Author Archives: Ben

Should I get an MBA or an SPHR (or PHR)?

One of the big questions I see people asking these days is about graduate studies. People want to know if it’s worth it to get an MBA and if it will help them in their field. I’ve talked before about advanced HR degrees (and the follies of chasing one before you have experience in the field), but the twist is adding certification into the mix. Is it worth it to get your MBA, or would it be acceptable to get your SPHR certification? I know I’m a big proponent of getting certified, but then again it might be better to run the college gauntlet again for the benefits it can provide…

Want a $20 discount on PHR/SPHR study materials? Get it here.

Is there a right answer?

I talk about how both of them could be viable options in the video below. Check it out and let me know your thoughts.

(Subscribers may have to click through to view the embedded video.)

Are you looking for an edge in your HR career? Is either of these options (certification or college) a good choice for you?

Talent Selection and Depth Leadership

Wow. That’s all I can say about the recent NASHRM September workshop event. Doctor Daniel Crosby shared some amazing insights based on his background in both clinical psychology and business consulting.

In another great gesture of generosity, he offered to let meshare his presentations with you. The slides are found at the links below.

Talent Selection: Lessons from the Chaise Lounge

Depth Leadership: Leading from the Inside Out

I know it’s not the same as being there, but maybe it’s an incentive to reach out and learn more about these topics!

#HRevolution News: Don’t miss out!

HRevolution LogoHRevolution seems like it’s so far off. It’s been four months since the last event, and we’re still working on what we want it to look like in 2011. One thing we’re sure of? It will be better than ever. Trish has been gathering feedback on what people want to see, and if you haven’t checked out the comments, please do so now. If you like email better, here’s how to reach me.

Stay on top of things

If you want news and other information about the event from the HRev crew (before the rest of the world) just click here to get on the email list for any forthcoming updates.

If you’re looking for something to help tide you over until the next event, make sure you go back and check out the HRevolution Carnival from HRev 2010. It’s the source for all the best information about the event.

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70% of employers perform social search on candidates

employers search social media

Despite the scary “end of the world” talk out there from legal types about how using social media will land your company in a lawsuit, 70% of employers are still searching for candidate information on social networking sites, and approximately one-third search every single time. I’ve talked before about how social media use varies between employers and candidates. Does this mean that the gap is closing? Are more companies trying to research and engage job seekers through social channels? Let’s hope so.

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Is your organization using social tools to reach out to candidates? If so, how?

And if you’re interested in getting started doing this with your own organization, there’s a great tool to help you get moving. Click here to find out more about Culture Convo and see how it can help you to use social media for your employer branding efforts.

Photo courtesy of the Jobvite Social Recruiting Report.

What I’m doing and not doing today

In the past few weeks I’ve written in spurts. Sometimes I’ll get a lot of posts out and sometimes it’s more of a trickle. Sometimes I get guest posts out to help other people keep up their frequency even though mine sometimes is lower than I’d like. Well, I had intended to write a post today. But then I remembered that I have something more important going on.

Next Tuesday (September 14th), I am going to be speaking at my local SHRM chapter’s luncheon. Yeah, I’m kind of surprised, too. :-)

It all started when a few of the chapter officers followed some links from the SHRM chapter blog that I write. Those links led to some different posts here, and they reached out to me to see if I would be interested in talking to the chapter.

I am so not interested in talking about me for an hour, so I’m trying to make it about the audience and how what I have learned can benefit them. So far I’ve narrowed it down to two big things: passion and professional development.

Everything I do outside of work springs from my passion for this field. And that enthusiasm has led to some amazing professional development opportunities, including attending the SHRM10 conference, cofounding HRevolution, participating in my local SHRM chapters’s mentoring group, and chairing the HRYP committee for SHRM. Just for kicks, I also want to share things I’ve screwed up on, because that’s how I (and everyone else) learns the hard lessons.

So, I’m not writing a blog post today. Not at all. I’m writing the outline for my presentation. Nothing to see here. Move along. :-)

An apology and a few shout outs

Technical difficulties

Hey, everyone! If you’ve dropped by the site (or checked your email/RSS subscriptions) in the past 24 hours, you might have seen some wacky stuff. My original website was set up on WordPress.com. When I moved to upstartHR.com, I had to redirect the old website. Yesterday that redirection failed for a little while, causing the old website to show and my old posts to be reposted to RSS/email. If you were caught up in that snafu, I’m sorry about that!

I haven’t done shout outs in a while, so here are a few that need sharing…

  • Steve Boese for keeping a sense of humor despite the fact that I rarely get to listen to the live HRHappyHour show. But you should, because it rocks!
  • Eric, Lisa, Matt, Kathy, Janet, and anyone else at Monster who helped get that baby box together. Rockin’ awesome.
  • Alison Green for having faith and leaping into a project with me.
  • Chris Ferdinandi for writing his book, being a good friend, and giving me the initiative to create some social media training for my own organization.
  • Dave Ryan for the comments and compliments from HRevolution. I still remember the conversation vividly!
  • Steve Browne for kicking butt, taking names, and not taking “no” for an answer when it comes to HR and social media.
  • Chuck Salvetti for taking a chance on me.
  • Stephen Harrison for working his tail off to make sure HRFL was totally amazing.
  • Laurie Ruettimann for sending me a Mountain Dew shirt just because.
  • And lastly, my amazing wife. She has been through a roller coaster of emotions as we’ve brought our new babies home, and despite my sleep-deprivation-induced-attitude, she makes my world go around.

Back to your regularly scheduled programming. :-)