Yes, yes my friends you read correctly.  We are afterall only 5 days away from the start of the 2011 SHRM Annual Conference.

You’ve made the decision to go to SHRM Annual conference starting Sunday, June 26th.  Awesome, me too.  Maybe you’ve never gone to SHRM or you could be just overwhelmed with the sheer volume of tweets, information, and people who are also attending.  As a fellow HR Blogger, new presenter, and former SHRM Blog Squad Member, I’m here to get you up to speed on the ins, outs, and inbetweens of the 2011 SHRM Annual Conference.

HR Blogger’s Guide to SHRM 2011

• Hash Tag Appropriately.  Popular hash tags for include #SHRM11 or thrown in #SHRM for good measure.  Not sure what a hash tag is?

• Find Your Friends. Geolocation or texting are the two easiest ways to find out where your friends are.  Some of my favorite conference meeting texting tools include BalugaPod and GroupMe.  Send one text to your entire group of friends to coordinate dinner, drinks, and other events.  These were valuable tools earlier this year at SXSW.

• When In Doubt, You’re Press. I’m crossing my fingers that SHRM will have press seats in the front row for Michael J. Fox, the closing keynote.  Get access to VIP events and even the SHRM blogger’s lounge.  Being an influencer is a good thing.  Use it to your advantage.

• Pace Yourself. The Annual SHRM Conference is a marathon.  There are events for days from morning until late in the night.  I haven’t even mentioned that we’re in Vegas, the city that never sleeps.  Use good judgement and consider it a good day if you attend two sessions.  Be selective, arrive early, and sit in the front.  The people you meet and the conversations you have at the conference are sometimes more valuable than the conference itself.

• Wear Comfortable Shoes. You will be walking all over Vegas.  The conference center is located off the strip so consider the time spent travelling on the monorail if you going to an event.  My feet thanked me when I opted to leave the stilettos at home.

More thoughts on SHRM Annual Conferences present & past —

• 6 Ideas to Impress Me with Conference Swag

• SHRM Outside the Conference. Outside the Box.

• Such a Good Thing from True Faith HR

• SHRM Rant and Rave