Over the past year, I have often been asked by various members of the HR community: With so many immediate changes in society, what can I do to best help my employer?
From insect invasions (murder hornets, cicadas and joro spiders, oh my!), to an entire pandemic, to the more-standard challenges of matters like voting legislation, mental and physical wellness, refugee crises, racial injustice, pay equity and gun violence, there has been plenty for HR to deal with over the past two years.
Employees are asking for different things. Employers’ needs have changed. Technology continues to be developed faster than many people can adapt to it. Zoom and TikTok are household names around the world, yet many workplaces have yet to adopt new or amended policies and practices to deal with these new platforms. Workplace safety has taken on a different identity with debates over mask and vaccine mandates.
Policies will change. Laws will, too. They are always evolving. Professionals are chasing solutions. Amid the clutter of information and the scramble to find answers, one remedy is often overlooked: self-preparation.
You may not be able to change the entire world, but you can make decisions about your own preparation and make the most valuable contributions possible. You can Cause the Effect from which your employer will benefit.
HR professionals are presently in a unique position to impact the workplace through professional development. While there are numerous ways that we can make an impact and become change agents, there are a few I’d like to mention here:
- Become SHRM-certified. By studying for and acquiring your SHRM-CP or SHRM-SCP, you will be informing yourself of the matters and competencies necessary to best address the challenges employers are facing.
- Implement PMQ. The People Manager Qualification is a secret weapon. We know that non-HR people managers have HR responsibilities, but they don’t know HR and it can make our jobs harder when they make uninformed decisions. We can save employers a lot of trouble by educating people managers with this thorough training program designed by SHRM for this unique set of leaders.
- Attend SHRM’s annual conferences. You don’t know what you don’t know. You can remain current on relevant, cutting-edge information and network with other professionals when you attend SHRM’s globally recognized, award-winning seminars and conferences.
If you want to know more about better equipping yourself and your staff or if you have other HR questions, we’d love to help! Give us a call or send an e-mail. We’re also available by chat. It’s one of the most valued benefits of SHRM membership!
SHRM’s Ask an Advisor service is a member benefit through which SHRM’s HR Knowledge Advisors share guidance, real-life personal and professional experiences, and resources to assist members with their HR-related inquiries.
Rue Dooley, SHRM-SCP has been an HR Knowledge Advisor for SHRM for over 20 years and has plenty of HR experience as a practitioner and consultant. Rue has daily direct contact with HR professionals around the world, helping them to create solutions, to improve systems, and to find and use resources that improve the delivery of the HR function. Rue has authored and co-authored numerous articles on a variety of subjects; conducted webcasts and podcasts; created videos, and has been quoted in various media outlets.
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