This past weekend was phenomenal because I spent it with the 50 SHRM State Directors at the Regional Summit. It’s great for so many reasons such as developing leaders, sharing best practices, learning what successes others are having and the most recent news from SHRM itself.
The true highlight for everyone attending was learning from Jason Lauritsen and Joe Gerstandt as Talent Anarchy !! They showed everyone a valuable tool with the Hack Lab. Hacking isn’t “new” to the business world, but it is lacking in HR and in volunteer leadership roles. The level of energy and creativity was incredible !!
They also highlighted their great work from their MUST HAVE book Social Gravity which break down the immense value of our social capital. When this session was completed, there was a sharing of take aways, and a vast majority of the group shared that they were going to work on being more connected to each other.
In fact, my favorite response came from the North Dakota State Director, Stephanie Winterquist, when she said she was going to BE RELENTLESS at improving her social capital !!
It made me wonder if others in HR would be relentless too? I know that “connecting” is an overused plea in HR blogs, but it keeps coming up because people just aren’t doing it !! As soon as the conference was over, and before I caught my flight home, I sent a Linked In invitation to intentionally connect with the folks from the SHRM Leadership Summit that I hadn’t yet. This isn’t to gather more “friends” or “followers.” It’s to find others who can be resources for you and for you to be a resource to others.
HR will sustain its relevance the more it’s connected !! That is an undeniable fact. So, you have to ask yourself – will you be relentless too? I think it’s time for all of us !!
Thanks for sharing this information Steve. As someone trying to break into HR I am always looking for opportunities to connect and network & this is a reminder to me to remain vigilant!
Relentless is how we describe the very best sales people. There is an important lesson there for HR leaders and professionals. The concept of “grit”, most closely linked with sustained success, has its root in relentless pursuit of a stated goal or objective. Failure is not an acceptable outcome by those driven by relentless grit. If HR took a truly relentless approach for key people/talent agendas, the world of world would be transformed.
You’ve now prompted me to check-out the book, Social Gravity. (I’ll let you know once I get and read.)
I think there are times when we have the best of intentions but obstacles halt any progress. This is why it is important, as you say, to be relentless. I’ll speak it loud and clear to anyone who will listen: The connections I’ve made since I began blogging have transformed my view of HR, life, workforce, etc.
I may sound like the proverbial broken record but I firmly believe that social media is a powerful tool for expanding our understanding – of ourselves and others.
Glad you enjoyed the Regional Summit. Our State Council Director for Mississippi (and Director-Elect) were in attendance, too.