department of Public Information established a day to celebrate for each of the six official languages. Paul Grice (1913-1988) was a British Philosopher of Language and published work on the nature of meaning and developed a theory of implicature - the meaning implied in what is uttered. Grice developed his ideas around a cooperative principle and a set of maxims to govern and describe human interaction. "Make your...

You are investigating a complaint of harassment.  You meet with witness Wally and he tells you the following: Karen told me her boss Bill gave her a neck rub and gives her daily compliments about her clothing while giving her "elevator eyes." I think Susan may know more about what happened. Many investigators would dutifully write down what Wally said and then likely disregard or discount the evidence, labeling it "hearsay."  Is this the right decision?  The answer is found in understanding the role of a workplace investigator. What is Hearsay? ...

  April 22 was a big day for SHRM in advancing the HR profession and sound workplace polices in the State of California. Mike Letizia, SHRM MAC Member and CalSHRM’s state director, along with CalSHRM Director-elect Patti Blosser, and SHRM A-team Captain Hector Moncada testified in support of two SHRM developed and sponsored pieces of HR legislation introduced by Assemblyman Brian Jones (R-Santee) in the California State Assembly Committee on Labor & Employment.  Advocacy is a major component of SHRM’s strategic initiative in California and as SHRM Government Affairs staff, I have been working very closely with the CalSHRM State...

  Just as a resume is a candidate’s first chance to make a great impression, so too are a company’s job listings. A great job description will encourage a more qualified candidate to apply, just as a poor listing can ensure he or she moves on to other openings. In fact, the average job seeker spends less than 30 seconds reviewing a job posting, so effective descriptions are vital to standing out from the pack and attracting top talent. Here are 5 easy ways to bring more qualified candidates into your hiring pipeline: Searchable, Relevant Titles Optimizing how many...

  Recruiting talent is serious business. No asset is more important to an organization’s success than it’s talent - and the entire organization relies on HR to secure the right talent for the right position. Still, most HR departments aren’t given limitless resources find and hire the best talent the workforce has to offer. That’s a lot of pressure to deal with. The good news is, your peers are in the same boat, dealing with similar challenges and recruitment hurdles. Here are five of the most common HR grievances,...

  If there is one thing you can be certain of in the recruiting industry, it’s that change is a constant. The economic climate, unemployment rates and the talent pool fluctuate, sometimes dramatically and in a very short time. Changes in technology can also have a major impact on recruitment methods. Whether the changes are the result of new technology or market conditions, however, recruiters must adapt if they want to stay competitive and secure the best candidates. Looking back on the first quarter of 2015 brought to light some trends we expect to see continue through the rest of...

  This is the fourth in the series around the secrets of leading a successful search.   We started with the posting and the story behind the role, moved forward to the research and networking, then the important vetting process and now the on-site sessions and actually meeting of the candidates.  We must discuss early on what the interview day will look like and plan for Game Day. In our project management model, we outline  the first six to eight weeks of the search.  We promise results...

  The next wave of college students is preparing for graduation, purchasing caps and gowns, and taking final exams. But will these new college graduates have jobs after walking across the stage, diploma in hand? Below are some job hunting tips for soon-to-be college graduates based on the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) Hiring of 2015 College Graduates Survey. When to apply: The time to apply is now! One-third of organizations (35 percent)...