Change is constantly around us. In our daily lives, we experience change in almost every aspect. In order to adapt to the changes around us we learn. Adults are constantly learning and adapting. In HR, we must adapt to changes in business needs and priorities and to changes in resources and functions. We must also be prepared to learn new technologies and new business tools that will enable us to meet the changing demands of our organizations and the people they employ. So how do we keep in front of changes and stay alert to where our profession is headed?
We learn. How do you keep up to date? My suggestion is simple: Get out of Your Office.
Get connected to other HR pros. I just attend my first ever HRevolution. If you haven’t heard of it, do some self-directed learning and find out about it. The cool thing about it is that I was able to mingle with HR Pros that want to challenge themselves and others to do better constantly. I was challenged and in one day, I picked up enough ideas to go back and make changes that don’t cost a thing to my organization. (I will be hacking a little this week).
Read. Read. Read. Set the Google reader. Connect to cool folks on twitter, LinkedIn, Face book, Google Plus. Read what the bloggers write in HR and other business related topics. Don’t limit yourself to HR. HR is business. Learn about the rest of it and how you can apply it to what you do.
Volunteer in areas of HR that you aren’t able to do in your current role. You can’t learn by doing the same thing over and over. Stretch yourself.
Teach. The greatest way to learn is to teach others.
Mentor. Again, the greatest way to learn is to teach others.
Network. Network. Network. Find smart people who think differently than you. Build relationships with them and get challenged.
Volunteer for a project team in your organization outside of HR. What a great way to learn the business needs of your customer (internal and external).
Build Relationships with others. You are in HR. Do you remember what HR is about? Get out of your office.
Get out of your office and talk to others inside your organization. Don’t just talk about HR. Talk about the business. Enough Said.
Adults learn through experience. Adults learn through critical reflection. Adults need control in their learning.
Take control of your learning and get out of your office.
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For more resources, See the Human Resources library.
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Sheri Mazurek is a training and human resource professional with over 16 years of management experience, and is skilled in all areas of employee management and human resource functions, with a specialty in learning and development. She is available to help you with your Human Resources and Training needs on a contract basis. For more information send an email to smazurek0615@gmail.com or visit www.sherimazurek.com. Follow me on twitter @Sherimaz.