Monthly Archives: November 2010

Difficult People, SHRM, and Enthusiasm-Guest Post Blitz #8

What do difficult people, SHRM’s value proposition (or lack thereof), guinea pigs, and enthusiasm have in common? They are all guest posts I’ve done in the past little while! Looks like I’m a little schizophrenic with the varying topics, but each post has its own merits.

I have several guest posts that went live (fairly recently) elsewhere that you may have missed. Some of them might be a bit different flavor than the usual upstartHR offerings, so be sure to check them out! If you\’re interested in seeing some of my previous escapades, click here for the Guest Post Blitz archive.

My friend Charlie Judy at HR Fishbowl let me share my thoughts on working with difficult people in this short post: Who needs a class? Get rid of them!

John Jorgenson of the newly christened HR Tailgate blog opened up the discussion by letting me reply to his own SHRM-related post with an article of my own: SHRM, Value, and You

Jessica Miller Merrill at Blogging4Jobs opened up the stage and let me discuss science experiments, rodents, and an billion dollar corporation’s product strategies: Guinea Pigs and Google

Lance Haun over at Rehaul lets me talk about one of my favorite elements of a good candidate: enthusiasm-can it get you hired?

On the NASHRM chapter blog, RocketHR, I discussed good work etiquette and not making a bad impression: termination for bad manners? (don’t miss my funny SlideShare presentation at the bottom!)

And finally, Laurie Ruettimann told me to write something about SHRM and how they can stop doing things poorly, so of course I jumped at the chance: SHRM-3 recommendations from a new member.

Just a little bit of my brain floating around the interwebs these days. Anything in there interesting or enjoyable? What’s your favorite piece?

Social Media, SHRM, and Curt Midkiff

SHRM's social media guy-Curtis MidkiffSHRM has some work to do to catch up on social media, and a while back they hired a guy named Curt Midkiff to make that happen. You may remember me writing about Curtis before (part one and part two). Well, it’s been six months since his first appearance here, and I thought it was time for us to give him a performance review.

What do you think went well this year? What did you accomplish?

When I came to SHRM in April, our team had several initial goals for the balance of the year which were:

  1. Enhance our engagement with some of the key “HR voices” in social media.
  2. Increase engagement in our Annual Conference via social media.
  3. Create some initial beta platforms for engagement via social media.
  4. Be a resource for other SHRM departments and leaders looking to engage external audiences via social media.
  5. Get Ben Eubanks to become a SHRM member :-)
  6. Work with the collaborative social media team here at SHRM to develop a strategic approach to social media.

I think that we achieved some of those in these first six months but there is much more we want to next year!

2. Do you see any areas that need improvement?

Hmmm… Let’s see. Quicker blog posting from my SHRM10 blog squad (my fault guys, we will get all your work up next year in Vegas… :-)). And maybe we need to enhance our cloning software here at SHRM so I can be at six or seven places at once especially all the great social media conferences going on. But seriously, I think that next year offers a great opportunity for growth in the social media space here at SHRM. We have a number of people here at the headquarters that are integrating it into the work they are doing so collectively you can expect to see some cool things next year.

3. Goals for the Upcoming Year

  1. To enhance our external social media platforms. I think we made a good start in these areas but in 2011 we can plan to do more. We will generate more content (videos, blogs, etc.) to give people a fuller picture of the work SHRM is doing as a global organization.
  2. Annual Conference 2.0 — We are already working on some interesting things for 2011 to really increase engagement via social media. The feedback we received from the Social Media Lounge, The Blog Squad and TweetUp last year has now set the bar much higher and I think we are up to the challenge. At least from a social media perspective, we want to make sure what happens at Annual Conference in Vegas doesnt just stay in Vegas!
  3. Equip our Leaders and Members with Social Media Tools — I think that we will be in a position next year to provide more tools for our Volunteer leaders and our Members which will enable to understand the power and potential of social media. As I mentioned before, we have a great cross-divisional initiative going on here at SHRM that is going to better equip our employees in the social media space which we can then pass along to our leaders and members.
  4. Blogapalooza 2011 — We really want to get out there among the members to talk about social media and also listen to some of the best practices happening in the “field”. In my travels this year, I have met SHRM members like yourself (who by the way along with Victorio are doing some great work with #ProjectSocial) who are making some great strides in social media. We can assist as well as learn from these experiences as well. I am headed to Ohio in Dec and some of our other state conferences in 2011 so the tour bus is ready to roll.
  5. SHRM11 — As I mentioned before we looked at Annual Conference 2010 as a launch pad for enhanced social media engagement. Since then, we have had a presence at our SHRM Thought Leaders Retreat, SHRM Strategy Conference and our Diversity and Inclusion Conference. You will be happy to know that Annual Conference 2011 will be the next step in that progression. As is everything at SHRM its a team effort, so we are working witn a number of departments here on a social media presence that will build upon last year’s “beta test”. Stay tuned.

Peer reviews (360 feedback)

In an effort to get a well-rounded review for Curtis, I asked a few people to tell me about their own perception of him and the work he’s done so far. I asked for honest feedback, and that’s what I got!

I have met with Curt several times (at SHRM conferences) and found him to be engaging and knowledgeable. The overall impression he gives regarding the possibility of national SHRM adopting social media and encouraging its use is commendable. I still see national SHRM conferences offering sessions that lean more toward the control of employee use of social media platforms, but I do not see this as something that Curt alone can impact.

I would like to see him continue to reach out to HR practitioners in the field who are using sites in their organizations successfully. By sharing those cases with SHRM leadership, he’ll continue to advance the positive image we need. I also recommend having Curt pull together a round table of these same professionals to talk with SHRM leadership about the benefits and how we’ve overcome the concerns of social media use. —Trish McFarlane

Curtis has done the best job he can in his short time with SHRM. He in essence has two bosses, the people at SHRM and the social media HR community. SHRM writes the checks. The challenge lies with SHRM itself and the red tape and seas that Curtis must navigate to help bridge the gap between SHRM and social media.

I would like to see Curtis spending more time engaging and leveraging the social media HR community while also learning more about what it’s like to be a HR practioner. I’d recommend that Curtis spend at minimum four weeks shadowing a typical member and learning about some of the obstacles and issues they face. This will increase his knowledge and credibility among the human resource members he serves. —Jessica Miller-Merrill

As a member and volunteer leader, I was super-pleased when SHRM named Curtis to his position (better late than never, hey SHRM?).  He’s had a lot to accomplish in a short time, but has gamely engaged with his audience of members; an audience which is often clueless, afraid and reluctant    I particularly enjoyed participating in the Curtis-led CLA Membership webinar – “Social Media for Chapters and State Councils.”  Well played Curtis – I hope you can keep it going! —Robin Schooling, SPHR

And that, my friends, is a review! Have any thoughts on the work Curtis is doing? Let’s hear ’em!

SHRM Leadership Conference

Well, it was bound to happen eventually. In a week I’ll be venturing to Washington, DC in order to attend the SHRM Leadership Conference. It’s geared towards SHRM Volunteer Leaders, and I definitely have an interest in becoming one. Much of what I do now isn’t exactly in the spotlight when it comes to helping SHRM leaders learn and grow. Things like the SHRM chapter leadership guide are pretty unobtrusive, but they can really help chapter leaders to think about things critically instead of running their chapter “the way it’s always been done.”

I pushed hard to attend, talking with my local chapter, reading up on the requirements, and even going so far as to pitch the idea to SHRM to help me get there (yeah, right, but I still had to try). In the end my local chapter backed me up (as they always seem to) and the big boys at SHRM didn’t (as they always seem to). I thought the pitch was a good one. I’ve included the text of it below.

I have heard so many great things about the leadership conference, but the problem is that it has all been from word of mouth. I’ve never read another blogger really dig deep into what happens there and how they benefited from attending the event. While I spend a considerable amount of time volunteering with my local chapter, my position as webmaster/social media coordinator doesn’t qualify me for a ticket to the event. Bottom line: I would love to have the opportunity to share about the event and promote it to my audience and network.

I know it is more of a niche event, but I believe it has the potential to radically change how SHRM reaches and guides its volunteer leaders. I so strongly believe in the idea of bringing volunteer leaders together that I have created a LinkedIn group to gather feedback and form some close ties to the SHRM leaders in the field.

Because I’m also involved with the HRYP committee with Chuck, I’d love to find a way to help reach the young volunteers and help bring them into the leadership conference experience. WIthout them seeing the value in attending, the event will be losing a lot of attendees in the coming years.

I’d like to write about the leadership conference from several angles:

  • First, from that of a first-time attendee. What’s it all about and is it even worth the trip?
  • Second, from the young volunteer leader’s perspective. Is this a tool that can provide me and my chapter with value?
  • Third, from my blogging persona. This event really is where a lot of connections and changes are made that other people never even have the opportunity to observe. I want to push bloggers to learn more about SHRM and share how their experiences have influenced their careers and organizations, because this is where the magic happens.

See? Not really a hard sell, but it has a lot of potential if they want to prove the value to the young HR professionals and other new and future SHRM volunteer leaders around the country (world?). Anyway, like I said, my local SHRM chapter made it happen for me, so I’ll be going and focusing on ideas to really help them in the coming year. I have a lot of ideas on my mind already, and I’ll be traveling with our president-elect, so there will be some deep discussions on chapter strategy on the trip to DC. If you’re going, shoot me an email. I’d love to meet you there!

By the way, my friend Dave Ryan did a little survey and realized that only 1.57% of the attendees for the event are active on Twitter. Not sure if that’s above or below the average, but I’m interested to see what happens when we get together.

SHRM Leaders-Be one!

leadership shrmNext week brings with it the 2010 SHRM Leadership Conference, and I am thrilled to be able to say that I am attending this event. So, what is it? Well, it’s an event geared toward the volunteer leaders that make things happen in the HR space. SHRM chapters and state councils send their leaders to the conference to learn how to manage their chapters better and provide more value for members. Why do I care to attend?

Better leaders make better organizations.

And because I believe that, I’m going to keep doing two things: encouraging our current leaders to get better/smarter/faster and pushing new people to volunteer for my local SHRM chapter. My time as a volunteer has greatly enhanced my network of local HR pros I can call on if I have questions, and it lets me keep my fingers on the pulse of what is current in the HR space.

You can do it, too!

Did you know you can be a leader, too? It’s really not as difficult to get started as you might imagine. All you have to do is complete a short form in order to volunteer with NASHRM. If you don’t like forms, shoot me an email and I can help you to find the area you’d like to help with. There are multiple areas you can help with, so there’s a good chance that something will be a good fit for you.

Step up. Be a leader. We need good ones now more than ever.

My tribute to the veterans out there

This is a piece that I wrote as a tribute. A small thank you for those who have given so much. I have a wonderful wife and two sweet little girls that mean the world to me, and I couldn’t imagine having to leave them for months and months to go somewhere and have my life threatened on a daily basis. But some people have. Some people do have what it takes. And I salute each and every one of you who do.

My grandfather was a veteran of the Korean War. He rarely talked about his time there, but when I was in 10th grade, I had to interview a veteran for a school project. I can still remember the night when I went over to his house to ask him the questions. It started somewhat formally, but it quickly devolved into a series of funny and interesting stories that I’d never heard before. My normally-serious grandfather was smiling, laughing, and sharing some of the funniest and scariest moments of his lifetime. When he died a few years ago, untold stories and memories went with him, but those few stories that he shared with me will be passed on for as long as I can recall them. Today you’ll get a tiny piece of them.

James Eubanks was young. Too young. His older brother Thurman joined the military, and he wanted in, too. After rubbing his birth certificate strategically with some dirt, he was able to fake his way into the Army. Basic training usually goes by for many soldiers without incident. Not so for this young man.

In an attempt to have a little fun one evening while his friends were out and about, he went night skiing with one of his buddies. It’s quite difficult to see a frozen piece of barbed wire when you’re flying down the slope by the moonlight. One second he was humming along and the next he was screaming in agony. One of his skis had caught in the barbed wire and turned his leg sharply, breaking his femur. So much for getting into the fight quickly.

After a few months of recovery, he was ready to go and took off for Korea. He had some close calls and some interesting times, but one of the worst things he could remember was the deep cold of a winter night in country. If he and his squad were able, they would find a small house for shelter and take turns patrolling the countryside before returning to warm up.

The homes had a unique heating system that pumped heat under the floors to heat the entire structure. Well, one night they were taking shifts and as each group came into the house, they would toss a handful of fuel into the furnace. The night kept getting colder and colder, and the house kept getting hotter and hotter. Finally someone realized that the furnace had caught fire and everyone poured out into the bitter cold to escape it. They watched as the house, their only shelter, burned to the ground before their eyes. Realizing what silly, stupid thing they had done, they began to laugh uproariously. That merriment is probably what kept them all warm enough to survive another night.

Another hero

My father in law is another one of those selfless people who took time away from his job, family, and life to go to Iraq for over a year. While I haven’t had the conversations with him that I had with my grandfather, I still deeply appreciate what he did for his family and country. I have a hard time deciding whether I want to go away for a weekend to a conference. He drops everything and goes halfway around the world for more than a year with only a moment’s notice. Veterans are a totally different type of people, and I’m so thankful that I have the opportunity to show them the appreciation they deserve.

They’re people, too

I also want to share a video I saw recently that hit me hard. Watching the news and hearing reports of the far flung battles across the world dehumanizes this war. These aren’t faceless machines. They aren’t soulless monsters. We need to remember that it’s our family and friends over there fighting for us. Email subscribers need to click through to view the video below. Bring a hankie.

Thank you to those who fought and will continue to. I can’t tell you enough how much I appreciate you.

If this touched you in some way, please share it with someone. We could all stand a good, solid reminder of what these men and women have sacrificed for us.

Swoop and poop management

pooping on peopleSwoop and poop. We’ve all seen it before. The manager is perpetually disengaged. They are doing their own thing and staying out of the way. Then, without warning, they jump into a situation and use their power to force a decision. Or maybe they drop a lot of criticism on team members and second guess their every action. And, just as quickly as they arrived, they take off again without a moment’s notice, leaving the rest of us to deal with the aftermath.

Sound familiar?

It’s one of the common types of bad management that makes us all cringe. So why is it still around? The instances where I’ve seen it are where teams are scared to stand up to someone or when the person’s in a senior position that is above reproach. Let’s kill this thing once and for all, please?

Ever been in your own personal swoop and poop situation? Let’s hear some details on how things went and how they worked out (or didn’t!) in the end.

How to write a corporate blog

Corporate bloggingBlogs. They are everywhere, and their numbers are growing by the hour. Lots of companies are being encouraged to blog as a way to market themselves and reach candidates, but it’s a sad fact that most corporate blogs are terrible (84%, in fact). They are filled with press releases and other one-way communications that are not helpful in building a community or encouraging conversation. Let’s remedy that.

I’ve been meaning to write this post for a long, long time now. While I haven’t had the opportunity (yet) to write a corporate blog, I have been writing this blog for over a year and a half. In the past 15 months, I’ve also been writing my SHRM chapter’s blog as well. I’m by no means an expert, but I’ve learned a lot and made enough mistakes to see what works and what doesn’t.

It’s all about authenticity and value

If it reads like a press release, people won’t be interested. Press releases have their own place, but it’s not in a blog. Content from a press release can be used in a blogging context, but it needs to be as a sidebar or commentary item, not the main fare.

So, if you’re not just spouting PR stuff from the blog, what do you talk about? Two of my favorite corporate blogs are by MailChimp and EventBrite. I’m not a full time email manager or event planner, but I still subscribe to both of these blogs and read them religiously. Why? They provide a great mix of customer-focused  “how to” posts, comments on their industry in general, and information about new features (plus how they impact you as a customer). Much of what they post is written to educate readers and encourage conversation.

The main thing: It’s great content that helps every reader, whether they are customers or not.

The root problem

Just like with this huge social media blocking craze we’re seeing these days, companies are hesitant to put their trust in their people. You know, those same people who can go to their homes, the local bar, or a child’s sporting event and talk about the company’s horrible, evil ways in public. But you’re going to block them at work. Doesn’t make sense!

Empower your people to have a real voice and let them make things happen. The more you water down the opinions and strip away the humanity in your corporate blog, the worse off it will be.

Like I said, they can already wreck your company publicly at any time they choose. Giving them a social media platform to share from doesn’t change that fact.

The mechanics

Blogging has a lot of pieces to it, but it’s possible to focus on just a few areas to make sure you are hitting the high points.

  • Writing the right types of posts to get links/comments
  • Interlinking and other SEO tips to get more views
  • Creating an editorial calendar
  • Building sneeze and squeeze pages
  • And plenty more!

One of the best tools I’ve found to help you learn to cover each of those pieces and integrate them into a powerful blog is the 31 Days to Build a Better Blog workbook. If you really want to get your corporate blog going and make it shine, then I highly encourage you to check out the book. I just found out that if you use “november25” as your discount code at checkout, you’ll get 25% off the price, but it’s only good through the end of November. Click here to learn more.

Growing awareness and engagement

In his book Culture Convo, Chris Ferdinandi makes this great point about how to grow awareness and engagement among your audience:

Whether you\’re looking to increase the number of people who read your blog, follow you on Twitter, or are your fans on Facebook, the strategy is always the same.
Have conversations worth listening to.
Being an interesting conversationalist – creating fun posts, photos and videos, sharing interesting news and useful insights – is the only way to have long-term success using social media. It\’s really that simple.
That doesn\’t mean that it\’s always easy. Figuring out what your target audience is interested in can take some time. But there\’s no magic formula to growing your awareness and engagement.
If you\’re a good conversationalist, then your circle of conversation will grow slowly and organically (and exponentially!) over time.

Final thoughts

If your corporate blog sucks (and it looks like about 84% of them do), it doesn’t have to be terminal. Most of the time the situation is not irreparable. Connect with people. Help them. Interact. Learn. And stop shoving press releases down our throats. It’s not working.

Anyone else have a good corporate blog they’d like to plug? Drop it in the comments below.