Before I start giving you a taste of what HRINZ is lining up for 2011,  I would like to mention that at the end of last year, HRINZ launched a new branch in the Hawkes Bay area.

We now have 12 branches nationwide which includes our Academic Branch which is our first virtual branch.  This new branch in Hawkes Bay will allow all our members living in the area or surrounding area the opportunity to have their own local branch and eliminating the need for them to travel to their nearest HRINZ Branch which was based in Manawatu.  By creating this new branch this will encourage our members to attend more local Branch meetings and inspire each other in the local HR community.

So what do we have planned for 2011?
Well, here at HRINZ National Office we are raring to go with a whole host of exciting events, but I will only mention a few.  We have our new Webinars coming soon; our new Essential Employment Law course being run by Angela Atkins (who wrote Employment Bites –great book).  This one day course is a facilitated workshop with case studies, exercises and online assessments;  and then it’s on to organising our Nine to 9′ Auckland Conference and National Conference.

A big change on the horizon for HRINZ in 2011,  is that we will be having a new President. Our current HRINZ National President Kris Cooper, FHRINZ, two year term is coming to an end in February. So it will be exciting to see who be the next HRINZ President and be taking over from Kris.  I do have a hunch but my lips are sealed.

Personally, I think this year will still be about change for HR, as we will have to learn how to respond to the recovering economic climate which I am sure will bring old and new challenges.
I must confess I am still amazed at hearing about HR professionals who do not get out into the business and support their managers by listening to them and the challenges that they are facing but seem to be primarily focused on just the HR challenges.  HR will never get the tag of a business partner if we don’t start working together with the business units and supporting them.  These HR issues are also highlighted in some great articles listed by Fiona Powell which I recommend you check out.   I do believe  that 2011 will  bring some exciting times for HRINZ and the HR profession.

As this will be my final blog, I would like to take the opportunity to thank everyone who has been reading my blogs  over the last year.  I will be passing my blogging duties over to the capable of hands of Marie Sim, as I will be leaving HRINZ soon.

So over to you Marie……..

It has been an amazing year for the Institute as we have fully embraced the world of social media by setting up HRINZ Blogs, Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook accounts.

All our social media sites have been very popular with our members, some more so than others, but  immediately, we recognised the value of using them.  Through using our HRINZ Facebook and Twitter sites, it has give us a real opportunity to be able to actively engage with our members regarding our events, competitions and hot topics in the world of HR.

By using our HRINZ LinkedIn page we have been able to consult our members and really find out their opinions on whether HRINZ should develop a Continuous Professional Development (CPD) model for our members to use in future.

This year has also been jammed packed with nationwide events and conferences such as: our Nineto9, HRINZ Research Forum and our HRINZ National Conference.

In amidst of all this activity we also found time to recruit and welcome some new members of staff who joined the HRINZ Team such as Gareth, Kesli and Sheridan.

It been a fabulous year for HRINZ and I must confess I have really enjoyed writing these blogs and receiving your fabulous feedback.

On that note I would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

See you in 2011 and watch out for our new webinars.

I love the holiday season but I know that this is not an easy season for employers, especially now with the introduction of social networking sites.

Long gone are the days where some ones indiscretion or rowdy behaviour at a Christmas bash was just talked about around the water cooler in whispered tones.  Now it can be public knowledge within minutes by being Tweeted or “Facebooked”.

No wonder, some employers are opting to host non-alcoholic parties or not bothering at all citing budgetary concerns.  This approach can limit some of the issues the employers may be faced with, but this still doesn’t solve the issue dealing with rowdy behaviour outside of work via social networking. 

Recently, a friend of mine who has been promoted to manager, was so worried about the Facebook implications that she felt she had to de-friend all her colleagues.  Her reason being that she didn’t want to be put in an awkward situation finding out that one of her staff members wasn’t turning up for work that day due to being hung over etc.  

Personally, I think that was a interesting approach but it does highlight how difficult or grey this area can be if you do not have a policy on this.  I do not think many employers have found a solution yet for this issue  and/or are afraid of becoming thought of as a “big brother” type.  However, as an employer if you don’t clearly define what you expect of your employees inside and outside office hours (including the use of social networking sites), then you could be landing yourself in hot water later. 

There is certainly lots of information on this subject now from the several leading law firms.   Michelle Banfield, Senior Associate at Belly Gully, recently put together a guide   for our members to use which highlighted the real implications these social networking websites now have on today’s workforce.  You can catch Michelle presenting on this topic in the new year via the HRINZ webinar session. 

Over  the coming weeks, along with the increased  opportunities of social networking due to the christmas period.  It tends to also be the time of year that Job Boards are well visited as  new year resolutions begin to form.  Over the last few weeks, there has been an increase in the number of HR vacancies appearing on various job boards.  Our free HRINZ Job Board in particular, has seen a definite increase in the number of HR vacancies being advertised to our 3800 members.  Honestly, I am not really sure why this is? 

Could it be that employers have been waiting to see how the year went before thinking about employing more staff? Or is it because more employees are now looking to move on, as the recessionary times are over?  

What are your thoughts on the increased number of vacancies over the last few weeks, is it normal, abnormal or a blip? Whose got the best Job Board to advertise on?  In your opinion what constitutes a good Job Board and why?  

I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions on these questions or this blog.

On that note, I would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
See you all in 2011!

We had a whopping 75 delegates ( 50 practitioners and 25 academics) clearly showing that there is a strong desire for interaction with one another  from both communities. There was such a great vibe around the Forum with delegates complimenting Professor Peter Boxall (FHRINZ)  and Beverley Main, CEO of HRINZ on hosting such a wonderful event and it was only lunchtime!

 The University of Auckland was a fabulous place to host the first HRINZ Research Forum as it’s such a beautiful building with state of the art equipment for the presenters to use.
The presentations were short and punchy at 30 minutes with questions at the end and covered a variety of interesting, informative and thought-provoking topics such as: personal grievances, diversity management, workplace bullying and stress and cultural support and employee outcomes in NZ organisations.   Most of the presentation topics all seemed to spark some lively debates and discussions. 

I was very lucky to be able to sit in eight presentations out of the thirteen papers presented and I do hope that you all enjoyed our live tweets from the Forum.

Personally, I had an amazing time listening to both Academic and Practitioners presentations, I am not going to tell you my favourite(s) as I don’t think I can actually pick one!
It was great for me to be able to meet various people (and put names to faces) that I have dealt with over the course of the year.   

I think this event was truly ground breaking for all concerned, as it clearly showed that HR practitioners are very receptive to HRM research and have a strong desire to use HRM research in their policies and practices. The Academics found out that HR practitioners do actually read the HRM research and use it to change their HRM policies and practices within their organisations.
This fact I think delighted Associate Professor Keith Macky (AFHRINZ) who conducted the Survey of HRINZ members asking what HR practitioner’s perceptions of the important HR problems or questions that need research attention were.
The results of this survey were truly interesting for example: 80% of them said they thought there was a real need for NZ based HR research and 44% of them said that they had used HR research to change their HR policies and practices in the last 3 years as a result of the research.  

I know that this event was a “Smash Hit” with everyone from the amount of positive feedback we have received on and after the Forum, from various people who attended and enjoyed the networking opportunities.

Therefore, the HRINZ Research Forum has achieved its main aim which was to start bridging the gap between the Academic and Practitioner communities which has now given HRINZ an excellent foundation to build upon for the future.

I won’t cover old ground by going into the reasons behind the concept of the Forum which are listed in my previous blog titled “A Research Forum For All” .  But personally I can’t wait to attend the HRINZ Research Forum, as it’s the first of its kind.

Not to blow HRINZ’s trumpet, but I am not aware of any other overseas HR Institute who has hosted a Research Forum solely designed to attract HRM Academics and HR Practitioners, so they can participate in discussions, debates and planning of future research.  Please let me know, if you know differently.

The HRINZ Research Forum is being held at the University of Auckland Business School.  Thirteen papers are being presented in plenary and concurrent sessions covering topics such as: counteracting bullying and stress in the workplace, organisational responses to abusive supervision and personal grievance processes: a study of how the parties make decisions before, during and after mediation.

One of Research Forums key goals is to strengthen the engagement between HR academics and HR practitioners, in order to advance relevant HRM research, on the one hand, and evidence-based HRM practice and policy advice, on the other.  So in other words, we are looking to bridge the gap between these two communities and give everyone an opportunity to participate in discussions which can improve HRM practice and help shape a relevant HRM research agenda for the future. 

For years, HR Practitioners  have been asking for the opportunity to interact more closely with the HRM Academic community, so here it is folks!  An opportunity to  have your say on what type of research you would like to see which could help you and your organisations.

The Research Forum will run  from 9 am to 5pm,  finishing with a cocktail hour for everyone to socialise and mingle with some of NZ  leading HRM academics like Professor Peter Boxall, FHRINZ and Associate Professor Keith Macky, AFHRINZ and many more. 

If you haven’t registered yet, but would like to attend our Inaugural Research Forum, please visit www.researchforum.hrinz.org.nz

See you all there!

In this blog I would like to update you on  HRINZ’s plan to  move towards a Continuous Professional Development (CPD) model for our members.

One of HRINZ’s goals is to improve the standard of HR in New Zealand.  HRINZ has identified a need to formalise the recording and monitoring of professional development as part of a requirement to maintain Professional Accreditation.  As a professional Institute if we can demonstrate real tangible ongoing development of our members, then this leads to employers, general management, and our communities having greater trust and confidence in the skills and value that we, as HR professionals, can bring to our respective organisations.

For this reason, HRINZ is looking to implement a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) framework.  The CPD definition HRINZ is looking to adopt  is: “the systematic maintenance, improvement and broadening of knowledge and skills, and the development of personal qualities necessary for the execution of professional and technical duties throughout the individual’s working life.”  

Currently, we are consulting with our members for their views on how CPD for the Institute should operate?  If you would like to check out our full CPD consultation document which provides more details behind our thinking on how we think CPD should be set up for the Institute, click here.   Or you can check out our LinkedIn discussions.

 I would love to hear what your thoughts and views are on CPD and whether you think CPD is the next step for HR professionals to increase their credibility within the business world?

Personally, I don’t think it is all doom and gloom out there.
Spring has arrived and so has some budding signs that employers are becoming more confident about recruitment. This is evident from our HRINZ HR Job Board which is starting to consistently display more HR Jobs over the last few months indicating that the HR Job Market is starting to bubble.

 Let’s be realistic, I am not saying we are out of the woods yet, as there are a lot of people unemployed.  However, there are positive signs that the recruitment freezes are being lifted which is good for people looking for work.

You could also say this is a positive time for employers, who can now afford to be choosy about who they want to employ, due to the number of candidates looking for work.
I have heard that there has been a lot of senior level HR people applying for lower positions just to gain employment in the current market. This has meant that some employers have been rubbing their hands in glee, as they realise that they can advertise for an intermediate level employee but in reality get a senior instead.  Don’t scoff, I have heard this from several different sources.

Whilst this may be great for the employee and employer now, it does make me wonder how is this is going to affect the business down the track when the job market becomes more buoyant? Will these seniors stay in these positions or go elsewhere?

Personally, I think that the seniors in these positions will be out of the door as soon as they can, unless you can promote or pay them the salary they know they can earn.
Is this a False Economy? Or clever use of talent? It is an interesting one. You decide.

So on this note, I will finish my blog and ask everyone out there, what are your thoughts on the job market?

PS:  If you would like to advertise your HR and/or HR related roles on the HRINZ  free HR Job Board, click here or contact HRINZ National Office.
(Please no adverts for truck drivers etc -Trust me we have had these in the past).

Our thoughts and prayers are with all our colleagues, friends and fellow New Zealanders that have been affected by the earthquake in Christchurch.

This has event has really made everyone realise that we cannot be complacent about possible disasters and businesses need to have a policies and practices in place.

This blog is a short one, as I would like to draw people’s attention to the information which the Department of Labour has released today on how to deal with employment and health and safety issues that are being faced in the wake of the Christchurch earthquake.  The information has been designed to help businesses and their employees make good, safe, sensible and practical decisions in this difficult time and covers: 

• Managing Health and Safety in the workplace
• Payment of wages
• Leave for employees
• Flexible working arrangements and terminating employment
• Problem Solving Support

 Click here to visit the Department of Labour webpage

If you have any further questions or queries on this issue,  please contact me at National Office, or on our HRINZ Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn pages.

On top of all the conference organising, HRINZ is also hosting workshops with Professor Roger Steare, Corporate Philosopher.   Roger will be here in Wellington on Tuesday 31^st August 2010.  
I can’t wait to hear Roger speak on leadership, culture and ethics programmes globally adopted by organisations such as HSBC, PwC and Sky. This is a must attend event and is open to non HRINZ members too, if you are interested in registering for this event, please click here.

 My role during the conference will be to introduce various concurrent speakers, co-host the Professional Members Dinner and man the HRINZ Expo Stand.

So, if you have any questions regarding your Career Development or Professional Accreditation, please come over to say hello to me on the HRINZ Expo stand so we can have a chat.

I am very excited about the HRINZ Gala Dinner this year. It’s a themed Gala Dinner where everyone dresses up and has often being described as HR version of the Rugby Sevens.

This year conference theme is on “Trust” so I can’t wait to see the ingenious and creative costumes members will come up.

All of us at National Office have matching costumes which are guaranteed to make everyone laugh.  So “Trust Us” this will be a memorable Gala Dinner.

 Hope to see you all there.

It occurred to me on my way to work that during these winter months it can be all too easy to become bogged down with the winter blues. Allowing gloomy weather, stress at work and controversial news topic to slip us into a less than positive frame of mind by the time we get to our places of work.

If we take a moment to look around us, we will realise that there is always someone else out there who has a tougher job than you do. (Just check out the new TV programme ‘Undercover Boss’).  Some of these employees have extremely difficult and thankless roles to perform but if they can do this with a smile on their face and positive approach then we should all be holding these employees up as shining examples for the rest of us to follow.

For example, let’s take the job of a bus driver; these men and women are often perceived as being a bit grumpy and unsociable to their passengers at times. If I am honest who can blame them, having to cope on an daily basis with people moaning and groaning all the time that the bus is late, the traffic is bad (like they can control this) and having the responsibility of safely driving people to their destinations in good and bad weather.  

However, yesterday I was struck by the positive attitude that my bus driver always displays regardless of the weather being yucky, the bus being packed and the moans and groans he has surely received. He has a difficult job to perform but everyday he has a smile on his face, is happy, chatty and makes the journey for everyone as pleasant as he can.

Over the last three years he has never been any different. From a customer’s point of view, I believe he is the best driver in Wellington. I do really hope that his company and bosses recognise the difference he makes for his customers in his job and what a true star he really is.

Let’s get one thing clear, I am not advocating everyone should be bouncing around the office being the happiest and most positive employees in the world – as that would fast become annoying within the workplace.

However, when we start feeling fed up, as the weather is miserable, the traffic is bad, your hair has got messed up and you have more work than you know what to do with.  Just sit back for a moment, take a deep breath and consider that there are people out there doing a far tougher job with a more positive attitude and a smile on their faces than what you may have and who is not sat in a cosy warm office.  

So, if we can all start to take a leaf out of my bus driver’s book and SMILE a bit more during these dreary winter months, it will instantly make you and everyone else around you feel better – that my opinion anyway.

What are your thoughts on positive attitudes and the power of a smile in the workplace or in life?