KS SHRM State Conference Recap

Oct 10, 2013 | By Alicia McDougal | Communication, Connectivity, Development, Diversity, Engagement, Human Resources, Leadership, Learning

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KS SHRM State Conference Recap

In the middle of the United States, among fields of corn and soybeans, silos and wild native sunflowers, lies a place that was once home to likes of George Washington Carver, Wyatt Earp, Lucinda Todd and Bob Dole. This place? Kansas!

In addition to the noted Kansans, this great state is currently home to thousands of HR professionals. Hundreds of which gathered in Overland Park, a mere 20-minute drive away from Kauffman Stadium (and Arrowhead – if you’re an NFL fan), to get recharged, updated on the latest in Human Resources, and reconnected with friends and colleagues.

While this was not my first conference, it was my first conference in Kansas. And I must say the event was a huge success!

The People

Absolutely wonderful! It was amazing to see such diversity – early career to seasoned HR professionals, HR Dudes & HR Divas and people from a variety of backgrounds representing all types of organizations.

The KSSHRM13 attendees were engaged in this conference. If they weren’t lined up eager to get into the next session, they were interacting with vendors or networking with others.

The Facility

Overland Park Convention Center is a great place to hold a conference. For KSSHRM, we had one of the ballrooms on the main level for the keynote sessions, another ballroom for the vendor Exhibit Hall and four rooms on the lower level for all the concurrent sessions. All rooms were in close proximity to one another and easily accessible.

The staff of OP Convention Center was present, available, and customer service oriented. If one of the KSSHRM volunteers had a question, the staff was immediately prepared to respond. Awesome!

The Content

From nationally recognized keynote speakers to SHRM reps and chapter volunteers, to local HR practitioners, the sessions at KSSHRM13 did not disappoint. We learned that:

HR is in the experience business.
We don’t need permission to work from a position of influence.
Communication involves listening and modeling positive behavior.
The more we know about how we view situations, the easier it is for us to learn.
Workflex means something different to different people and organizations.
Having and using HR data to drive change is essential.
Avoiding HRisks, building HRewards and defining HRoles involves coloring outside the lines, understanding diversity and communication styles and rethinking how we do HR!

If you are an HR practitioner in the state of Kansas check out the resources available to you through the KS SHRM State Council: http://ksshrm.com/.