What are you most looking forward to about #HRFL13?
While there are lots of HR conferences, the HR Florida State Conference quickly became one of my absolute favorites after I was first able to attend in 2010. I was captivated by the sheer size and scope of events and program offerings and vowed to come back whenever my schedule would allow. And 2013 is the year! Naturally I’m looking forward to the keynote speakers (another stellar lineup), I’m thrilled to be a member of the Social Technology Team, and I’m also excited to lead a session with my friend Bill Boorman when we’ll discuss “HR’s Turning Point.” In general, however, I’m excited to see how this year’s theme/focus – “Then and Now” – plays out during our time in Orlando.
Why is social media important to you as a Human Resources Professional?
I quite regularly take a look at ‘how we do what we do’ has evolved over the years. While many of our foundational responsibilities as human resource practitioners remain the same, how we incorporate new ideas and philosophies and ultimately how we add value within organizations has greatly changed. Personally, social media has had a major impact on my career and impacted how I’ve delivered value to my organizations as an HR professional. Certainly all the neat and nifty tools and channels are awesome, but I’ve found that the ultimate value of social media has been increasing connections and developing relationships – with other HR professionals, with leaders and practitioners form other fields/professions, and within my organization whether that be with employees, candidates or customers.
Which social media platform or application is your favorite?
While I spend my time on a variety of channels, Twitter has long been my favorite for the immediacy and the ability to make connections and ‘talk’ to just about anyone. This ability to foster connections and tap into the power of conversation and sharing is a perfect tool for HR professionals to embrace and use; I’ve seen great success when incorporating blogs, content sharing sites and other social technologies/networks within an organization
How long have you worked in HR and what evolution have you seen in the HR profession?
While the HR Florida State Conference celebrates its 35th Anniversary, I’ll be celebrating my 25th year working in the profession. Wow. I’m old.
Back in the day when I started in HR we naturally communicated and connected with our candidates, applicants and employees. But we did it s-l-o-w-l-y: distribution of memos (“MEMORANDUM!”) via inter-office mail, weekly team meetings with pre-printed agendas, monthly (paper!) newsletters, and quarterly company-wide update meetings with the CEO. By the time any news came out it was, well, old news. At various organizations, early in my career, I was the memo writer, the employee Newsletter Editor, and the gal who typed up the meeting agendas. As my career progressed I managed the Employment Departments for a few organizations – where we received paper resumes via the USPS and answered incoming phone calls from interested candidates who saw our job advertisements in the Sunday paper. Because, of course, we could only post job openings one day of the week. Imagine informing your candidates, employees and managers in 2013 that news, updates, information and access to do anything would have to wait until next Monday…next month…next quarter?
Try to sell that one back at the ranch.
What is your favorite internet meme?
The “Y U No” guy has always fascinated and simultaneously repulsed me; creepy nightmare-inducing little dude. He allows us to ask absurd yet obvious questions like “Y U No Like HR?” Isn’t that something we often wonder when our employees hesitate to appreciate what we do? But “Y U No Like HR?” is a question that requires deep, introspective soul-searching about how we operate. I like the question; and I have hope we’ll come up with the right answer.
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