Welcome to this week’s Discuss HR, the HR blog written for and by members of Human Resources UK.
Well that was the long weekend that was and what a brilliant example of how us Brits can make the most of any situation. The site of the drenched choir serenading the Queen and crowds in the Jubilee flotilla was a joy to behold and was echoed throughout the country with soaked street party-goers determined to have a good time. Regular readers will know how I like my (very) tenuous links and these gatherings show how much we gain from meeting people. Putting that into a work sense today I explore why HR needs to get out and meet more people. (Ed Scrivener)
HR, get out and network!
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| Maybe 3am was too early to start this event? |
I shall start with a slight apology. Regular readers will know these blog posts are non-promotional, but there will be an air of promotion to this! Before you run for the hills I am not promoting how great my services are, but rather promoting this group – so apologies for breaking my own rules, but it is in a good cause!
Last month we held our latest round of networking events which were bigger and better than before, 7 in total held across the UK. The reason I instigated these events were on the back of a survey I sent to group members a year ago. A number of people commented that they wished to take their online networking into the real world and actually meet their connections! Since the inception the events have been attended by more and more people, which is fantastic but what I would like to look at today is the need for HR to network more, in fact a whole lot more! (I will add this is not a veiled attempt to grow numbers to the events!)
First and foremost, why do we network? Whilst there are some truly selfless people out there, I’d suggest 99.99% of us network to get something in return. This doesn’t need to be as cold and calculated as winning new business or finding a job, it could be simply as honest as wanting to expand your knowledge or even just talking to peers (a trait particularly important to self-employed consultants I may add!). Clearly one of the most important factors is choosing the right networking avenue – if you attend spam sales sponsored by spamalot then clearly you’re going to be bombarded! – but it you do some research you should quite easily find numerous events that are just there to let you network. Whilst everyone will be there to get something out of the event, they won’t be there to thrust business cards down your throat.
So why is this not only beneficial, but essential for HR professionals to be at these events?
I’ll use the recent HRUKLI events as an example. I am aware that some attendees have found new employees via these events. I may be an evil recruitment consultant wanting to charge extortionate fees, but even I can see the benefit of recruiting via referrals as the cost is a big fat £0! Looking on a less tangible sense but networking can also do wonders for the employer branding of a business. You not only represent yourself at these events but your business too; you can wax lyrical about what your business does and without doubt you’ll raise a few admiring eyebrows. A further example would be expanding your knowledge. Meeting with your peers you are undoubtedly going to meet those who specialise in areas different to yourself. Rather than paying for support, a simple chat in this environment may provide the solution you needed. In the recent HRUKLI events we had a number of themes which did just so, such as an employment law clinic and a discussion on the recent pension changes.
All of the above are rather obvious reasons for networking, but only touch upon the 2 elements of networking I feel are essential. Firstly, the above examples are all about attending HR events which is fine, but I’d be very interested to find out how many HR professionals have attended general business networking events? I’d strongly suspect very few. We all know and often have to go out of our way to state that HR is a valid and valued business function, if so why is HR not participating in these kind of events? Networking amongst entrepreneurs and senior managers of other businesses will without doubt expand a person’s knowledge. You may also be in a position to change people’s opinion of HR in a commercial sense, which is no bad thing! A criticism often levelled at HR is that it is often a blinkered profession, whether this is a valid argument or not mingling with other professions will give you a certain insight.
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| Trying to catch all the business cards proved tough... |
Before moving on to the next point I will say that of all the types of networking events the general business events are the ones to be most cautious about! Please research the right type to attend otherwise you’ll find yourself at 7.00am drinking a liquid apparently called “Tea” whilst being cornered by a desperate sales person!
Over 98% of the traffic that views this blog site is referred via a social media site. No surprise when you consider I market it mainly on LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+ and Facebook. As a result, the very nature you are reading this means to an extent I will be preaching to the converted. Nevertheless I feel HR needs to do far, far more social networking. As I have often written about HR and social media I won’t bore you by regurgitating the same information, but I will cover the salient points. Essentially social media is a fantastic medium for employee engagement, talent management, employer branding and comms to name but a few. However, too many HR divisions are focused on policing social media than utilising it. So stop being stuffy and start engaging! I find it very interesting discussing, or just eavesdropping, with my Twitter buddies as numerous have commented that in the last 12 months the best new contacts they have made have been via Twitter (other mediums are available, but they’re probably not as good!). I would strongly agree with these sentiments. You can find some truly inspiring and knowledgeable people on Twitter (you can also find me, so maybe it’s not that good...) and you can use it to bring together numerous areas of interest in one fell swoop. The beauty of this is that you’ll soon find out how many of your peers share your hobby, or vice versa, which will undoubtedly strengthen your relationship. If you’re thinking of joining Twitter or want to expand your HR networking I would strongly recommend you look up the #connectingHR tag. This is an incredibly interesting and engaging HR community who you’ll find most welcoming.
Have I made a convincing argument to make you network more? Maybe, maybe not, but as I have found time and time again the proof is in the pudding. Try networking a bit more than you currently do and I am extremely confident you will start seeing tangible benefits. So come on HR, get out and network!
HR networking events to consider (all have come recommended):
- HRUKLI – surely I have to put this at the top of the list, as it’s the events of our group!
- ConnectingHR – they have various events and tweet-ups and reach areas even we don’t get to, namely Dublin!
- Reconverse – they discuss the future of talent management
General business events:
- The likes of Business for breakfast and 4 Networking can be good, but the quality does vary from region to region.
- Check with your local Chambers of Commerce as I have found the best events are specific to an area and you should find a list of events there.
About the author
Ed is an HR recruitment specialist and social media trainer. He holds over 8 years industry specific experience recruiting mainly for middle and senior HR management positions. He stumbled upon social media a few years ago and has since become passionate about the subject. He now trains companies and individuals alike in social media techniques. He is the Group Manager of Human Resources UK and Editor of Discuss HR and occasionally his humour will creep into articles!
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Discuss HR is the blog for Human Resources UK, the leading LinkedIn group for those involved with HR in the UK. Next week’s Discuss HR will be published on Thursday 14th June and we welcome our latest guest writer, experienced blogger Ellen Selby.
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