A Night of Legends

The name of the title refers to an event ESPN980 holds called Lunch with a Legend.  One of the lunches they conducted was  ”legendary Redskins broadcaster” Larry Michael.  EXCUSE ME?!!!  Anyway…

Last Wednesday seemed serendipitous.  I knew for months that January 27, 2010 will be big: I got Caps tickets against the Ducks for $15 each on StubHub and Shauna Moerke’s announcement that she was heading to  DC on a secret mission, which had a domino effect of the events to come.  I knew the night was going to be great…but I had no idea the day was going to be THAT great.

#ConnectHR

After a long day of HR and Recruiting consulting (and beyond), I wanted to go early to the #ConnectHR event since I had “other bidness” to attend that night.  Amazingly, I was not the first person to come in to the event.  The event immediately became packed of HR/Recruiting tweeters;  bloggers;  members of SHRM;  HRA-NCA;  visitors as far from Cincinnati, Philadelphia, Boston, even Portland, Oregon; and others.   Imagine the event as you’re stuck in a Metro train (subway for non-DC area residents) stuffed with congenial people having a conversation and saying “excuse me” a lot.  It was the cavalcade of stars that I could have list a few superstars, but it needed a link since it was that special of who attended.  Since it was crowded, it was hard to navigate to network and I didn’t get to speak to everyone on the list, but for the most part, it was great connecting to people who came all over the country just to network with other HR professionals in DC.  For that, I like to thank SHRM, SmartBrief, Monster, and Recruitingblogs.com for handling the event.

The networking was the main objective of #connecthr, but there were three bonuses that night:

1. Everyone was taller than Mike Lupica.
2. I won a gift bag from Monster.  I was number 27…the same number as Washington Capital Defenceman Karl Alzner…who also shares a birthday with me.  By the way, my schwag had a Flip Camera, gift card, beanie cap, and others.
3. Before I left, China Gorman mention she uses my name as an example of a dedicated HR/Recruiting professional since I “crashed” the SHRM Leadership Conference last November and also my blog posts on HR and Recruiting.  I wanted to be sarcastic, but that was the nicest thing someone has done for me and the only thing I can say is Thank You.

#ConnectHR didn’t had many down moments, but:

1. I won a Monster Snuggie.  Let me be clear, I like Monster and Eric Winegardner since he gives Monster a human element to the company.  I just don’t like the Snuggie. I believe when you buy a Snuggie, some cult gets rich.  To be fair, my mother loves the Snuggie, so Eric and Monster made my mother happy, but since I had to carry the Snuggie all night, my Q rating dropped that night.
2. The event needed more Matt Bradley

Which leads to:

The Capitals and #Caps108

For two weeks, I announce that I had one ticket available for the Ducks-Capitals game, but there were no takers.  So sad because the missed a chance to get free wings since the Caps scored 5 goals in a 5-1 win over the Ducks.  In addition, they missed out on meeting Krafty at RocktheRed.net at a carving sandwich stand and another terrific #Caps108 tweetup.  Chasta and Caps Girl explain perfectly what #Caps108 is for.  If you’re a Caps fan and want to meet with other Caps fans/tweeters/media/jack of all trades, come to outside section 108 to chat and say hello.  I’ll be at the next #Caps108 next Friday against the Atlanta Thrashers to 1) root for a Caps victory, 2) convince Ilya Kovalchuk to come to Washington, and 3) bring the 2012 SHRM Annual Conference back to Washington DC from Atlanta, again.

What made the game (and the night) uniquely special was in the third period, during the last Kiss Cam segment, there was a marriage proposal.  I found that poetic that night since it was symbolic for that night.  to put a cherry on top, I finally met one of my Twitter friends, Addison (who also shares a birthday with me), at the Vienna Metro Station when both of us were heading home (he was going back to Arlington, I was heading back to Fairfax.)

***

In my mind, what could have been a Utopian Day was to my connect HR/Recruiters friends, Caps fans, Tony Kornheiser’s littles, the NPR Summer Class of 2005, and my friends and family all meet and network, although that might take 5-10 years for the right event .  That night made me think that 2010 will have a Mr. Tracy Experience* and hopefully this leads to bigger and better things.  I guess the stars and planets align on January 27, 2010 for mine and hopefully yours as well.

Oh, and Obama did his State of the Union Speech thingy.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Photos courtesy of Clearedjobs.Net

Below: Picture of me with the Capstronaut

*definition: I get pampered with love with all expenses paid trips and lodging to go to events outside of DC.  I will pay for my food and drinks

#ConnectHR in DC

Tomorrow,

After one and half years of following them on Twitter and been stuck in DC (area) all those times, some of the HR Twitter Stars are coming to DC for a networking event of epic proportions (sort of).  SmartBrief, SHRM, and Recruitingblogs.com are sponsoring the networking event and I can’t wait to finally see most of the Tweeters for the first time face to face to see who’s actually taller than Mike Lupica, albeit for only an hour (people coming on Wednesday will realize why I have to leave early).

I hope you come by from car, plane, ferry, horse (but not a Segway)  to #ConnectHR in DC and rest assured, without a shadow of a doubt that Washington, DC, the area with 5 area codes is the Best HR City (thank goodness its not trademark yet for the other city , although San Francisco is dominating the charts for HR cities)

Event link: http://hrconnectdc.eventbrite.com/

If I Was Running A Company…Pop Culture HR Award #8

For the next recipient, this person resembles what HR should do in the first half of 2010…The Candidate Pipeline.  Although the person has recently passed away, the person has left a legacy for future co-workers the person helped shaped.  I give to you the eight recipient of the Pop Culture HR Award:

GEORGE MICHAEL

Let me say first that I have met George Michael in person.  If you watch the George Michael Sports Machine and seen the local news casts in DC, you know he is loud and brass.  That is what you get when you meet him off camera.  Also, you also get a perfectionist whose tone is only for the faint of heart.

The last part makes what George Michael a broadcasting legend.  Yes, George wanted to be notice, but he wanted to maximize your potential and bring out the best out of you.  George realize he couldn’t outwit Glenn Brenner, who was the sports anchor for Channel 9 in DC until he passed away in 1991, so he asked NBC to get satellites to get footage from other areas no other local area newscast showed.  This leads to the groundbreaking George Michael Sports Machine, which was a first of its kind to show highlights from all over the U.S.  Although the set look cheesy and the highlights zoomed to see the Sports Machine logo, the show (and himself) help influence a generation in broadcasting.

For The Sports Machine, it indirectly made ESPN to what it is today.  George was a very eclectic guy and loves the main sports like football, baseball, and basketball.  However, with the Sports Machine, he made niche sports like hockey, NASCAR, Pro Wrestling, and rodeo into the sports fans’ conscience.  ESPN took that model to buy up the coverages of leagues to show it on their networks.  The Sports Machine helped made ESPN, but on the flip side, it started its downfall.

For George Michael, he had a keen eye for talent.  George wanted people to have personality and say anything on their mind, including telling him he was a homer.  With George’s unique vision of talent, he discovered a variety of people from Rick “Doc” Walker, Tony Kornheiser, Michael Wilbon, Lindsay Czarniak, John Riggins, David DuPree, David Aldridge, and Sonny Jurgensen (albeit he started on Channel 9).

Imagine a world without George Michael: there would be no ESPN (although it could be said George and Glenn spawned ESPN); no Tony Kornheiser Show; no Pardon the Interruption; no quick debates; no TV deals from hockey, pro wrestling, NASCAR, and PBR; and no best local newscast in the United States with the NBC4 crew of Jim Vance, Doreen Gentzler, and Bob Ryan.

Here’s what candidate pipelines do: setup an organization to continue success for an uncertain amount of time.  George Michael created a pipeline that is lasting a generation and still continuing.  If you see an anchor trying to make a witty comment or hear a panel yelling at your TV or the many highlights, think about who started it all…George.

If I Was Running A Company…Direction

My company has done consulting work for an international development organization for about 5 months.  I was there to help out on their staffing initially, but the HR department left halfway through my term, so I was doing HR and recruiting work.  After a couple of weeks of discussion of what the organization wants in HR, I posted a couple of HR positions for the organization.  I have gotten a lot of applicants for both positions and most of them qualify for the positions.  That’s great and all, but here is one problem I see on their resumes:  Where are they heading?

I met with multiple job seekers throughout the year.  I always ask job seekers what organizations or industries they want to work for.  Almost everyone I asked say, “I’m looking for a [name your division] [title] and they’re all the same across the board.”

I’ll say this once and put this somewhere:

NOT EVERY JOB IS THE SAME FOR ANY COMPANY!!!

If you expect an HR Director is open and meet the requirements, it will be easy to get an interview.  Not so fast, my friend.  Although you have great credentials, why did you apply for this position where on your resumé, you have no experience or expertise in the industry?  If I do not see an answer, the resumé is moving to the archives.

There are many ways for applicants getting through past the recruiter and to the next round:

• The resume is consistent of what industry and/or job you want to get.  If your working career has been in one or two sectors, keep applying to those positions within the industry.
• Versatility towards your working career.  Although you worked at different jobs, maybe those different paths could lead to a position that you want.
• If you know someone in the organization and really like (not just like) the workplace. It is good to have inside information.
• Keywords to stand out to the recruiter.
• An example of your passion/interest (blog, vlogs, pictures, etc.) and link it to your resumé.  If you love turkeys, show us why you love turkeys.  I see Butterball is looking for turkeyheads.

The point here is don’t apply to any job that matches your qualifications;  have a strategy, make up your top ten list of organizations/industries you want to work for, do the company and people research, and follow through.  Do not give a generic resume, give a recruiter a purpose to move you to the hiring manager pile.  From there…be prepared and good luck.

Of note:  For FTC purposes, I have no affiliation of Butterball and I am not getting special treatment from them, although if they do, I hope they make me a salsalito turkey.  Those are delicious.

If I Was Running A Company…Cover Letters

There is debate if it is necessary to have cover letters.  Here’s the breakdown:

• Recruiters look for information of your background.
• Hiring Managers look for style and substance.

Is it important to have a cover letter?  Yes, but the cover letter starts in the second round when the Hiring Manager receives it from HR/Recruiting department.  So when writing a cover letter, focus on the hiring manager, not the recruiter (unless the hiring manager is the recruiter).

2009 Personal Assessment

If 2008 was the “fall from grace” year, 2009 is the bridge to end the miserable moments, but having hope for the next decade.  That’s how I feel about 2009.

Professionally for 2009, think of it as it parallels to the current job market.  In the first half of the year, there was little to no business on my end.  The market was still in shambles and people were still seeking for their next job.  The second half of the year started to kick in a bit as I was called by one organization to help on their staffing, but later on, help in their HR department (since everyone in that HR department left).  Overall in the business end, everything is starting to be in place and hopefully, those are signs of jobs coming in the next year in the nonprofit, associations, and small businesses.  Although my family is not happy I’m not making a “fortune” or getting a job, I feel comfortable where my business is going and where I am at right now.

Personally, the words that describe 2009 to me: making connections.  Since nearly everyone had a bad year, it was important everyone to have a strong network.  Luckily, social networking made it’s move and now anyone knows one another (or close to it).  If it wasn’t for Twitter, I would have not met almost 2,000 of you and 1/3 face-to-face.  I have met a variety of people from HR/Recruiters, nonprofiteers, the social media littles, Caps fans, and many others.  I hope to continue that relationship for many years to come.

Which leads to 2010.  You got your basics: losing weight (I’ll make an announcement again on Lent) and growing a beard (although it looks like a goatee.  I’ll have to wait when I’m 30 to grow a beard).  There are a few things I am hoping to anticipate for:

1. Go to Southern California at the end of June for a doubleheader: NHL Entry Draft and the Annual SHRM Conference.  Signed up for media credentials for SHRM and I hope it gets approved.  The only place I traveled this year: Fredericksburg, VA for my brother’s wedding.
2. Another reason to attend the SHRM Conference: it will be 5 years since my first SHRM Conference.  Back then, it only cost me $200.  Sadly, I have to pay $1,100 if I want to attend (hence, the media credentials application)
3. Another 5-year anniversary: the NPR Summer Interns of 2005.  You will be hearing stories from about this group.
4. More business
5. Meeting people on Twitter, who I have not met face-to-face and hopefully travel (That is very unlikely, but worth a shot if I have resources).
6. The Winter Olympics and the World Cup
7. (Not anticipating) My college card expires in August. So, no more free trips on the CUE Bus in Fairfax
8. Finally…I’m going to be a first-time Uncle.

See You On The Flip Side.

2010 Predictions

Now the time of year where I look like a doofus and make some bold predictions. Just look at my predictions last year (although one was affected by Yanni, which no one saw it coming).  So, let me get my psychic gear:

And here we go:

• Republicans will recapture the House and gain a 4 seats in the Senate on Election Day
• Obama’s Approval Rating will still hover 50% and probably will be in the next 2 years
• The jobs market will improve since 2010 will be a rebound year.  2011 will be the most interesting year with government contracts ending.
• There will be more consultants/contractors because they want to do more than one thing, hence…
• Companies will start to talk about human billboards
• Verizon will have a huge year with their “rumored” iPhone 4G.
• If Facebook was 2007, YouTube in 2008, Twitter in 2009, 2010 has a few candidates. My top 3: Foursquare, Square, and Formspring.me
• Major gifts to nonprofits will stay the same in 2010 as people will start getting to the flow of things.
• More violence arises in Iran, but more and more, Iranians will switch to the green Revolution.
• Out: Personal Branding /5 minutes ago: Candidate Pipeline/ In: Execution
• Average Conference attendance will improve 3% from the previous year.
• The Washington Capitals will make the Stanley Cup Final…and be part of the 2011 Winter Classic against the New York Rangers at Yankee Stadium.
• The Washington Redskins and the Dallas Cowboys will have the two biggest payrolls in the NFL in 2010 since this is an uncapped year.  The Redskins will not go to the playoffs.
• The Nationals (or Natinals) will not lose 100 games.
• The Wizards…you know.
• Rupert Murdoch will attempt to buy the Washington Post since half the editors used to work with the Wall Street Journal.
• There will be more independent musicians in the market
• The new term of 2010: Urban Farming
• More people will declare themselves independents (although, in technicality, everyone is an independent)
• For the hell of it, The TV Show, Ed, will be released on DVD.
• The Winter Olympics will have higher ratings than american idol at times since it’s in Vancouver.
• Since the World Cup is in South Africa, Brazil will win the World Cup and USA will make it to the Round of 16.
• Tiger Woods will be athlete of the year after winning in majors in Pebble Beach and St. Andrews
• While social media usage is still going to grow, it will not overtake emails and texting.  That will take 3-5 years
• The new home/office accessory everyone will ask: the Tablet
• Finally…The Animal Revolution will still reign supreme in 2010 and there is no one can contain or stop it.

I hope these predictions hit the mark (or close to it). See you in 2010.

If I Was Running A Company…Pop Culture HR Award #7

For the next recipient of the Pop Culture HR Award and the last one to give out in 2009, I’m going to the HR Buzzword for the year: Branding.  Personal, Employee, Employer Branding has been the second hottest topic (behind social media) in HR.  In honor of that, I present to you the Seventh Pop Culture HR Award Winner:

MARIAH CAREY

Let me get this out of the way: She has a wonderful voice, but made made terrible decisions from Glitter to the marriage of Tommy Mottola.  Now, why I give her an HR award?  There are two main reasons:

Trends

Mariah was part of the music industry and one of a few who broke out.  She had the voice and image that people want to die for.  You hear in most of the 2000s that Mariah was crazy and has her breakdown.  Could it be the demand from her record company to do everything?  At that time, she was an employee for Virgin and the executives can do whatever they want to do for her.  Now with record labels fumbling to handle technology, Mariah took it to her own hands and is doing the dirty work for herself and it is paying dividends.  She admits she hates doing it, but it is the only way of survival in the music business, which leads me to…

Personal Branding

Mariah understands now that selling music doesn’t cut it.  You have to promote products you like and people would buy.  Mariah had her own line of clothes and makeup.  However, if fans want to “truly” know Mariah, they buy her most recent album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, but if you live in a selected market, not only you get the album, but an Elle Magazine dedicated to Mariah.  Not the cover story, not 10 pages of ads…A whole magazine including Mariah articles, ads supporting Mariah, and free samples by Mariah.  Also, the Elle deal cover the costs of making the album, so if they only sell one album, it makes the profit.  In addition, her PR are leaking press releases to bloggers and real fans to know where Mariah will be next.

You may or may not like her music, and Mariah was not the first person to have this approach, but is she is doing it the best and thus the 7th recipient of the Pop Culture HR Award.

The Roxette Holiday Story

This is a fan fiction of personally the most under-appreciated and best musical groups of all-time…in Sweden.

Per Gessle was signing for one of the top bands in Sweden, while Marie Fredriksson was a struggling singer in the Blonde Bar.  In the early 1980s, Per saw Marie’s talents and put her in her band as a backup vocalist for Gyllene Tider.  After a few attempts at stardom on their own in the mid 80s, the both decided that as a group, they will become a strong musical group. They would call themselves… Roxette.

Roxette had intermediate success with Pearls of Passion in Sweden, their first full-length album.  They were the group that succeeds ABBA as the new hot Swedish group and they were on their way.  In 1988, Roxette made their breakthrough album, Look Sharp!. All of Sweden got the album and made Roxette country heroes…but that was the start.  Dean Cushman, an American exchange student in Sweden, grab Sweden’s treasure and gave it to a Minneapolis radio station and told them to play Roxette over the airwaves.  When Roxette hit the airwaves, all of Minnesota were dancing, and then all of the United States was dancing to “The Look”.  Roxette became international stars.  Roxette traveled the world from 1988-1990 to play for their new fans outside of Sweden.  When Roxette came back home, they saw something unexpected: despair.

In the early 90s, Sweden was in the middle of an country-wide financial crash and there was little to no hope. Roxette release Joyride to uplift the Swedes, but it had modest success in Sweden because of the economy and did not carry internationally with the rise of rap, grunge, and alternative music.  Roxette was losing their voice and would be overthrown.

Roxette’s fellow Swedish musicians, Ace of Base, debut in 1993 with a rousing start and what you expect.  Roxette were on the downswing, while Ace of Base were the rising stars.  Roxette decided they wanted to create an album for Sweden.

In 1994, Roxette went back to the studio and released Crash! Boom! Bang! The album correspond to the end of the Sweden financial crisis and a start of new hope in Sweden.  At first, sales were slow because people still view Roxette as over the top, but when they heard the music and message, people drove to the stores to buy the album.  Crash! Boom! Bang! signified two things: Roxette return as Swedish heroes and sparked the beginning of Sweden’s financial recovery.  It was the last time they reach platinum status.

After Crash! Boom! Bang!, Roxette made many compilation albums and side projects.  In 2002,  Marie Fredriksson was diagnosed with a brain tumor.  The Swedish media were so in the story, that someone put a rumor that Marie had a second tumor.  The doctors held a press conference stating that Marie didn’t have a second tumor.  A few months later, Marie was tumor free, and sue the Express.  Roxette were still popular, but were heading to paparazzi puppets, so the group took a long break.

In 2006, Per and Marie reunited for the 20th Anniversary of their first album, Pearls of Passion.  It was another collection of their greatest hits setup by their record company, but it had one new song, “One Wish”.  The song was not as popular, but that one song had a feeling that Per and Marie really missed each other.  For months, Per and Marie discuss and chat about a comeback album and other things.

In 2008, the global economic crisis hit and talks of a Roxette reuniting started to heat up.  In April 2009, Per had a conversation with the BBC stating Roxette would be coming back if Marie wants to be in.  In May 6th, 2009, Per was on his Night of the Proms tour and played solo.  After several songs, Per said on stage (translated in English), “Ladies and Gentleman, for this next song, let me introduce a friend I met and want her to come on stage.”  It was Marie.  The duo played a few songs and everyone took notice…Roxette is back.

Currently, Roxette is in studio for their comeback album with Marie having losing her sight a bit from the brain tumor several years ago and the world has change with mp3s, social media, and a diverse music talent pool battling for audiences.  However, the world called on Roxette because the economy is tanking.  Roxette had this challenge in 1994 with their own country’s crisis.  When Roxette came back in the Summer of 2009, the economy is starting to recover worldwide.  Everyone is thankful Roxette reunited and Per and Marie are thankful to have been together to help the economy.  The second Joyride has begun.

Trevlig Helg Roxette!

If I Was Running A Company…Greetings

When I go to an event, I always do the proper thing and shake the person’s hands.  I’ve done it since I was born and it is in the general business handbook.  However, it seems passe that I’m doing the handshake now, but can’t resist.  According to the HR Bartender, the fist bump is the new business greeting and I’m at a young age that I’m not hip anymore.  The Obamas do it, HR is doing it, even doctors recommend do the fist bump to prevent spreading the flu and I’m a dope of not doing the fist bump.

The reason I bring this up is because people have their own opinion on how to greet.  There are people who are accepting to greet, some are cautious, and there are people who thinks a certain type of greeting symbolizes surrendering.  Personally, I don’t care how you greet others;  just be respectful, courteous and don’t make people sick, although I need to get in a habit of doing the fist bump or an occasional hug.

However, for a few who want to say hello to me, I prefer this greeting: