The 2018 Society for Human Resource Management Annual Conference & Exposition has concluded. and HR professionals are in equal parts exhausted and inspired as they digest knowledge and seek to share it in their native space.

Are you thinking about registering for #SHRM19 in Las Vegas? Maybe you already have and you are looking for some tips from a first-time attendee. I will provide you with a few helpful tips that made my first #SHRM conference a major success!

Plan on planning to make last minute changes

The 2018 SHRM conference is over and as usual, after this type of experience I take time to review my notes and reflect on what I learned. The entire program was fantastic, including an array of keynotes, session speakers, a SMART stage and the opportunity to learn about leading edge HR products and services at the exposition hall.

Understanding the business case for--and the business of--hiring veterans

I’m already missing the SHRM18 Conference in Chicago! So many great memories made and ideas for speaking, hopefully SHRM2020!

The conference provided me with so many opportunities for my job and my personal brand (Smirk). It always goes by way too fast, but the amount of knowledge and connections I’ve gained makes it worth every penny.

#SHRM18 was my first national SHRM conference, and I cannot thank Mary Kaylor and SHRM enough for making attending possible for me! I had a wonderful time – the blogger lounge, seating area for the keynotes, food (& coffee <3), sessions, book store and expo floor were all top-notch. It exceeded my expectations to see everything so well done and all the details taken care of.

Here are 13 key takeaways from the 13 sessions I attended at the SHRM Annual Conference (#SHRM18) in Chicago.

What is one of the key HR lessons from Canada? A key learning is that the future is bright and in good hands. Check out this video of students from Mount Royal University, commenting on why they love HR, what HR means to them, and what they see for their future. 

As SHRM18 wrapped up, I thought about the event by listening to music on my drive home. I heard an old song called “It’s Over” by Boz Scaggs, I thought that’s it, it’s my metaphor for an event wrap up. However, the song is really about a failed relationship so that didn’t really capture the moment. 

I had the pleasure of attending Joe’s mega session on “How to be a better Business Partner.” For all of you who could not attend the session or the #SHRM18 Conference, below are some of the key takeaways from his session:

As SHRM 2018 comes to a close I wanted to paraphrase some of the thoughts and tips from four very memorable speakers taking part in Chicago this year! I think these are great pointers to keep in the back of your mind as you head back to the office tomorrow!

Embrace Values Over Skills: Adam Grant, Professor at Wharton School of Business

On June 20, @shrmnextchat chatted with Julie Dodd (@UltiJulie), Chief Services Officer for Ultimate Software about How to Build a People-First Culture.

If you missed this excellent chat, you can read all the tweets here: 
 

This year at SHRM18, podcasting continues to be a growth area in social media. Last year, there was one company making a serious effort to do podcasting. Caleb Masters, webinar and podcast producer/host of Paycom’s HR Break Room, was the one person I noticed doing this at SHRM17.

“Early to rise. Not to bed. The motto of 15,000 HR professionals. I saw the streets of Wacker, Wabash, Rush, littered with the detritus of HR parties, SHRM badges and vendor business cards. Business cards. Interesting they still have a place in 2018. Like the land line, TV dinners and wrist watches they exist simply to remind us they did.

How many times have you had an employee in your office, frustrated and telling you in no uncertain terms that they can't work with a certain person on their team or in their office? They can tell you exactly what the other person does on an hour-to-hour basis that drives them absolutely crazy, and how it's a barrier to their success. And what do they want at the end of the day? That other person has to go. 

People and workplace issues are global and, increasingly, so is the business of HR. Around the world, workplace policy is increasingly influenced by governments, employers and workers at the international level. I just returned from the International Labour Conference (ILC) in Geneva, Switzerland where I was a member of the delegation sent by the United States to develop a new United Nations (UN) convention on violence and harassment in the workplace.

In recent weeks there has been a renewed focus on mental health issues, especially in light of a couple of high-profile celebrity suicides. Professional athletes like Kevin Love of the Cleveland Cavaliers and other luminaries have also been forthright in talking about their own issues with mental health.

Day one of #SHRM18 there was happy greetings, pre-conference sessions with Jennifer McClure, the general session with Johnny Taylor and Jeb Bush, and lots of fantastic interactions in the Expo Hall.

Here are a few of the amazing people I met along the way, and what they are looking forward to at #SHRM18:

“It was confusing. Crowded. Alien, yet familiar. I know I was here to document and observe but the indigenous HR people made it impossible to remain detached. I was a friend to all but yet had never been introduced to any.

What I had I gotten myself into?”

SHRM18! It’s time to pack my bags and head for the airport. As part of the SHRM Blogging team, I’m looking forward to sharing my insights through the SHRM18 blog. I’m excited about meeting my #HRTribe #Nextchat #SHRMBloggers in real life. There are brunches, happy hours and photo opportunities in the works.

SHRM President and CEO Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., with the WFPMA leadership in Chicago. From left, Bob Morton, Peter Wilson, Leyla Nascimento and Jorge Jauregui.

We are what feels like seconds away from the SHRM18 Conference. 

The #SHRM18 Bloggers have already produced some excellent Q & A posts with many of the 2018 SHRM Annual Conference & Exposition speakers and vendors. 

To give you a peek behind the scenes, I've conducted some interviews with SHRM colleagues who work so diligently to create an amazing conference experience.  

I am excited to shine a spotlight on Vanessa Hill from the SHRM Media Affairs team.
 

I had missed SHRM16 but had not missed blogging about why I thought large conclaves like the ones organized by SHRM are great social selling opportunities after reading about the power of social selling later that year.

OK, you’re in HR, so you should get this.  You don’t continue to get return engagements unless you produce good work or a good product. 

Sign up to receive SHRM party alerts and announcements by texting ‘SHRM’ to 55678
 

The countdown has started – we’re days away from #SHRM18!

Make BIG PLANS for #SHRM18.

Do not settle into your comfort zone. Do not chart a course for the familiar. Push yourself to see and experience something greater.

EXPAND YOUR WORLD.

It’s not too late! Register for the 3rd Annual Step Challenge and make your $10 suggested registration donation!

As a SHRM blogger, I had the opportunity to attend the 2017 SHRM conference that took place in New Orleans. It was my first time attending the conference and was by far the most amazing conference I had ever been to. As many of you are attending the upcoming 2018 SHRM Annual Conference & Exposition for the first time, I decided to share a few tips for first time attendees.

The 2018 SHRM Annual Conference & Exposition is right around the corner and one of the most exciting parts of the confernece is the Exposition Hall and all of the workplace and workforce solutions that will be on display for HR. 

If there’s two topics HR professionals handle on a near daily basis, and ones that I consider necessities of the role; it’s having good communications skills, and successfully managing a performance review program.

This will be my last blog before SHRM18.  I wanted to share my experience with Diversity Stride 2018:

Last week, two celebrities took their lives, Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain.  To be more specific, they committed suicide.

It is important to say the word “suicide” because many media reports, at least initially, did not.  There is still, for some, discomfort with mental health issues in general and suicide in particular.

“Use these days in Chicago to build your career, invest in yourself, its more than a party, much more than a networking event, hold us accountable for ensuring that you have a meaningful experience” these are some of SHRM’s CEO, Johnny C Taylor Jr.’s words from an encouraging Facebook live chat, that was held for the SHRM18 bloggers by Andrew Morton.

I’ve known Lyle Hanna for most of the 20 years that I have been a card-carrying SHRM member. He has been such an inspiration to me, especially for his volunteer work with the SHRM Foundation. Lyle has had a long glorious career in Human Resources that spans almost 40 years. He must have been a teenager when he started in HR!

We're joined by SHRM18 Blogger Mary Williams, Vice President of Operations and Human Resources with Clear Digital Media/ClearSounds Communications in Naperville, IL.  We talk about Mary's experience as a "Department of One" and Jon pulls a connection to her favorite TV show. 

Mary's recommendations:

Executives - I’m looking especially at you.  You nerds. 

Young HR professionals—whether they’re newly minted college graduates or a few years into their first job—don’t have a lot of experience with writing a professional resume. They often rely on trusted professional contacts in HR for tips and advice on selling themselves through their resume in order to get a foot in the door.

Not long ago, I was training a group of leaders on effective presentation, communication, and storytelling skills. While I conveyed the finer points of elocution, a participant raised a question.

“Are you trying to turn me into James Earl Jones?”

The SHRM Annual Conference is right around the corner!