As many of you know, I am active on the Indiana State Council of SHRM and have been since 2006. During my tenure on the council, my roles have evolved and for the last three (3) years, I have been part of the team that organizes and operates that Indiana State HR Conference which is now more popularly known as HR Indiana.
Business and HR pros like Ann Rhoades highlight the conference.
Last week was the 18th conference. This year’s version was held at the JW Marriott in downtown Indianapolis (any of you who watched the Super Bowl last February have seen it as it was featured prominently with a giant Lombardi trophy on its blue glass exterior) and brought in another record attendance of nearly 1300 attendees along with another 200 plus exhibitors and about 50 speakers. Early reviews are extremely positive!
Before being involved in the conference planning, I attended the conference for 5 years. Even in that capacity, the conference was an annual highlight for me. The gathering of so many HR oriented pros brings me an energy that can sustain my enthusiasm for quite a while. One element of HR Indiana that I really cherish is the level of business content brought to the conference. While avoiding talking about furniture (that whole “seat and table” business) so much of the content brings high level thought to not only those who know they need it, but to those who do not know and can begin to realize that the world of HR is a larger one than they previously believed.
Although SHRM has given up the formal tag line, their “serve the professional and advance the profession” mantra is one that makes sense to me. Striking the needed balance between sessions for entry level HR folks or those who just happen to have some HR duties in their job (much as I started) to having C-suite level speakers bring their perspectives so that all of us can gain some insight into their views is a little tricky. All of it does good while ensuring a broad base of knowledge can be obtained no matter the level you find yourself in.
No matter if you are new to HR or a seasoned veteran like me, the need to advance our own knowledge should never be one that stops. Learn, share, and grow!
