Get Ready!

This week, the San Diego SHRM 2012 Board had its first meeting and we are off to a great start for the new year.  The Board is engaged, committed, curious, and eager to excel.  We promise to Rock the World of Work!

One of the great things about being a SD SHRM Board member is the ability to gain experience in, and exposure to, various organizational functions and skills.  Several years ago, when I applied to be on the Board (and was finally selected); I was offered a position what was not one of the ones I had applied for (VP, Treasurer).  I had received “A”s in Finance and Accounting courses in both undergraduate as well as in business school; I just didn’t want to train my mind to think differently.  After receiving the offer to serve, I asked for some time to think it through and spoke with the CFO at the Airport Authority about the opportunity being presented to me.  He told me that he oftentimes seeks out opportunities on volunteer Boards to stretch himself outside of his day to day proficiency so he seeks Board assignments such as personnel, governance, etc.  So, based on his sage advice, I decided to give it a try.

Now, years later, here I am participating in SD SHRM Finance Committee meetings, setting pricing strategy, developing financial models and linking these activities to the organization’s strategy.  What an incredible experience.  As I reflect upon the past Board meetings, and the one that is scheduled tomorrow where the Board will be developing our framework for achieving and maintaining high performance as a work group, I can’t help but be reminded of the incredible value that SHRM provides to me as a human resource professional.  Being a member of the largest human resource professional community in the world affords me opportunity.   I am privileged to be able to benefit from the wealth of information available on the SHRM website, but I also gain expertise and experience through my involvement at the local chapter level.

For 2012, the Board will ensure that we execute our strategy through delivering excellence to our members through consistent, relevant, value add programs and experiences.  We will have some hiccups as many of the activities we are planning are entirely new for 2012, so please bear with us as we learn and grow.  In the end we want to put a great big ding in San Diego’s HR community.  And, we can’t do it alone.  We will welcome your involvement and engagement as members of one of our various committees:  programs; education; communication; membership; workforce readiness; conference; or finance.  Send us an email at sdshrm@sdshrm.org to tell us of your interest. 

As we will learn from Colleen Barrett’s presentation on February 29^th, one of the foundational causes of Southwest Airline’s over 40 years of business success is their “warrior spirit”.  This is how Southwest describes their culture.   For 2012, SD SHRM’s culture will be Rocking the World of Work.  Get ready.  Your 2012 SD SHRM Board Rock Stars have already shown me that they’re ready….