Five for Friday: Great Blog Posts to End The Week

Not everyone has time to read blog posts. I probably do more than most given that I am a consultant and a blogger myself. It is my research. So to help you along I am posting links to five I think are great to read as a way to end the workweek.

First up is Kris Dunn at The HR Capitalist. His post is Your Company's United Way Campaign = Union Avoidance. It is that time of year for United Way during a time where unions are more active. So this is instructional. It is important to read the comments on this one.

Second post is by Laura Schroeder writing in Compensation Cafe. Her post is entitled What's My Line? She tells a story to show how versitility is an important trait in a new hire and how many companies are missing the boat today because of an abundance of candidates. She has a great line at the end that I thought was as good as the one she remembers from her youth.

The Third post comes from Ben Eubanks at Upstart HR. Ben wrote about a subject that I asked him to write about when he was soliciting ideas. I asked him to write about being a young man in a profession becoming dominated by women. You can read his answer in Men In HR- A National Geographic Exclusive. He has gotten many responses so I suggest you read them. Makes for some interesting conversation with you colleagues. You can also click through and read my original post on the subject Are Men in HR Going the Way of the Dinosaur? There are some people that seem to think that men have never been in HR... well if you have some gray hair you know better.

The fourth post is written by attorney Jon Hyman at the Ohio Employer's Law Blog. He has a great post that points out all the BAD LEGISLATION that is currently pending out there. Actually reading this is a bad way to end the week, but it is better than reading it on Monday and starting out the week in a crappy way. So head on over to WIRTW #145 (the bad legislation edition).

And lastly is a post from Wally Bock. Wally is not an HR guy. He is a leadership guru. In this post he tells a great story about the Wright Brothers to illustrate a point about innovation. So read Learning from the Wright Brothers and make sure you then put the Three Star Leadership blog on your "must read list." After all he is followed and tweeted by Tom Peters. (He follows me too on Twitter, but I don't think he has ever retweeted me like he does Wally.)

Where Great Ideas Are Born

The inspiration for the title of this post actually comes from an article in Inc. in the May 2010 issue. (I am a bit behind in reading, but better late than never.) The online version can be found here at Incubation Nation. The article itself does not have anything to do with human resources. It is about 20 centers of innovation around the United States where new ideas and new start up companies are fostered and developed. It is an interesting read to find what and where. The relationship to HR comes from the fact that reading this prompted two questions to me.

First, where is the innovation in HR coming from? Are there "centers" of HR thought? Are there any HR thinktanks? (Cornell perhaps?) I am not sure if this can be tied to a location. It can certainly be tied to an event, that of HREvolution. (Hey Trish... when and where is the next one? I would suggest Atlanta, which will also be the host city for SHRM in 2011. We could have a convergence of meetings and a divergence of thought all at the same time.) It can also be tied to a number of people I consider "thought leaders." These include Trish McFarlane, Kris Dunn, Laurie Ruettimann, Steve Boese, Jessica Lee to name just a few. (The ranks grow each day. There is some very creative stuff coming from very creative people that you won't find in the mainstream HR literature. You need to read their blogs. It is encouraging to see, however, some of this stuff starting to seep into some mainstream channels.) Perhaps you, the reader, can someone you consider to be a thought leader in HR? Who is the engine leading your train of thought?

The second question this article prompted was one for you, yes you! Does your company have great ideas being born? Do you have centers in your organization where creativity runs free? Or do you have an organization that lets convention run roughshod over creativity? Do you reward it or punish it?

What about you personally? Have you had a great idea that you have been able to implement? Was it easy or hard to do? If it was hard for you then it is probably hard for others. What can you do differently in your organization to foster "great ideas"?

I know, this is more questions than answers. I am looking for the answers from you. Give me examples, give me names, give me ideas....

Thought Provoking Reading: Four Great Posts from Last Week

Here are some very though provoking reads on a variety of HR subjects. Made me go hmmm... perhaps they will with you as well.

Where's MY Pay Czar? Why We Need a Total Rewards Audit of Congress by Ann Bares
Accountability for Congress...

Like It or Not, HR is PR...(and 5 ways to prove it) by Kris Dunn
Yes, you in HR you need to be a PR pro or at least take some lessons..

Which Managers Are Responsible for the Reality of Your Culture? All it Takes is One Question...by Kris Dunn
It is a great question.. you can develop a usable persona from the answers.

Are Job Descriptions Illegal? Here Are 9 Reasons Why They Should Be by Lou Adler
A thought that has divided the profession. I am still formulating my response to this one.

Shaking the Foundation: An Interview With Kris Dunn The HR Capitalist

I have been following the work of Kris Dunn for a couple of years. I read alot of his blogs on The HR Capitalist and Fistful of Talent. I watch his videos when I find them (this one on Raising Your HR Game is great. It was done with Tim Sackett, also someone to watch.) I read his presentations when I come across them. I recommend his blog to all my students and have a link to him on my blogsite (look down to the right). I am unabashedly a Kris Dunn fan. The reason? I think he is WHAT THE FUTURE OF HR NEEDS TO BE, only he is there today. (There are others in this arena and I will be trying to interview them as well. The first one I did was with Trish McFarlane.)
So without further ado here is the interview. It is worth reading every word.

MH: How did you "arrive" at HR? Fall in to it or seek it out? How and why?

KD: I fell into it. I was looking to relocate to the Southeast after working in market research consulting in St. Louis, and was working my limited network at the time. Some folks I had worked with in the past basically said, “Kris, we like you and want to hire you, but we don’t have anything in marketing. But, we think you’d be great for this HR Manager spot, and we don’t currently have anyone in mind for the job. Want to try that?”. And the rest, as they say, is history.

That just shows the power of the network and the fact that many jobs are closed without ever opening.

MH: You certainly incorporate social media into HR. How did you become a SM user? Any formal training or all by the seat of your pants?

KD: Seat of my pants. I think with any new tool you need a curiosity to learn, which I’ve always had. If you don’t have a curious nature, all the training in the world with any new tool isn’t going to matter, because you aren’t going to incorporate the tools into your life. I think that’s true with any new tool, and certainly with social media.

MH: Is there a "best" educational background for someone in HR?
KD: Something outside of HR. I’d say marketing, which is a skill that’s going to allow someone to think differently than many incumbents in the field of HR.

MH: Is there a "best" work background for someone in HR?
KD: Line management would be the best background – you’ve managed people and done well in that role. Marketing a close second.

MH: You come across as having a strategic point of view... how did you become "strategic" and how can others get there too?

KD: Read and think. I’ve read BusinessWeek and Fortune since I was 25. The more you read about general business strategy (Fortune) and execution (BusinessWeek), the more you think about the world outside of HR, which is probably required to even appear strategic. Also, go get an MBA at a real university. The school really doesn’t matter once you get down from Ivy League, what matters is that you’re involved in the subject matter in a case study method, which makes you think business first, HR second. I think you get strategic by thinking business first, HR fourth.

MH: You have expressed your opinion in the past that "status quo" HR is not going to make it in the future. What is your vision for the field of HR for the next 10 years? How does the field need to progress?
KD: It’s going to be a continued split between the talent managers (those that can recruit talent, then do cool stuff with that talent) and the administrators. Administrators will always be around, but they’ll have increasingly decreased significance as the ability to attract and leverage talent becomes the core skill set of the upscale HR Pro. (See Raising Your HR Game linked above.)

MH: Have any HR heros? Who in the field do you take as a role model.. if anyone?
KD: Can’t say that I have HR Heros, which is kind of sad. Some of the folks I’ve worked for in the past (Don Sykes, Marilyn Brooks, Lisa Bryant, Eric Freesmier) would certainly qualify from an HR perspective, but most of the heros I have are business and talent focused. I dig folks like Seth Godin and Michael Lewis for the big picture, and folks like Harry Joiner for the fact they’re brave enough to do things that others aren’t.

MH: You like sports both personally and as an HR blog topic. What lessons do you think all HR pros can learn from sports?
KD: I don’t write about sports because I like sports (although I do). I write about sports because it’s the most transparent industry related to all things talent. Whether it’s recruiting, succession, etc – you name the HR topic – you can find a transparent accounting of that topic in the sports world. It’s the best lens we have to talk about real examples in the talent industry.

Plus, I’d give it all up today if an NBA team called me up to work for 1/3 of what I make to be someone’s front office flunky. Believe that.

MH: Any words of wisdom for your fellow HR practioners?
KD: Do something from a project basis that feels like you might be risking your career in the next 6 months. You’ll feel alive, more passionate about what you do and this just in – you won’t really be risking your career – you’ll find that the people around you will be more supportive that you expected.


A little more information about Kris, taken from his bio.

Who am I? That’s an easy question. I’m the VP of People for DAXKO, a software company focused on serving the best membership-driven organizations in America. Prior to joining the team at DAXKO in 2009, I was a VP of HR for SourceMedical, a Regional VP of HR for Charter Communications, a HR Manager for BellSouth Mobility (subsequently known as Cingular and AT&T based on which round of consolidation you are referring to), and a Project Manager in the market research division of Aragon Consulting (gobbled up by IBM Global Services). With that track record in mind, I can now say what I thought I never would – I have over a decade in the HR biz.
 
A final word. You need to follow this man. He will be a major influencer in HR thought for decades to come. He is progressive, he is thoughtful, he is challenging, and he will shake your HR foundation if you let him. You will be the better person for it..

Is HR the Eunuch of the Corporation?

(Note: On Thursday, April 15th I will be the guest on the Internet radio show DriveThruHR, hosted by Bryan Wempen each day at 12 pm Eastern time and 11 am Central time. I will be talking to Bryan and the audience on the value of Twitter to HR. It is not a play toy. It is a serious tool for the leading edge HR professional. So join us by clicking on the link above.)



According to Wikipedia a Eunuch is "...is a castrated man; usually one castrated early enough to have major hormonal consequences. ...The term usually refers to those castrated in order to perform a specific social function...they have performed a wide variety of functions in many different cultures such as: courtiers or equivalent domestics, treble singers, religious specialists, government officials, military commanders, and guardians of women or harem servants...."

The meaning of the term "eunuch" has come to take on a more general meaning of "unempowered or powerless". It implies weakness and it is in this vein that I ask the question in the title. And in this vein it applies to both men and women in HR. My answer to the question is a resounding "it depends." It depends on the leadership of HR. The words from which eunuch is derived are "...from the Greek eune ('bed') and ekhein ('to keep'), effectively 'bed keeper'." In some organization HR plays a very servile role. Keeper of the files, doing the bidding of the management team, often in ways that cause many HR people to lose sleep at night and develop ulcers. I have personally worked for someone who was very much the "corporate eunuch." As with many eunuchs of history he used position power and intrigue to his advantage. Those of us that worked for him had no respect for him. And he let the company executive management get away with too much. The company collapsed not too long into its history.
 
Today I am encouraged however, with the growth of HR leadership. There are many in the profession who have shrugged off the mantel of eunuch and stepped up to the role of trusted and valued partner. They are trusted, respected and valued by their peers and company leadership. They have power, not because of intrigue and guile, but because of knowledge, foresight and courage. They are transforming HR in their organizations, as Dave Ulrich and his colleagues suggest in HR Transformation: Building Human Resources From the Outside In. By reading blogs and having conversations I have had the good fortune to meet several outstanding newer leaders in HR. They are the face of the "NEW" HR. They have both book "smarts" and "street smarts." They have trust, they have respect, they have courage and they have a "voice." This latter trait is important. That is what spreads the "word" and encourages others to adopt their ways.

I hope many of you have meet someone who falls into this catagory, but I want to name a few of the ones I have met who fall into this catagory. These include Kris Dunn, Trish McFarlane, Jessica Lee, Lance Haun and Laurie Ruettimann. A couple of up and comers to watch include Ben Eubanks and April Dowling. If you feel you have been labled the "corporate eunuch" then study these people and learn.

I am sure I am missing some great HR people. I did not mention the many great consultants I know that are helping lead the charge as well. If you know someone great let me know! Publish their name here so we can all get to know them.

End of the Week Reading: Great Stuff from Great Blogs

I missed the Carnival of HR this time. (Need to do something about that darn calendar.) There are some very good posts there. Here is the link Carnival of HR. This is one is hosted by Rowan Manahan.

Additionally, here are several posts that I recommend you read.

1. Fran Melmed wrote an excellent piece called "We Don't Need No Stinking Diversity Training." It is so good it got picked up by NPR. She prompted me to write my piece on Removing the Ethnicity from your name.
2. Kris Dunn wrote some required reading for anyone considering committees called Are Committees in Your Company Ever a Good Idea? If this one does not make you think twice, then reread it.
3. Becky Regan, compensation pro extrodinaire, offers her 2010 predictions in The Compensation Cafe. "Top 4" Total Rewards Predictions for 2010  See if you agree.
4. Wally Bock, of Three Star Leadership, blasts Notre Dame and Brian Kelly for the very poor example of leadership they exhibited in Values, schmalues, there is money at stake.
5. And Ann Bares of Compensation Force writes on Throwing in the Towel: Are Employers Resigned to Impending Departures?

That is probably enough reading for the end of the week. But believe me, you will be better off for it. Have a great weekend.

Revolution: Breaking Down the Wall of Old HR?

This past weekend an event occurred that probably most HR people did not know about. It was the HRevolution conference that was held in Louisville. I was unhappy I did not have a chance to attend. I wish I had. Some of the best of today's "young" HR thought leaders were there. These are people who carry sharp sticks and like to poke the "beast" of current HR thought. They ask the hard questions we should all be formulating answers for. Lance Haun (thelance on Twitter) talks about this at his blog Rehaul in his post "You say you want a revolution?" Although it has passed you can find out more about HRevolution by visiting here.

I love the name, it has so much meaning for me. First CHANGE. I think change is good and it is time to make the "beast" move. I like the word evolution in it. It also means CHANGE. But unlike most peoples conception of evolution as slow change there is the theory of PUNCTUATED EVOLUTION or Punctuated equilibrium. This theory means that not all change occurs gradually, that some evolutionary changes can occur rapidly. (That is the short version.) I think we can make HR change rapidly.

I come back to the word revolution in meaning turning. I think we need to keep this movement going. I appeal to Trish McFarlane, Ben Eubanks,  Crystal Peterson, Steve Boese, Laurie Ruettiman, Jessica Lee, Kris Dunn and other "beast stickers" to keep the momentum going. I think it may be fortunate happenstance that this occurred the weekend just before the 20th anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall. In 1987 Ronald Reagan, in a speech at the Berlin Wall, said "General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization: Come here to this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!"

Let me pharaphrase that famous speech. "If you seek prosperity for employer and employee alike, if you seek great people, great systems, effective teams, employee dignity then come here to this gate. Open this gate. Tear down this outdated and stale way of doing things." Make this past weekend a clarion call for action. Take up your hammers and chisels and begin chipping away at old ideas, stale ways of doing things. Question the "tried and true" and get away from "that is the way we have always done it." Make the old guard of HR take notice.

Required Reading for the Week

There are several blog posts this week that are essential reading for anyone who calls themselves an HR Pro. These include:

1. Kris Dunn at the HR Capitalist writing on What's That Smell? Self Assessments & Performance Management. This is about performance management and the use of self assessment. In addition to his post you MUST READ ALL THE COMMENTS. There is true value in this feedback.
2. Margaret O'Hanlon at Compensation Cafe, writing on 10 Tools for Communicating a Teeny, Tiny Merit Increase Budget. She talks about clear communication and management training.
3. Ann Bares at Compensation Force writing on Think Twice Before Calling It a Cost of Living Increase. Read this to keep from making a major mistake.
4. Jon Hyman at the Ohio Employment Law Blog writing on Is “fat” the new protected class? Jon provides some important information to go along with my post on Fatism.
5. Dan McCarthy at Great Leadership, writing on MBA 2.0: Trading in Textbooks for Blogs? This post explains how blog posts have become a vital source for keeping yourself educated. 

So read away. Be educated. Be a pro!

Five Great Reads in Human Resources Blogs This Week

I have done some reading today and I am passing on to you five blogs that I think are important reads. What a great guy I am. (Said blushing... well not really) This is not to say that there are not at least another 100 good blog posts out there to read, there are. But if you read these you will be a bit more educated on some important subjects.

1. First up is Ann Bares at Compensation Cafe. She wrote Managers: The Next Critical Shortage. If you did not have a compelling reason to work on development programs and incentive programs you will now.


2. Secondly is Kris Dunn at The HR Capitalist. He wrote Here's Why Companies That Have Used Card Check In The Past Are Silent These Days... This is an update on the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) and why companies that have used card check in the past are NOT singing its praises. Great info from someone who has been there.


3. Eva Rykr, of iOrgPsych writes about The Case for Analytics in HR. She says analytics is more than just measurement. And in this day and age of making a contribution to the organization (so both it and you survive) this is an essential understanding to have. A KEY HR SKILL.


4. Another KEY HR SKILL is giving presentations. Steve Tobak writes on How to Give a Killer Online Presentation. Well the advice works for in person presentations as well.


5. Lastly, but not the least, Jon Hyman tells a personal story that should be very instructive to people about NOT USING COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL in A short rant, and a lesson in employee appreciation. Jon has his taken and he did not take to it kindly, even though the "thief" thought they were doing him a favor. He even throws in a bit of HR wisdom.

Well there you have it. Great reading, great lessons. As always, keep reading HR Observations and pass it on to your friends and colleagues. And BTW, if you know of organizations that are looking for consulting work in human resources I have a great team put together. (Hey it is the first commercial I have ever done.)

Be a Bit Better at HR by the end of the day: Blog Posts You Should Read

Here are links to six blogs I think you should read. Aren't I nice for saving you the time of finding the good ones? LOL

1. Seth Godin, When Smart People Are Hard to Understand. Great advice on making yourself smarter when you don't understand something said. Clue: Acting like you know is not it!


2. Kris Dunn at the HR Capitalist, If you think HR owns turnover, you are already dead. Great story of what should be said to a manager who want HR to take ownership of the manager's problem.


3. Ann Bares at Compensation Cafe, The Excuses you may NOT use to defend gender pay disparities. With equitable compensation so prominent in the news these days this is an important tidbit of information.


4. Michael Moore at The Pennsylvania Labor and Employment Blog, Employment Law Implications of obesity and BMI after the ADA Amendments Act. Michael discusses some of the technical implications of being considered "overweight" and makes a prediction on whether or not obesity becomes a protected catagory or not. Wanna make a prediction on his prediction???


5. KJK, The Ohio Employer's Law Blog. 3 Lessons in handling workplace harassment. Harassment, especially sexual harassment, is still alive and well in the workplace. Here is a case and the lessons that can be learned from it.


6. Cathy Martin, Profitability Through Human Capital. Hey HR, please no more TABLE talk. If you have been in HR for any period of time you will get this one and agree. Time for action not talk.

Well that is enough for one Friday. There are about another 25 I could (and probably should) include on this list. But if you read these today you will be a better HR person at the end of the day.

Vow to be Visible!

I am back from vacation. Yes, I had a great time, thanks for asking. Having disappeared for a week or so I thought about visibility as I came back. Two blog posts by other bloggers prompted this thought, so I thought I would pass on their ideas and add a couple of my own.

The first thought comes from Alan Collins writer of Success In HR in his post Seven No B.S. HR Career Strategies Your Boss Won’t Tell You About! His fourth point is "Visibility is not an official HR competency, but it should be." Alan makes the comment "...focusing on doing what you do better than anyone else and trusting that that alone is enough, guarantees you one thing and one thing only: a long life laboring in oblivion." The implication is that you need to "toot your own horn." People within your organization need to know that you are good, not just your boss. My experience has been that you can increase your visibility by working on committees, task forces, etc. You can also increase your visibility by being a good speaker and making good company presentations. Alan also makes the comment that writing a blog can increase you visibility. I can attest, it does.

Kris Dunn, The HR Capitalist, makes the comment "Develop a professional identity outside the workplace, and you'll never be held hostage intellectually to the job you currently have." In his post How a Sucky Economy Makes A Professional Identity Outside of the Workplace More Important... he makes the point that having an identity outside the workplace is protection against the psychological impact of losing your job. I think it also makes you somewhat more resistant to losing your job. So how do you get a professional identity outside of your workplace? Well following Alan Collin's advice of writing a blog can help. But there are other ways too. Volunteer! There are many non-profits that need help, especially on their Boards of Directors. This allows you to demonstrate your leadership ability and your decisionmaking skills. It can be fulfilling, challenging and provide you a stretch. It can also position you to go to work for someone else if you lose your current postion.

So vow to be visible! It will make you a better current employee and a better future employee.

Suggested Reading: Some Blog Referrals

As I have been brousing some blogs today and here are some posts I thought you might find interesting, I did.

1. The HR Capitalist starts a discussion on Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers in a post called How Your National Origin Can Impact Your Performance.... He discusses the concept of the Power Distance Index, a concept developed by Geert Hofstede in his Cultural Dimensions. This discussion is in terms Korean Air Lines pilots and a series of accidents. Make sure you read the comments.



2. In Dan McCarthy's Great Leadership blog he writes about The Only Reference That Really Matters . The Dilbert cartoon is worth the trip and Dan's discussion of the reference process is excellent. I agree with this assessment.



3. Ann Bares writes in Compensation Force about Bonuses and Other Profanities and the impact on current events on the proper definition and use of bonus dollars and what a commuication and PR problem HR now does have.



4. At Fistful of Talents, Kris Dunn (in his alter ego), writes about All Workplace Jerks Don't Have to Scream - The Information Hoarder... I don't know about you but I have worked with some people like that before. "I am more valuable because I know something you don't know."



5. Over at Slacker Manager, Phil Gerbyshak has a guest auther, Steve Farber writing on How Do You Get Back Up? A Counterintuitive Approach to Thriving in Challenging Times. Some good advice on what to do when things don't go your way.

So take a look at these I think you will find them interesting, insightful and useful. I did.

Some Inspiration

When you are constantly bombarded from all sides with bad news it is easy to feel down. Just yesterday I posted a comment on Twitter (tweeted) something to the effect that things were so bad I was just hoping to be able to afford the better brand of dog food to eat when I retire. In my consulting practice I have been dealing with many clients who are cutting back and letting people go. I have older friends who are having very difficult times in finding jobs and who have been the object of ageism. The stock market is down and the government is head in a direction I think is dangerous. So this usually very optimistic HR guy is feeling pretty pessimistic. And when you feel that way it leaks into your work.

But then I read Kris Dunn's post 4 Reasons Why Ayn Rand and "Atlas Shrugged" Should Guide Your Career Choices... This is Kris Dunn at his finest. As a result of this excellent post I feel better and more ready to work harder and smarter for my good, the good of my family, the good of my future, the good of my company and the good of my fellow employees. Kris says "... don't get frozen career-wise in a recession. Do what you are good at and do it aggressively." He offers four reasons for doing this. I will let you link to his post to read them. However, I will quote him one more time with this great statement. "The quickest way to become part of the body count? By not bringing your A-game and being selfish when it comes to demanding top performance and creativity when you're on the job."

So read him and get inspired. You might even want to read Ayn Rand, I am going to try.

Lessons for HR in the Geithner Confirmation Hearings

How many of you have paid attention to the lessons for HR in the Timothy Geithner confirmation hearings? Oops, I can hear you now "Who the heck is Timothy Geithner?" (A gold star to any who knows before they read the next sentence.) Timothy Geithner is Barak Obama's nominee to head the Treasury Department for the Obama administration. He has made headlines because he has made what his supporters call "honest mistakes." These "honest mistakes" are causing him and others some heartburn and everyone in HR should take a note because these are mistakes that would cause you some heartburn too.

What were his mistakes? He failed to pay self-employment taxes for period of time in which he was an independent contractor. Taxes to the tune of $34,000 plus. This HR lesson is to make sure you and anyone you have as a contractor understand the importance of properly paying taxes. If someone doesn't and they get hit with a big tax bill they may try to foist that reponsibility off on you the employer. If they can show that they were improperly classified as an IC then guess who gets to pay the bill, plus penalities? Here is a link to the IRS Independent Contractor Rules.

The second "honest mistake" he made was allowing an immigrant to work for him as a housekeeper without having the proper, up-to-date work permits. Geithner never completed and I-9, just wrote the document numbers down in a calendar and did not pay attention to the expiration dates. His housekeeper worked beyond the expiration date of her visa. So the lesson in this is to make sure you are aware of all the expiration dates of the visas of people you have working for you on a visa. It is simple to do, just put it in a calendar or a spreadsheet, if you don't have a HRIS that will track it.

Just wanted to show you that there are day-t0-day HR lessons for you in the news. Kris Dunn of The HR Capitalist often pulls his from the sports world. So read, pay attention, and go beyond just the words on the paper/screen.

BTW, here is a link to an article on Geithner if you are interested in reading more.

Now fess up! Who really knew who he was?

The photo credit is the Associated Press.

Charisma and Success In HR: Is There a Connection?

I read in a Brian Tracy newsletter the following "There is a close association between personal charisma and success in life. Probably 85 percent of your success and happiness will come from your relationships and interactions with others. The more positively others respond to you, the easier it will be for you to get the things you want." Charisma is a powerful thing and we can think of many past leaders who have successfully used their ability to attract people by force of personality. Even today many attribute Barak Obama's success in getting the Democrat Party nomination on his charisma.

This got me to thinking of human resources and the effect of charisma. Is it a prerequisite for being successful in HR? Do you get promoted to the Vice Presidential level as a result of it or can you achieve that level without it? That may depend on your definition of success and your definition of charisma.

To me charisma is the ability to attract people to you. That attraction is made up of likability, trustworthiness, the ability to instill confidence and the perception of competence. Given that definition I think charisma is critical to success in HR. You must be approachable, you must be trustworthy, you must make people feel like you know what you are talking about and they must feel that you will accomplish what you say you will. Without that your knowledge of HR and you time in the field counts for little.

To make it to VP I think you need to add the ability to spur people to action and the abiltiy to clearly communicate your ideas and vision. This adds that very visible component of charisma.

Of course we all know people in HR positions, even VPs, who do not have this charisma. They may be great technicians, but they are not approachable and thus not charismatic. This is unfortunate for the profession. What is worse is the people in the job who are not only uncharismatic, but also not technically sound.

If you are not currently the charismatic leader you would like to be, the good news is you can change that. You can:

• Work on how you communicate (Writing classes)


• Work on how technically sound you are (PHR, SPHR)


• Work on being trustworthy (keep confidences)


• Work on your speaking ability (Toastmasters)


• Work on your self perception (See Brian Tracy, Earl Nightngale, Dale Carnegie, etc.)

Although I have never met him in person Kris Dunn of The HR Capitalist has charisma. VP level, superb written communication, attracts talented people and spurs them to action (Fist Full of Talent bloggers) and is very technically sound. So if you are looking for an example he is a good one to start with.

Environmental Scanning: Some Great Reads on HR

As I was catching up on some reading, after having been on a trip to California, I wanted to point out to you some great reads and some new materials for you, especially if you are involved in recruiting.

Kris Dunn of The HR Capitalist has started another blog on recruiting called Fistful of Talent. It is a multi-author blog that will feature many different takes on recruiting. Today's is about the appearance of applicants today. Oh, The HR Capitalist (see link above) is about whether HR can be trusted or not. So check it out.

Jim Stroud, of the Recruiters Lounge has a FREE BOOK entitled Resume Forensics that you can download for FREE. It talks about resources and tips for finding resumes and candidates using search engines. Valuable stuff.

Ann Bares, of Compensation Force has a post today about The Quiet Pink Pay Revolution, women gaining on men in the workforce. Very interesting.

Penelope Trunk, The Brazen Careerist, talks about what knowing what you should be doing by what you did as a kid. A thought provoker.

Tomorrow I will blog about the SECRET union conspiracies under way with some companies, so stay tuned.

Sign of the Times? Union Activity Rising?

As the U.S. economy slides employees feel the pressure on their pocketbook. So what do they do about it. They cut corners, they reduce the "extra" spending. But eventually they start looking for more money. One way of doing that is looking for a different job, though that may be problematic and a bit unsettling for many. A second way for getting more money is to try to get it from their current employer. They look for bigger raises or they look for "cost of living" increases. Ann Bares, in Compensation Force warns against this with the statement "Experts warn (and I would second this warning) of the pitfalls associated with simply increasing base pay (in the form of a "cost of living" increase) to address these rising costs. What happens if gas prices continue to increase indefinitely, and you've set a precedent for covering the cost? And why increase pay to address fuel costs but not rising healthcare expenses? Again, potentially dangerous and slippery territory to step into." She offers some alternatives to COLAs so read her article.

Another way employees may try to get more money is to seek third party representation. And unions are selling it. Rising prices, job cuts, fear and a union friendly Congress are all leading to what may be an uptick in union activity. Atlanta, Georgia (where I work) has not exactly been a hotbed of union activity in the past. But union radio ads have been on the rise, and just last week in one day I saw two union picket lines where wages seemed to be the issue.

So beware! Be on your guard. Pay attention to signs of union activity in your workplace. Unless of course you want a union. I believe that as the economy worsens this activity will increase. And if we end up with a Democrat administration we will likely see union friendly legislation passed (See my previous post on the Employee Free Choice Act and Kris Dunn's post When "The Sopranos" Force an Employee To Sign a Union Card...) which will facilitate union organization. Clean up your "house", train your supervisors, put them on guard about accepting any union cards, otherwise you will get something you don't want. There is a big cost associated with unions (look at the auto companies.. are they doing well right now?) and in tough economic times do you want any more costs to handle?

Sex and Guns: Challenges for Employers

Making the news here in the SE US, Georgia in particular, has been the story of an office romance that has caused the employer difficult times. Office romances have always been problematic for employers. This one, involving the head of The Department of Transportation and the Chairman of the Board that oversees the DOT, has ended poorly, with the DOT being the big loser. The Chairman resigned last week because of the relationship and the Head of the DOT has a hearing today on whether she should retain her position. So two talented people may be off the job and the DOT will be scrambling. They violated agency policy which prohibits that type of personal relationship.

Office romances cause employers headaches. The company may try to prohibit them but they can prevent them. After all people who work together all day long may have a tendency to form those relationships. Some are single, some are not. Some of these relationships are successful, many are not. The employer ends up with the burden of monitoring these relationships because of the liabiltiy that failed relationships may bring in the area of sexual harassment. You even have to monitor people around the couple in question because they may find their behavior to create a hostile environment. This is particularly the case when the pair involved are in a "superior-subordinate" relationship as in the DOT case. So what needs to be done? Ban them? Fire people involved? Require one to quit? (Have to be careful here about sexual discrimination.) Give me some feedback. Take the poll to the left.

So much for the sex part of today's post. Now to the guns post. Florida just passed and signed into law a gun rights law that allows employees to carry guns in their cars. Employers cannot prohibit it. Georgia has passed a similar law, though it has not yet been signed into law. Employers are encouraging the Governor to veto this law. The Georgia law does have some allowance for prohibiting guns on company property as long as the employer owns the parking lot. To see a good post on the Florida law read Kris Dunn's post at HR Capitalist entitled Dealing With Employees Who Are "Strapped" - Guns in Cars...

Want To Make A Change In HR? Speak Up!

A favorite author of mine, someone I consider an unofficial mentor, Harvey Mackay, wrote a weekly newsletter entitled "Find the courage to speak up and face challenges." He was discussing worklife in general and had a number of good quotes. But it got me to thinking about the application to the field of human resources.

If you get together a group of HR people quite often they sit around bitching and moaning about how bad things are in their job, their company or in their field (actually an activity common to groups of employees in general.) They gripe about management not listening to them, not having "their place at the table", not being proactive, laws being passed that are ridiculous or difficult to work with, etc. When asked why they are still there, or why management doesn't listen to them, or what they did about the law being passed what you hear is mostly excuses. Typically the gripers don't do or say anything about the situation.

Well if you find yourself in that group pay attention to Mackay's words, from a story he relates, "...That inspired him to speak up whenever something didn't work. He says it was the beginning of his realization that you have to make up your mind to speak up if you really want to change things." He further advises "Chances are, others share your concern. It takes courage to speak up—perhaps there's a fear of retaliation, concern about being labeled a complainer, or a reluctance to rock the boat. Stay calm, be logical and present your case in a clear and positive way. No whining! Waiting to see if things get better on their own really isn't a reasonable strategy."

If management doesn't listen to you, ask why. Want a place at the table? Ask what has to be done to get there. Don't like a law that is pending? Write your federal or state representative and express your informed, professional opinion. Not allowed to be proactive? Ignore it an do something about it. Courage!

In HR, when we deal with a sexual harassment situation we often ask the "victim" if they have said something to the harasser. We encourage people to do so, to stand up and say something. Yet quite often we do not stand up for ourselves. We adopt a victim mentality about HR not changing.

It is not hard to find examples of people exhibiting that courage. Find someone and use them as an example. One of my favorite bloggers, Kris Dunn of The HR Capitalist likes to rock the boat. Read him for a dose of courage or guidance on how to address something.

Poking the beast with a sharp stick to see if it is awake can be exhilarating every once in awhile! Give it a try. LOL

Secret Ballot As a Foundation to Freedom: Not to Unions!

Kudos to Kris Dunn of the HR Capitalist for reminding us about the so-called Employee Free Choice Act. (Click the link for a Wikipedia explanation.) While currently idling in Congress waiting for the November elections to take place, this insidious piece of legislation will be raised again, probably next year. To read a better analysis of this go to the Employee Free Choice Act Blog.

The title of the legislation is totally bogus. In fact the EFCA seeks to take away any concept of free choice by requiring employees to make a public declaration of their support, or lack there of, and sign a card or petition for union representation. Up to now employees have been allowed to sign (or not) and then, after a campaign by both sides, decide by secret ballet whether they wanted a union or not. The EFCA seeks to take that away and give employees no opportunity to hear the merits (or lack of) union membership and then decide in a private way to vote for or against. Having to decide openly in a public forum opens the process to the use of intimidation or coersion. And for those of you that don't think unions do that anymore watch the following video.




So watch this legislation carefully.