BLOW OUT THE STATUS QUO

I have been in Human Resources for just about 10 years, in a variety of positions.  One thing that I have come to learn from some of my mentors is "What got you here, won't keep you here".  So what does that actually mean?  It means that we can not continue to do the same thing over and over and expect a different result (I believe this is actually the definition of insanity).  Whether we are recruiting, managing talent, handing employee relations issues, facilitating classes, etc.. we have to continuously improve our knowledge as Human Resources Professionals. 

The explosion of social media has drastically affected how we handle every aspect of Human Resources.  It affects recruitment, employment branding, confidentiality, employee relations, just about everything we are involved in.  Human Resources Professionals can not ignore this phenomenon any more.  Recently, I have had the opportunity to interact with many other HR professionals at various stages in their career, and it absolutely astounds me that they have yet to embrace the Web 2.0 technologies and understand how to effectively use them.

• Facebook
• Twitter
• LinkedIn
• Blogs
• Instant Messaging (Google Talk, Yahoo, etc..)

All of these are tools that, if used, correctly can significantly increase the speed and efficiency our our daily interactions with colleagues, potential employees, current employees and other professionals that we can learn from.  So please, if you are in Human Resources, or pretty much any field, GET ON THE BUS and learn how to utilize these tools to help you affect change. :)  I am happy to answer any questions, or provide ideas if you aren't quite sure where to start.  I will now step down off of my soap box. :)