It was Las Vegas 2011, and my first time attending SHRM Annual Conference as a staff member. In the bowels of the convention center, I saw her—the same person who was yelling at our information booth the day before—tired, stressed out, angst surrounding her as thoroughly as the neon-blue feather boa she wore (a prize won from some exhibitor in the expo hall, no doubt). Being a psychologist, my initial clinical diagnosis was: RUN!
Nevertheless, I approached the subject and offered my assistance. As soon as she spotted my official badge, she shared her frustration, her voice cracking and her eyes filling with tears. She was missing a critical session! It had an overflow! But she couldn't stand! She had to sit down! She'd had knee surgery! A whole week of walking was making it worse!
Needless to say, I was moved by her plight. I found her a seat at the session. I gave her information about accessing the session later with on-demand tools. I checked in on her after the session ended.
Some might view this incident as a simple transaction, a SHRM staffer just doing his job to help out a conference attendee in distress. But for me, this incident meant a lot more: it crystallized the fundamental reason for SHRM’s existence. It was my breakthrough "aha!" moment.
My brief but meaningful interaction with our boa-clad colleague with the bad knees actually defined for me, clear as day, the bond between SHRM and the HR profession. People like this attendee—people like you—care about your professional development. You care about your careers. You care about recertification credits. You care about doing great work. And SHRM is your partner in helping you reach your goals. Researchers call this the "psychological contract." I call it "commitment"—specifically, SHRM's commitment to you.
Any organization can provide training on new regulations, or offer toolkits for writing policy documents, or sell you a certification exam, or publish newsletters on hot topics, or pull together meetings. But only SHRM is committed to helping you advance your career and your professional development, to helping all of us advance the HR profession as a whole.
The special relationship between HR and SHRM is undeniable. Our mission is to promote effective HR management and career success. For nearly 70 years, we have taken this journey together with you, and we will continue to serve you for at least 70 more. That’s SHRM's commitment to you.
The SHRM Annual Conference embodies—epitomizes—that commitment. It's our Super Bowl, World Series, Kentucky Derby, and Indy 500. It's where HR makes breakthroughs. Tens of thousands of my favorite people will be there, including you, and I look forward to seeing so many HR professionals experience their own breakthroughs, every step of the way.
If you see me, stop and say hello. Ask me anything, whether you're happy, sad, angry, confused, determined, or noncommittal. Because SHRM is committed. We're eager to help you break through to your own moments of truth.
What will your breakthrough be at #SHRM16? Find out more about the SHRM Annual Conference.
Alexander Alonso, PhD, SHRM-SCP is the Society for Human Resource Management's (SHRM's) Chief Knowledge Officer leading operations for SHRM's Certified Professional and Senior Certified Professional certifications, research functions, and the SHRM Knowledge Advisor service. He is responsible for all research activities, including the development of the SHRM Competency Model and SHRM credentials.
During his career, he has worked with numerous subject matter experts worldwide with the aim of identifying performance standards, developing competency models, designing organizational assessments, and conducting job analyses. He was also responsible for working on contract task orders involving the development of measurement tools for content areas such as job knowledge (like teacher knowledge of instructional processes) and organizational climates (like organizational climate forecasting in military health care).
Dr. Alonso received his doctorate in Industrial-Organizational Psychology from Florida International University in 2003. His works have been recognized for their contribution to real-world issues. They include being recognized by the Society for Industrial Organizational Psychology (Division 14 of the APA; SIOP) with the 2007 M. Scott Myers Award for Applied Research in the Workplace for the development of the federal standard for medical team training, TeamSTEPPS; being awarded a 2009 Presidential Citation for Innovative Practice by the American Psychological Association for supporting the development of competency model for team triage in emergency medicine; and receiving the 2013 SIOP Distinguished Early Career Contributions for Practice Award.
Throughout his career, he has published works in peer-reviewed journals such as Industrial and Organizational Psychology: Perspectives on Science and Practice, Journal of Applied Psychology, International Journal of Selection and Assessment, People and Strategy, Personality and Individual Differences, Quality and Safety in Health Care, and Human Resources Management Review. He has also authored several chapters on community-based change initiatives in workforce readiness, as well as co-authoring Defining HR Success: A Guide to the SHRM Competency Model in Practice.
Dr. Alonso also served as a columnist analyzing major trends in the workforce for The Industrial Psychologist and HR Magazine. In addition, he has served on several professional society boards including the SIOP and the Personnel Testing Council of Metropolitan Washington.
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