SHRA 2009 Summary

The 21st annual SHRA conference has come and gone. Yellowstone National Park will never be the same. This was my 6th successive conference and like I said to the group, it is my favorite conference of the year. No offense to the other conferences, but SHRA has a intimate, unique vibe and I love seeing my HR buddies from the national parks. I always leave SHRA with either ideas and inspiration for my personal life or my business life. In short, SHRA = Value. My takeaways:

• HR continues to be a challenging job that attracts problem solvers and, in the case of the parks folks, those who are a bit more adventurous as evidenced by their participation in my live SHRA podcast.
• Technology is always changing and having a guide to help move you along the path is really helpful.
• Face to face networking is the best.
• The national parks offer amazing things to do in your time off.
• Cool Works Shack tours are free, but inspire enthusiasm.
• Elk roam free and the snow flies in Gardiner during the month of October.
• The physiology of bears is incredible. Hat tip: Yellowstone Association.
• Your recruiting message better match the reality of your work environment.
• Recruiting = Finding the right people at the right time for the right job.
• The questions on employment applications are there for a reason. Answer them!
• Coaching employees doesn't have to take a long time. Think 2-minute challenge and focus on what you have observed.
• If you need a great trainer, contact Dina at FUNdamental Training Solutions.
• Need guidance on "Independent Contractors?" Google or Bing "87-41"
• NEVA, the New Employee Verification Act, was introduced in 2008 and its goal is to prevent unauthorized employment. More thoughts about NEVA on the Department of Homeland Security journal.
• When dealing with employees, performance is always on the table.
• HR managers in the national parks get to use hatchets and magic wands. Making memories and changing lives.
• International agencies have also been affected by the recession. Their biggest challenge is meeting the needs of the ever changing requests of their employer clients.

To hear the HR managers talk about how they got to where they are and a bit about their parks, please take a listen to the Seasonal Human Resources Association live podcast. Sorry for the poor audio quality at the beginning, but the content should make up for it! Long live SHRA and bring on the 2010 conference! HR Rocks.

Thinking About Authenticity

I realize that mentioning authenticity may seem cliche, and Laurie of Punk Rock HR is sick of thinking about it, but every where I go I hear people talk about being authentic. Comments I heard at the "HR Bloggers - Who Are These People and Why Should You Care?" session at the SHRM conference in New Orleans included the following.

• Tell your own story. He is who he is in person and on his blog. - from @thelance
• It's easier to be yourself when you blog. - from @jessica_lee
• If you can't be yourself when you blog, you're working for the wrong company. - from @lruettimann
• Risk adverse companies may push a blogger to go anonymous. - from @kris_dunn

I work from home so for me my social outlets are my cats, my Cool Works partners via IM and GTalk, my twitter friends, other social networking peeps, and the employers with whom I work. However, from June 20 to July 2, I got full face-to-face (f2f) social experience because of two planned trips, one for Cool Works through Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks and one for me / Cool Works for the annual SHRM conference in New Orleans. In some ways, it's too bad that the trips couldn't have been spread further apart to maintain my "contact high," but in some ways, I think that running so hard and fast kept my brain at the proper pace to absorb all of the energy from each event. Lots of goodness was received from each trip.

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Cool Works Meetup Wrap Ups - Part I, Part II, Part III, and Part IV (Final) SHRM Wrap Up - For Three Strange Days...at SHRM - Conference Wrap Up

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Now being self-absorbed for just a moment, I think I'm fairly authentic. The writing me and the talking me are the same. Comments from people I met on both trips support my belief, and frankly, really made my day(s). Back at you folks! Some examples:

• From a member of our My Cool Works social network after meeting me at Lake in Yellowstone National Park - "Lovely meeting you kari. i think i felt your energy before i saw you, and as you passed, i'm pretty sure i could have grabbed the electrons in your outer orbit. i'm very happy that you were you. i wish you more luck in life than even an unreasonable person could expect." [WOW]
• "I feel the same about @lruettimann, @kariquaas. She would ask the same Q's in person that she does on her blog." 9:47 AM Jul 1st from web - @leanneclc - Leanne Chase
• "@kariquaas - I will never *ever* mispronounce your name again. You're a wonderfully interesting person & it was great mtg you! #SHRM09" 3:13 PM Jul 2nd from web - @stelzner - Mark Stelzner
• "How did @kariquaas get so awesome?" 11:35 PM Jun 29th from twhirl - @SBWorkforce - SmartBriefWorkforce, aka Mary Ellen Slayter, whose writing I love!

Needless to say, but I'm flattered and happy that who I am online is who I am in person. I am me. If you don't like me, don't follow me. It's almost like @Animal's line of "If you're sensitive, don't follow me" on twitter. Being true to oneself is so critical. Like Kris Dunn of HR Capitalist said during the panel, blogging is about having an opinion, taking a stand and critical thinking. In addition to that I would like to state that sometimes it's hard enough to clarify my own thoughts so why on earth would I want to add the challenge of trying to think like someone else. Writing as yourself is easier, and also helps to develop your personal brand, a topic for another day.

So, therein lies the challenge to you. Are you you? If yes, great. If not, why not? Do you write as yourself or try to be someone else? If you write as yourself, good for you. If not, who else are you trying to be?