ILSHRM CIC-SHRM Legislative Conference

So having attended Capitol Hill day several times in Washington DC, I thought that our ILSHRM efforts for this year were a bust. We had more people than ever go to the Illinois Statehouse and the count was 24.  But then I thought about that for a moment and thought things need to be proportional.    The last time I went to Capitol Hill there were 400+ members who went - impressive! We sent 24 to our statehouse.   Wait though let’s do the math.  On the last trip to Capitol Hill 400 of the 280,000 members attended or 0.0014 % the membership.   Now looking at our Illinois delegation, 24 of the 12,300 members attended or 0.0019% of our state membership; BAM #ILSHMR wins!

While I have not attended all of the Legislative Conferences, I have made a number of them. I still enjoy being around a bunch of like minded #HR pros, it just gets me stoked.  Yesterday’s version was no different.    We heard from Jonathan Segal, who is an accomplished – often quoted labor lawyer. He shared his brand of HR Law which often brought levity to the whole matter.

This was followed up by ILSHRM Lobbyist Jay Dee Shadduck.  Jay brought us three state agency directors, a state senator and one state representative. These folks all had interesting prospective on what was going on in state government and why we should care, and /or feel good about it.  Some of them did a better job articulating this point than others. I will leave the final decision as to who was who, to the others that attended.

After lunch we heard from Kelly Hastings, a member of the SHRM Legislative Affairs team.  And while Kelly touched on a number of subjects that had already been kicked around, she provided some hard facts and legislative insight that could only come from a true insider.   We thank Kelly for an early out in DC and a late night back in.  (The new rules on exempt employees will be here very soon!)

Then it was off to the Illinois Statehouse.  While the Senate was not in session when we arrived, they were doing committee hearings, the House was in session.  The consensus was it is easy to see why we don’t have a budget.  What we saw from our brief visit there was organized confusion at best.  There was no real debate going on and only a vote or two took place.  There were a lot of people in the Capitol but I am not sure what they were all doing.  Although from my vantage point I so no one talking or worrying about a budget.  Hmm, I guess government just works different that private sector business.

Tomorrow is Day two of the conference; we will see what that holds for us.  See you there!

-          

     Dave Ryan – ISC SHRM Director Elect

ILSHRM Capitol Visit 2013… a Great Success

Today's post is from Brian Spencer. He is our intern this semester at ILSHRM as well as RogersHR Consulting.  He will be graduating this May from UIS with a degree in Management and focused on beginning a new career in HR.  He has been a tremendous asset to us in promoting the Advocacy Program here in the state and help coordinate projects for the upcoming Legislative Conference this April.  Connect with him on Linkedin

We had a fantastic group of HR folks travel down to the State Capitol Building this year!  This is the fourth year that we have had our spring conference and capitol visit and the first year that it has rained so I guess we should count our blessings.  Everyone took the weather in stride.  Some car pooled over the few blocks and some of us walked with umbrellas as the rain started to lighten up; falling gently but steadily down rather than sideways.  We met in the rotunda for a few group pictures before descending on our individual local official’s offices.  Many of us even used the tunnel, connecting the Capitol building to the Stratton building next door, for the very first time!

Those who visited the Illinois Statehouse as part of the Legislative Conference

We had our plan of attack ready before we left the conference.  For those of us who knew our official’s names we looked up their office numbers for those that did not we were able to look up our district and get the information we needed.  Then we had a quick debriefing on how to get around the facilities and to best introduce ourselves.  Then we set out wielding our fact sheets and business cards in hopes of meeting with our elected officials.  (Appointments are rather difficult to get more than a few days in advance when the legislators are in session here in Springfield.  Their schedules are much more flexible while at the local offices, but then you don’t have the opportunity to see the legal process in action!)  For some, it was our first time to see the state legislature in session, since our fourth-grade field trip to the Capitol - or ever.  Others were able to help direct traffic because of their familiarity with the facility.  It was fascinating to sit in the gallery and observe the bills being debated and voted upon.  I can’t promise that every bill is exciting as the scenes in the recent movie Lincoln, but it is a tremendous learning experience nonetheless. 

I loved hearing so many great stories coming from those that participated in the experience.  It is great to have so many of us to share in the excitement of the day together.  Overwhelmingly, the experiences were quite positive in dealings with the staff as well as some who were able to meet with their legislators that day!  We hope to be sharing some of those success stories in the weeks ahead.  I expect that several of us will have the opportunity to continue these new relationships in the local offices in the months ahead.  As those relationships begin to flourish, we will have more capacity to help educate our legislators in the world of HR and offer our unique perspectives into how potential legislation can impact our businesses and our workforce.  My hope is that by this time next year we will have even more of us to help lead the way for the others who are joining the wave of Advocacy for the first time.  If you have an interest in getting involved

with your local legislators click here and we will get some basic information to you to help equip you to make an impact where you live and work.

What Is an Advocate and Is It For Me?

Today's post is from Brian Spencer. He is our intern this semester at ILSHRM as well as Rogers HR Consulting.  He will be graduating this May from UIS with a degree in Management and focused on beginning a new career in HR.  He has been a tremendous asset to us in promoting the Advocacy Program here in the state and help coordinate projects for the upcoming Legislative Conference this April.  Connect with him on Linkedin

Many of you have heard about ILSHRM seeking to build an Advocacy Team throughout the state.  Some of us have new representatives that were just sworn into office this past month, so it is a great time to start planning to introduce ourselves and the value that we can bring to them as professionals who represent both, our companies and our employees, rather than a party affiliation.  As I have been talking to people about advocacy I have noticed some of the first questions that come to mind are: 

“How much time is involved?”

“What am I supposed to say to my elected official when I talk to them?”

“What exactly is an advocate anyway?” 

Well, I will start with the last question first.  An Advocate is simply someone willing to establish and maintain a relationship with their local elected official and set themselves up as a support person in the area of HR.  Additionally, as our legislative team sees bills coming that require attention, information will be passed to you to help educate your elected official on how it could impact our field and our people. 

            This takes us right into the next question.  I have heard that it can be intimidating to call or speak in person to our elected officials.  In fact, I was rather intimidated the first time I spoke to one of my legislators in his office, but it has been refreshing to find that they truly want to hear from us. We are their constituents first and foremost; in addition, we represent our companies and our employees.  Often times the conversations start with a simple introduction of ourselves and our profession, and then offering ourselves as a resource for them in the future.  One of the best things we can do is to simply be nice.  We are simply a resource for them in an area where many do not have as much expertise as they would like.

            And now, for the question about time; the next “most valuable commodity of our day” according to some.  To say that many people are overcommitted today would be an understatement.  This is a project that I can comfortably say does not take an exceptional amount of time.  In fact you may likely only get to speak with your official for 15-20 minutes at a time to begin with.  If you will maintain this extension of service about once or twice a quarter the result may surprise you.  The ultimate goal is for us to get to a place that by time the Legislative Conference comes next year we can go to the capital and they will hear our name and come out to say, “Hey Brian, how are you?  What can I do for you?”  Then you will know your time has been well spent!

            As a follow up point…  Don’t forget to say “Thank you.”  We all know what it is like to be worn down by criticism.  For people in office this can be a daily grind that becomes wearisome.  Besides the fact that it is nice to be appreciated, it lets them know you are watching! 

            If this sounds like something that could be exciting for you, or if you would simply like some more information please click here and give us some basic information so that we can follow up and help equip you to be an Advocate!

(Special thanks to Terry Steczo who helped to coach me through each of these points.)