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Annual Conference Brings Region’s HR Professionals Together

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Rolling with the Changes

 

The landscape of human resources and the pace of change in the workplace are never static, but some times are more … well, dynamic than others. And 2025 seems to be one of those times.

Which makes the annual Tri-State SHRM Conference — which will convene hundreds of regional HR professionals at Mohegan Sun on April 28-30 — a bit more interesting this year.

“It’s great networking with your peers when you’re at the event because things are drastically changing,” said Dave O’Brien, state director for the Massachusetts State Council of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).

“Look at the DEI landscape. Some companies are changing their DEI efforts, and other companies are standing firm, and you can talk to your peers and have an honest conversation with them and say, ‘hey, what’s going on? What are you doing? How are you handling this? What have you encountered?’ Because it does change so drastically and so fast.

Dave O’Brien

Dave O’Brien

“You can talk to your peers and have an honest conversation with them and say, ‘hey, what’s going on? What are you doing? How are you handling this? What have you encountered?’ Because it does change so drastically and so fast.”

“And it’s good because an HR person can’t really talk to anybody but another HR person about these things. They really kind of get it. And there is some concern.”

That’s just one of many reasons O’Brien is looking forward to this year’s conference, hosted by the Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island affiliate councils of SHRM. The three councils began collaborating on a biennial conference around 2000, which later became an annual event and has steadily grown over the years.

Lori McCombs, the Tri-State SHRM Conference manager, remembers the first conference she was hired to run: in 2020, which quickly had to pivot to a virtual event when the world shut down a few weeks before. But after a second virtual event in 2021, the conference has returned to an in-person model and grown significantly: while 242 people attended the 2020 event virtually, 385 showed up in person in 2024.

“The conference is definitely growing in popularity,” McCombs told BusinessWest. “We’ve had to close exhibitor registration due to the large volume of interest from exhibitors and sponsors. That’s a good problem to have. We’re experiencing a lot of positive growth.”

Most attendees are HR professionals, with 69% being HR manager or director level or above. “That means we have a lot of decision makers from these three states that attend this conference,” she said, adding that 32% of attendees represent companies with more than 1,000 employees, and half are from companies of at least 500. “And the type of people that exhibit are companies that provide goods or services to HR professionals — so, a lot of payroll companies, HR data companies, colleges and universities that have advanced HR degree programs, HR consulting firms, talent acquisition firms, recruiting firms, benefit brokers.”

Beth Groccia, a Tri-State SHRM planning committee member who has been involved with the conference for more than 20 years, noted that it used to rotate between venues in the three states, but between that and being held every other year, it was difficult to brand the event and build momentum.

Now a yearly event at Mohegan Sun, it’s much easier to promote, she said. “It’s a destination, people enjoy going there, and they know it’s around the same time of year, so they look forward to it.”

 

Big Ideas for Changing Times

This year’s keynote speaker is Paul Long, a motivational speaker who brings humor, energy, and tactical tips for workplace performance, McCombs said. In addition, a panel of speakers will share creative ideas for recruiting untapped talent, including individuals with disabilities, veterans returning to the workplace, previously incarcerated professionals, and other individuals facing challenges getting back into the workplace.

Lori McCombs

Lori McCombs

“If they’re unable to attend a session, they’re able to go back and watch that, which is very beneficial to those who want as much education as they can possibly get. That’s a great benefit that you don’t see at most other conferences.”

“So, it’s just looking at talent that maybe you’re not thinking of on a daily basis,” she said, adding that another popular panel is called the Stump the Employment Lawyers. “We end the conference with that session. It’s an opportunity for attendees to ask tough legal questions to a panel of employment lawyers from varying backgrounds. People look forward to that.”

Smaller sessions are conducted throughout the conference, three topics per time block, on issues ranging from employment law to professional development; from leadership integrity to combating HR burnout.

“People have the opportunity to attend whatever is of interest to them,” McCombs said. “We also livestream these sessions — we do have a small virtual audience — but we also record all the sessions so that attendees have full access to those recordings for 90 days on demand post-conference. So if they’re unable to attend a session, they’re able to go back and watch that, which is very beneficial to those who want as much education as they can possibly get. That’s a great benefit that you don’t see at most other conferences.”

Another benefit is continuing-education credits, Groccia noted. “A lot of the individuals that come to this conference are certified, and we need to get CEUs to maintain that certification. Plus, as we’ve said, things are changing so quickly. So, what else do we need to know about in our profession to stay up to date with these changing laws?”

O’Brien said the national Society of Human Resource Management provides plenty of general guidance. “But with the way things happen, we just have to stay true to our course and what our companies believe and what we believe.”

Having those discussions with other HR professionals in the field — and, really, just networking in general — is a real positive of the conference, McCombs added. “They’re practicing this every single day, but I would say that the attendees definitely come here to network and get support from each other, in these trying times in particular.”

The conference will also include a fundraiser for the SHRM Foundation, which supports scholarships and research for educational opportunities, O’Brien noted.

 

No Bull (Well, Maybe a Little Bull)

This year’s Tri-State SHRM Conference has a western theme and is titled “HR Rodeo: Saddle Up for Success,” and registration is available at tristateshrm.com. An event party will be held at Comix Roadhouse in Uncasville, “and we’ll be encouraging people to ride the bull and do line dancing and fun things like that,” McCombs said.

During the day, of course, the topics being dealt with are often serious. “The conference has a theme, but we try to stay relevant to what’s happening at the moment and offer best-practice ideas,” O’Brien said. But he quickly added that spending time with fellow HR professionals at a lively venue is, well, enjoyable.

“It’s always good to have more HR professionals join us and have fun,” he told BusinessWest. “You take the job seriously, but don’t take yourself too seriously. That’s the best part of this.”

Build a Future-ready Workforce

By Contributor
Opinion

Opinion

By Allison Ebner

 

As organizational leaders and HR professionals, we are going to continue to be challenged in the new year and beyond with a roller coaster of issues as we try to match our workforces to the complex needs of our organizations and the demands of our clients and consumers. It will take an incredible amount of innovation for us to remain competitive not only within our industry landscape, but also in our employee-engagement strategies.

Nearly every industry will be experiencing significant labor-force challenges with pending retirements from the Boomers and Gen-X, and we’re also facing a transformational time in work experience and career expectations from our Millennial and Gen-Z employees. So as an organizational leader today, how should you best prepare for the coming disruptions? Here are three strategies to consider as we turn the corner into 2025:

1. Prioritize investments in continuous learning and development for your staff. Business, technology, and talent trends are moving at the speed of light. By creating a continuous learning model for your staff, you are empowering them to be resilient thinkers who can make better decisions for themselves, your organization, and your customers.

How do you approach this? Conduct an optimization assessment of each role or department in your organization. What competencies would help a team member perform at their peak? Keep it simple with a list of technical skills, power skills (formerly called soft skills), and future skills. Once you identify the list, create a learning pathway that helps you skill-build in each area.

2. Focus on building leaders with high levels of emotional intelligence. This will make or break you. Period. Full stop. It’s hard to describe just how much this matters in our work ecosystems today, but I’ll try to do just that. If you can create people leaders with this competency — even to a high degree, not perfection — you will slay your competition and crush your employee-retention goals.

We no longer have a workforce that will tolerate moderately decent managers. They have to be better. They need to instill a sense of urgency to get the job done right, combined with empathy, accountability, and the ability to teach resilience practices. This is key because our world is going to continuously evolve and change. We need to build teams that can inspire and motivate our future workforce through change and chaos and turn these uncertainties into opportunities.

3. Strengthen the bonds between technology and your people. The fifth industrial revolution has arrived, and it’s the evolution of people and machines working together to build our organizations and move us forward. Whatever industry you’re in, you can use technology to propel innovation and create a workplace the optimizes technology while enhancing the human experience.

It’s also all about your customer experience. If we want to win the battle for market share, grant funding, venture capital … whatever it is that makes you tick, you’ll need to have a strategy that includes providing your talent with the best tech tools to give you an advantage.

By embracing a mindset of continuous learning, combined with leveling up your people leaders and blending technology in your current work practices, leading organizations can pivot from a traditional model aimed at scalable efficiency that grew out of our industrial past to one that is far more suited to a world in which speed, agility, and innovation rule the day, and in which people expect more meaning, choice, growth, and autonomy at work.

 

Allison Ebner is president of the Employers Assoc. of New England. This article first appeared on the EANE blog; eane.org

Consider Calling In a Coach

By Contributor
Opinion

Opinion

By Pam Thornton

Our workplaces are more dynamic than they have ever been. HR professionals are coaching and developing employees every day as they manage through conflict, problem-solve to create solutions, and prepare the workforce for change that is constantly coming. Coaching is a critical component to organizational success. But knowing when to bring in a professional coach to help can make the difference between reaching new levels of success or falling short of your team’s potential. How do you know when it’s time to call in reinforcements?

When you’re considering coaching for your employees, timing and willingness are everything. Not every employee is ready for a coach. Before you embark on this journey, you need to gauge coaching readiness, which is the level of openness and alignment needed for coaching to truly succeed. Answer important questions like, is the employee open to feedback? Are they motivated to change? If they aren’t, they may not be ready for coaching.

Coaching can be extremely effective in many situations. It’s used in times of leadership transition, to improve performance, and to build and develop employees and a high-performing culture, just to name a few.

Leadership transitions are an ideal time to call in a coach because they align employee ambitions with company objectives, setting everyone up for long-term success. A coach can assist new leaders in developing critical skills like strategic thinking, people management, and effective communication. This can reduce the learning curve and allow them to build the confidence they need to thrive in their new role.

Sometimes, employees struggle in specific areas that impact their performance. These could range from time management to communication skills or conflict resolution. A coach can provide tailored guidance, helping the employee address these gaps through targeted exercises, feedback, and actionable goals. This kind of intervention allows the employee to focus on areas of improvement without affecting the overall team dynamic or productivity.

High-performing employees often want to see a path forward within their current organization. Investing in a coach to support these individuals as they work toward their career goals demonstrates that you’re committed to their growth. Professional coaches can assist with skill development, goal setting, and achieving clarity around career aspirations. This proactive approach improves retention by showing employees that they are valued and supported on a personalized level.

Organizations aiming to create a culture of high performance can benefit immensely from coaching programs. High-performance coaching encourages employees to set ambitious goals, challenge themselves, and overcome obstacles. Coaches bring strategies for cultivating a growth mindset, empowering employees to see setbacks as opportunities.

Coaching isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution, however. The best time to bring in a coach is when employees face challenges that require new perspectives or skills. Whether preparing for leadership, addressing performance gaps, or building your culture, coaching can be a powerful tool to empower your team.

We need everyone rowing in the same direction as we navigate these rough waters of constant change in our workplaces. Investing in coaching enhances team dynamics, fosters a culture of continuous growth, and can build resilience across your organization as you pave the way for future success.

 

Pam Thornton is director of Strategic HR Services at the Employers Assoc. of the Northeast. This article first appeared on the EANE blog; eane.org