President's Column - September 2010

Begin Here

Let's Start at the Very Beginning…

I've been waiting for this moment for a while. Fifteen years, to be exact.

Thank you for allowing me the honor and privilege to serve as your next President of HR/NY. It's taken a journey to get here, and it's been an exciting one all the way. I joined HR/NY in 1995 during the first year of my MBA studies at Pace University. My first HR professor, Dr. James Hall, told me that to be successful I needed to join both SHRM and HR/NY, and I couldn't get the membership paperwork in fast enough. After a year of volunteering at the monthly luncheon registration table, a cost effective way for students to network and learn about HR, I became a passive HR/NY member. An occasional lunch here, a Comp SIG meeting there. My full-time job took priority.

In 2003, then-President Barry Manus said I should get more involved, connected me with the Career Planning and Professional Development Committee, and reignited my passion for HR/NY. Since then, I've held a variety of Board-level roles, and volunteered for more assignments than one person probably should. Newsletter contributor. Special projects leader. Public Relations Committee Chair. Career Planning and Professional Development Committee Panel Moderator. Holiday Party Chair. Certification Committee Co-chair. Assistant Secretary. Assistant Treasurer. Director. Vice President, Finance and Treasurer. President-Elect. Along the way, I've had the opportunity to learn from a variety of talented individuals, including but not limited to Bob Nadel, Jack Shein, Al Smith, John Sturges, Leslie Willmott, Lorri Zelman, and our Immediate Past President Jeanne Stewart. Many thanks to all of you for your time, sharing, and patience with me as I learned HR/NY's ropes.

Why do I volunteer with HR/NY? The networking and professional development opportunities are fantastic. I gain exposure to professional situations outside of my "day job." I've made friendships that will last a lifetime.

In order to be successful, a leader must have the trust and support of the individuals he or she leads. Through Begin Here, you'll learn more about me and the new initiatives we're implementing at HR/NY to benefit you. You'll also gain exclusive access to insider information from national SHRM. To start building that trust, this month I'll answer some frequently asked questions so that you can get to know me better.

I'm not a native New Yorker. I grew up in Denville, NJ, which is the "Hub of Morris County." I moved to New York for graduate school and fell in love with the city. Manhattan's been my home ever since, even though I enjoy trips to Brooklyn to dine with friends.

I'm a Yankees fan, and equally enjoy visiting with Mr. Met at CitiField. In an uncharacteristic paring, however, I root for the Jets during football season.

My favorite movies are The Sound of Music, Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, and The Matrix. A diverse mix, which appeal to my love of music, simple humor, and Keanu Reeves.

My refrigerator contains a lot of beverages, sadly not enough fresh produce, and more than one doggie bag.

What can you expect from me as President? First, while people have told me that I'm the nicest person ever, and know everyone under the sun, I suspect there's some flattery in those comments. I don't know all of HR/NY's almost 2,000 members. But I want to, and will with your support. At any time, please reach out to me with your praise, your ideas, a simple hello, or the areas where you think HR/NY needs enhancing. Your candid feedback won't insult me, and I promise to listen with an open mind. I'll also make sure you get to know your HR/NY leadership team. For example, this month in Inside HR/NY you'll meet Linda Simone. Linda is Inside HR/NY's Managing Editor. She makes the content in our newsletter sing each month, while keeping an eye to publication deadlines and misplaced commas alike. Linda works tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure you have at hand information critical to your professional success.

Second, I'm committed to maintaining the past successes of HR/NY, and building upon them to further evolve our association.

Third, I'm working with your HR/NY Board to grow the value of your membership. If someone told you that for $95 you could enjoy benefits of more than $7,500, you wouldn't hesitate to make the investment, would you? That's the ROI you get with an HR/NY membership. In future issues of Inside HR/NY I'll keep you posted on the increase in your membership's value. Good news is important to share, especially in challenging economic times.

Fourth, I want to make sure HR/NY is a place where all are welcome, enjoy themselves, and take away valuable knowledge and contacts to help them enhance their organizations and themselves.

I have some expectations for you, too. First, if you haven't come to an HR/NY event in a while, please try us again. We've retooled our programming to offer learning opportunities across the career spectrum. Whether you've just joined HR, or have been in the field a decade or two, you'll find the new knowledge and new connections that you need to be successful.

Second, I expect that you'll visibly demonstrate your support for HR/NY. Share your praise for HR/NY with others. Share your complaints with me. Please renew your membership early, so that we can continue to focus on enhancing your local professional association, rather than administrative activities.

Third, I expect that you will help to grow our chapter's membership. National SHRM has set aggressive membership growth goals for all chapters across the US. We want to be the number one local SHRM chapter, and we need you to make that happen. If every member could please register one new member by December 2010, we would be the role model for the more than 575 other local SHRM chapters in America. Isn't that designation fitting for the chapter that calls the greatest city in the world home?

Make September great!