As President and CEO ’round these here parts, I’m going to be giving myself the day off. What? Oh, yeah. You heard me. It’s somewhere in that employee manual thingy I created if you want to flip through there. Eh, it’s somewhere near the back. Oh, never mind.

Today is my wedding anniversary.

So, what the heck does that mean for you? Well, you can check out a few posts I’ve written for my other HR blog or you can even get in touch with my softer side by checking out the note I left my wife on the adoption blog. Bring a hankie.

I’ll catch you guys later this week.

• Onboarding-gimme some intimate and personal contact, baby
• HR-let’s see some value and stop sucking, ‘kay?
• Customer service-optional? Stop sucking the life from your customers.
• Happy third anniversary to my amazing wife Continue Reading »

These ideas for SHRM chapter leaders are a part of the SHRM Chapter Leadership Guide.

I often hear from other HR pros who are members of a local SHRM chapter that stinks. Depending on your chapter leadership, you could be having an amazing experience or a horrible one. Whichever you may be in, it wouldn’t hurt to pass this link on to someone at your local chapter. And if you are in a leadership position, explore the list. I don’t have all the answers (admitting that up front!), but I do love coming up with ideas that could really be beneficial for the average HR professional.

Here are a few ideas to make things more interesting and engaging for your members. Continue Reading »

AKA

As if I don’t run my mouth enough on my own blog…

Maybe we'll still be friends when we are old?

Every once in a while I get the chance to write a little something for some of my friends. In an effort to repay their kindness, I share the links with you in case you’re interested in checking one out. If you’re interested in seeing some of my previous escapades, click here for the Guest Post Blitz archive.

Victorio at the Creative Chaos Consultant (gosh I love that name!) blog put out an interesting challenge early this year. He wanted people to either commit to their goals or shut up about it. It was appropriately named the Put Up or Shut Up Challenge. A few weeks later I shot him an email detailing my progress so far. Click here to see how I fared with the Put Up or Shut Up challenge.

April Dowling at PseudoHR is a fellow geek. When I asked if I could write a post that involved science fiction, zombies, and giant meteors (and still tie it back into the human resources profession, mind you), she was thrilled. Click here to see how science fiction makes me better at HR.

RocketHR, the blog that I run for my local SHRM chapter, has a post from yours truly every Monday. Recently I talked about how to look brilliant, a free HR eBook, and free HR podcasts. As of now, there aren’t any other contributors over there, so if you subscribe to RocketHR, you’ll be getting a little more me each week (and can’t everyone stand to get a little bit more of me?).

HRevolution has been on my mind lately, especially since we just opened up ticket sales for this year’s event. While it’s not exactly a guest post, I did design the HRevolution website, and that definitely took more effort than a guest post. I have to say that when I started in HR I had no idea I’d end up building blogs/websites as a side job. But I love it!

Anyone else read something cool they’d like to share? Maybe something you’ve read in the past week that really hit the spot? Drop it in the comments so everyone can benefit.

This post on SHRM chapter planning and marketing is a piece of the SHRM Chapter Leadership Guide.

Today I had the opportunity to meet with the NASHRM Webmaster (anyone else think “webmaster” is the coolest title ever?) to go over some ideas for the upcoming year. In just a few short weeks, we’ll be starting 2010, and I will officially become the “Assistant Webmaster” for NASHRM. We both have some great ideas for making this chapter the best. How many other SHRM chapters are thinking about…

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Rebuilding the site with the user in mind
• Blogging
• Email newsletters

Continue Reading »

I try not to let things catch me by surprise. But it happens anyway. Oh, well! I am on the move much of the time, and I try to save my best writing times for this site. However, I occasionally slip in an article somewhere else, and I try not to let them go by without at least a passing mention. With that in mind, feel free to explore these little seeds that I’ve scattered to the four corners of the online world. Continue Reading »

Every so often, I try to give some sort of mass update here, because people often ask what I’m working on, why I’m taking forever to reply to their emails, or what my favorite type of cookie is (probably chocolate chip brownie pillows). Anyway, here’s the stuff that you do and don’t want to know about my current level of insanity.

1. The last time I posted on the goings-on, I was gently reminded by a few of my friends out there that it looks like I’m not taking enough time for family. I just don’t usually bore people with that kind of thing. I live a fairly boring life outside of my jobs. But to satisfy those familial cravings, just check out #10 and #11.
2. At the urging of a friend, I have started writing three times a week on this blog ( Monday, Wednesday, and Friday). This is a change from my normal “whenever” posting. It’s interesting to try to fit to a schedule, but it’s also a lot of fun, too.
3. With sales doing about as well as I had hoped, I have been working to finish the second Rock the PHR bonus item. It’s actually 99% complete, and I have started to outline the third (and probably last) bonus giveaway. For only $14.99, this thing is a steal if you’re planning to take the HR certification exam.
4. I’m writing a post every Monday for the RocketHR blog. I’m trying to make it more beginner-friendly, and I’m hoping that it will be a stepping stone for my local HR professionals into the world of social media.
5. In a recent post, I went over some of what I’m doing with the local SHRM chapter’s student group. I was one of those youngsters not too long ago, and I am looking forward to helping them with all of the wisdom I’ve accumulated (i.e. not much).
6. Along with my designer, I am revamping my company’s website. It’s going to be more user-friendly, searchable, and better aligned to our organizational goals. It’s been a fun experience so far.
7. My online antics never cease, because I have also started working with another local SHRM chapter to help them set up a Website. (If your local chapter doesn’t have a Website but wants something, shoot me an email. I might be able to help.)
8. Secret project with Stephen from HR Gumbo. I’m waaay slower than he is at times.
9. I’ve been working on a half marathon training plan with the race scheduled in November. Should be a lot of fun. Haven’t done a long race since the Dizzy Fifties 50k a few years ago.
10. My wife is amazing, and I’ve been working with her as a coach to help her prepare for a local 5k. She is going to do amazingly well. I tried to promote it to my coworkers, but with less than 5 days to race day, my wife and I are the only ones who have signed up for our team!
11. Not sure how many of you know about it, but we’re adopting. And this thing has been going very slow in recent weeks with lots of work and extracurricular activities. But we’ve finally finished most of the preparation work for the home study, and we’re getting ready for our adoption.
12. HRevolution planning is going well, and we are gearing up for the big day. It’s about three weeks away, but I can remember when it was three months away, and that blows my mind. We have a few sponsor slots left (last time I checked), and if anyone’s looking to put $25o or $500 toward a good cause, you might be able to secure one of the final slots.
13. My loads of spare time are spent building my business and helping others do the same. I’ve been talking with 4-5 people about getting their own products/services out there on the market, and it’s amazingly fun for me.

I’m sure I’m missing a lot of other things that are going on. The Diet Mountain Dew is flowing cold and fast these days, and I’m hoping to keep up the amazing work that I’m allowed to do on a daily basis. Look for another “real” post on Friday, assuming I can keep up with the schedule I just committed to.