June Meeting Summary
HR Martin County’s June Membership Luncheon was sponsored by Corporate Benefit Advisors. CEO and Managing Partner, Heather Leck, highlighted some of the employee benefit services the company provides including group health, life, dental, vision and disability insurance, wellness programs, 401(k)s, and individual products/strategies for business owners, executives and key employees. Since CBA believes that your good health is a solution, they provide a comprehensive wellness program to their clients to keep their employees healthy. CBA was the winner of the WELCOA’s Well Workplace Small Business Award for 2010.
President, Angelique Lyons, the Board and Committee Chairs made several announcements:
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The Book Drive was a great success. Many of the books were delivered and additional books will be delivered soon .
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The Members in Transition program provides two members an opportunity to attend the monthly membership lunch at no cost.
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The Employment Law Conference, “Reality HR, Applying the Law to Real Life,” will be held, July 23, 2010, at Monarch Country Club. The cost is $55 per person which includes a brunch buffet. Angelique Lyons and Robert Kilbride are the featured speakers. Four HRCI Credits are confirmed. Members are invited to participate and also spread the word about this great educational opportunity to professional colleagues and CEO’s.
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Donations are needed for the SHRM Foundation Auction in September
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Instructors are needed for the fall certification classes
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Professional clothing for the women residing at Safespace can be brought to the July meeting (Legal Conference). Members who can volunteer their time to assist the women with interviewing and resume writing can contact Jodi Dargan.
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A membership event is being planned for Aug 18th at 4PM. Madeline Greenwood will be doing a training on the benefits of laughter. More to follow.
Peggy DeMars, our program chair, will be presenting a monthly “Wellness Watch.” She provided material on smoking cessation programs and diabetes medications available at no cost.
The program, “Do’s & Don’t’s: Responding to an EEOC Charge & Best Preventative Practices’” was presented by Nitza Wright, EEOC Enforcement Manager from the Miami District Office. Ms. Wright’s lively presentation provided very valuable information on a timely and relevant subject to all HR professionals. She advised that the amount of EEOC claims have tripled in the past two years. The top four charges in her district are claims related to race, retaliation, national origin and religion. Businesses must develop a strong EEO policy and train managers and employees on EEO laws and hold them accountable. She also provided the attendees with an excellent handout.
See everyone at the Legal Conference in July!
May Meeting Summary
Treasure Coast Urgent & Family Care sponsored HR Martin County’s May Membership Luncheon. Treasure Coast Urgent & Family Care, located in the Monterey Medical Center, provides family medical and emergency services, from routine physicals to broken bones, seven days a week, Monday thru Friday 8-6, Saturday and Sunday 9-2.
President, Angelique Lyons, announced that the book drive to benefit the Library Foundation was going well and the chapter will continue to accept books until the end of May when they will be delivered.
The Employment Law Conference, “Reality HR, Applying the Law to Real Life,” will be held, July 23, 2010, at Monarch Country Club. The cost is $55 per person which includes a brunch buffet. Angelique Lyons and Robert Kilbride are the featured speakers. Four HRCI Credits are pending. Members are invited to participate and also spread the word about this great educational opportunity to professional colleagues and CEO’s.
Denise Polselli, International Wholesale Tile, has accepted the Diversity Chair for HR Martin County. She will be working with her team to facilitate the Diversity Award, which will be presented in November. More to follow. Thanks, Denise!
Publicity for the Steps to Success program was a great success! The Your News, insert to the Stuart News, and the Good For You Section of the Stuart News, published our news release.
The program, “Workforce Planning Journey: From Selection to Succession,” presented by Seema Rafay, MBA, President of Spectrum Performance Management, provided 1 hour of HRCI recertification credit. Since employers invest so much in searching and selecting candidates and because employees are the greatest resource for continued productivity and revenue, getting top performers are an organizational imperative.
Seema talked about APRR, Attract, Promote, Retain & Reward theory and also the importance of job matching in succession planning. She also talked about the Harvard Business Review Study conclusions that “success hinges on a fit with the job,” finding the right person for the right job is the key to organizational success. Seema’s wealth of experience in the field or workforce planning gave us a great deal of information and insight into this very important function of human resources.
April Meeting Summary
Welhaven & Associates sponsored HR Martin County’s March Membership Luncheon. Welhaven & Associates provides advertising specialties, awards/gifts, direct mail, commercial printing, public relations, electronic media, creative design and marketing consulting services. Lourdes Welhaven talked about how “their business brings more business to your business.” Several attendees won advertising specialty items, including umbrellas.
President, Angelique Lyons, announced that HR Martin County has achieved the Superior Merit Award for 2009 in addition to being designated a 2009 Chapter Champion from the SHRM Foundation. She also informed the members the SHRM Foundation Regional Scholarship Program is taking applications for both Academic and Certification Scholarships. The deadline is July 15, 2010. For more information, go to www.shrm.org/foundation, and click on Awards & Scholarships.
Jan Foselli reported the 10th Annual Steps to Success Program was a huge Success! Over 100 students attended, representing five local high schools. All expenses were underwritten by in-kind contributions, corporate sponsorship and private donations. (Visit our Chapter News page for more information and pictures!)
Susan Williams was picked as the winner for the free TCHR Conference Admittance for the HR Martin membership drive. Congratulations, Susan, and enjoy the conference!
Attendees were reminded that May is our 2nd Annual Literacy Book Drive. Members are asked to collect new or gently used books anytime through May and drop off at Fox, Wackeen & Dungey (Stuart) or Staffing Solutions of the Treasure Coast (PSL). The books will be donated to the Library Foundation of Martin County.
The program, “Leading without Authority is like Skydiving without a Parachute,” presented by Cynthia Krosky, CSP, LCSW, President of Achieving Corporate Excellence, Inc., provided 1 hour of HRCI recertification credit. If you have ever been in the position of having employees (or yourself!) lead teams or projects without direct authority over the employees involved, then you really related to this topic. Cynthia provided some time for the members to reflect on leadership support and obstacles, personal and professional growth opportunities and goals.
She discussed the process of self examination; How to nurture our growth, Understand our communication styles, Use professionalism when handling problems and Know how to give feedback. The final part of the presentation, Leading Without Authority Requires Strengthening Our Positional Power, Cynthia talked about how we Assess our needs, Include people, Take the initiative and Provide the example. Cynthia’s dynamic presentation was an inspiration to the members and with her parachute; we will all have a safe landing!
March Meeting Summary
HR Martin County’s March Membership Luncheon was sponsored by American Portfolios Financial Services. Both Kenneth Hauck and Karl Nembach provided members with information about the services their company provides including 401K Plan Evaluation, Investment Review, Employee Education/Advice and Counseling Services.
The program, which provided 1 hour of HRCI CEU recertification credit was on Social Media Management and Employer Policy on Social Networking. Jennifer Hampton, CEO of Superior Virtual Services, gave an overview of Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter and Blogging.
Our President Elect, Maryellen Castellano, presented information on the legal issues of social media and the challenges that HR professionals face dealing with policy considerations. The information presented by both Jennifer and Maryellen was timely and valuable since so many of us are learning innovative methods as we enter the new communication environment.
Upcoming Event Reminders:
Prior to the meeting Christine Roberts gave an in depth Legislative Update and Jodi Dargan announced that HR Martin County received their 501(c)(3) designation from the IRS!
February Meeting Summary
HR Martin County’s February Membership Luncheon was jam-packed with valuable information presented by Eric Gordon of Akerman, Senterfitt, Attorneys at Law.
Mr. Gordon’s presentation, “The 111th Congress: Recent Changes and Pending Legislation in Employment Law” highlighted possible changes in several federal laws including FMLA. He also discussed, among other things, important subjects including increased EEOC activity and the DOL’s commitment to FLSA enforcement. Mr. Gordon stressed how some of these proposed changes, if passed, could be particularly problematic to small employers.
Before we had our dose of serious issues, Florence Howe of Mr. Small Move, our February sponsor, packed up and delivered our own Jan Foselli!