My First State Conference Prezi

As I  publish this post, I noticed how long it has been since I wrote anything on here and all the blame is on my crazy schedule since the conference season started and the semester began. My last post was about ILSHRM in August.  Since then I have attended three additional state conferences and the SHRM Thought Leaders Retreat and SHRM Strategy conference. So while this post is about KSSHRM, I am also grateful to WISHRM and MNSHRM as well! 

So my first ever State Conference presentation was indeed at KSSHM...Whoo Hoo! I am humbled and ecstatic to have had the gracious privilege of presenting in front of my peers at the Kansas State SHRM conference recently at the Overland Park Convention Center in Kansas City, KS.  Although, my trip was quick and we ran out of time to cover everything planned, I am confident that I made a difference for some who may have either been reassured of their own process or had little to no experience with the topic. The proof was in the probing questions during the program and the line to speak to attendees after the program. My goal was met which was to make a difference. 

Having been a conference attendee for years, I know if you stink, people won't hesitate to walk out because they do have choices. One of the choices they had was the morning keynote, Jeff Tobe.  I don't recall his topic but he was doing a concurrent session in the room beside me as was a few other speakers.  So you can bet I breathed a sigh of relief when I had over a handful in the room.  If i had to guess, I'd say around 50 or so.  Yes!  

The topic was workplace investigations and having worked both in corporations with internal counsel available and as a HR department of one with little to no budget, I shared everything I have learned.  If I can help others cut costs and get the kudos from attorneys for a job well done, that is all the reward I need.  Although, the chocolate covered sunflower seeds in the "Kansas Speaker Goody Bag" came in handy on the drive home. Yum!

The focus was on being well prepared for attorney if they do need to get involved or doing the entire investigation on your own in case you don't have the budget to hire outside counsel. Of course, at some point if the situation gets ugly and you end up going to court you will not have a choice but to involve an attorney. In that case it certainly pays to be thorough. 

In addition to sharing horror stories while explaining the content of the presentation, I also walked through an actual example of the final report.  The components if a well written report included sections titled: a) synopsis of allegation; b) documents reviewed; c) list of interviewees; d) summary of findings; d) determination & conclusion. The most important points made where:

1 Respond Immediately

2 Document 

3 Be Objective

4 Communicate

5 File Separate

 Thanks #KSSHRM for the opportunity to take years of training, education, and chapter speaking experiences to the next level!

As an addendum, I also want to thank WISHRM for selecting me to speak on Hiring & Developing Top Employees & MNSHRM for selecting me to speak on Conducting Compensation Studies. I know on elf the rooms had well over a 100 attendees. Thankful!