Showing Up

Being In-Person Is… Good?

This week is the largest annual gathering of HR and work leaders in the world — SHRM Annual. It felt like almost everyone was there — except Jason Sudeikis (you can get all the hot gossip from Laurie Ruettimann right here if you missed it).

I’ve been to enough events for multiple lifetimes, and when you go to that many, you start hearing the same things, seeing the same people, and replaying the same beats of a conference day, week after week, year after year. 

One year, I saw Billy Beane of Moneyball and Oakland A’s fame three times in three months. Whoever coached him on speaking did an amazing job in helping him tell a consistent story, so much so that by the third time, I was jumping the punchline of his jokes. 

My cynical Gen X heart stuck in the body of a Millennial was just over it. Then the pandemic hit, and I thought, “Well, maybe this will change things?” And it did, at least for a while.  

But after many years away, I was slated to attend SHRM this year to meet with a couple of clients and attend Jennifer McClure 's BFF Party, but life got in the way. Usually, I’d be good with that, but this time, I got serious FOMO. 

Was I getting older and more sentimental? Was I just a little bored at home? 

Actually, I think I missed the actual experience of seeing people. It exhausts my little introvert brain but it is also irreplaceable. I swung the pendulum too far away from connecting in person, and it sucked to miss it. I'll try not to make that mistake again.

I used to laugh at folks who got way too excited about SHRM , especially the ones who lined up early to see dated entertainers, signed up for boring parties sponsored by tech vendors, and acted like they didn’t want to be asleep at those early 7 a.m. sessions. 

But I get it. Maybe not the waking up and being social so early parts but definitely the sense of connection I get from being around people I don’t see often enough who fill my bucket with words of wisdom, encouragement, and maybe a rye old fashioned or two. 

Quick hits from around the web

What else is happening?

Research: Using AI at Work Makes Us Lonelier and Less Healthy, by David De Cremer and Joel Koopman for Harvard Business Review . Human considerations as we think about how we deploy AI in our organizations. 

Most Workers Have a Workplace Retirement Savings Plan, but Is It Enough?, by Steve Randall for InvestmentNews . No surprise but there is a lot of ground to make up here.

How a Focus on Productivity May Limit HR Tech’s True Business Value, by Jill Barth HR Tech Editor for HR Executive . So much emphasis on productivity while missing a bigger picture.

HR Is Often Left Out of AI Plans, Despite the Need for Upskilling and Inclusion, by Carolyn Crist for HR Dive . A real missed opportunity for organizations. 

5 Mindsets Students Need in Order to Thrive in the Future of Work, by Dan Porterfield for Fast Company . Maybe degrees aren’t dead?

How Summer Fridays Are Changing Hybrid Work, by Jeanne Sahadi for CNN . Just extend summer Fridays to every Friday and you have our solution.

UTA Report Explores Artificial Intelligence’s Role in Enhancing Creativity, by Liza Foreman for TheWrap . Regulation remains a big concern, though.

AI Is Turning Workers Into Cyborgs, Centaurs, and Meat Puppets, by Nell Watson for Fast Company . I mean, a couple of those sound pretty cool.

HR Snacks: The Hidden Job Market

Professional communities have always been great channels to network, learn, and share ideas with peers in your profession or niche industry. But they can also serve as key talent pools for recruiters and organizations to source from efficiently. In this episode, you’ll learn how these communities are fueling the hidden job market from Summer Delaney, MBA , the founder and CEO at CollabWORK. 

That's it for this week! 

Lance

[Shameless Plug]

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