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.

CoolWorks.com Podcasts

We're always up to something new. The latestst and greatest is that we are now dabbling in podcasts using BlogTalkRadio. Our first podcast featured Tina Brudzinski, Human Resources Manager, at Crested Butte Mountain Resort. She was as gracious as ever and a perfect guest. She answered generic questions about working for a ski resort and also told us a bit about how she got her job at Crested Butte.

Interview with Tina Brudzinski from Crested Butte

Next up on our podcast will be my long time friend and former co-worker at Princess Tours, Rick Peterson, who is the Hotel Services Manager at the Mt. McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge in Trapper Creek, Alaska. Rick started his own hospitality career as a seasonal employee working for Princess at their Kenai property. On the podcast he will share some of his wisdom regarding how you not only decide if seasonal work is right for you, but also what to do once you've made that decision.

The Seasonal Employee Journey with Rick Peterson
Tuesday, October 20 at 3pm Pacific / 6pm Eastern

We'll cover the following topics on the call:

• Where to work
• When to apply
• How to get your application noticed
• What to expect once you're hired

If you or your organization would like to join me on one of our podcasts, please email me. We don't have a set schedule yet, but plan on doing a few of them each month, and they will be featured on the following sites.

• CoolWorks on BlogTalk Radio
• My CoolWorks

Also, if you ever want to interview one of us at Cool Works for your podcast or blog, please let us know. We're happy to share our knowledge about the seasonal jobs.