#SHRM15: Not Just About Las Vegas

We are feeling re-energized, inspired and ready to THRIVE after the SHRM 2015 Annual Conference & Exposition.  It was an amazing chance for HR learning, listening and networking. Over 15,000+ HR professionals from companies and countries of all types came to hear world-renowned speakers, motivators and presenters. We went to sessions on Strategy, Employment Law, Talent Acquisition, and Personal & Leadership Development.  Our favorite takeaways are below.

~Lisa and Jamie

Lisa’s Top 10 List from #SHRM15:

1. Sneaking a peek into the Blogger’s Lounge.  LOTS of energy in this Think Tank from some of the best HR bloggers around.
2. Tuesday evening entertainment from Jennifer Hudson singing like an angel to a full house.
3. THE Dr. OZ inspiring me to take charge of my health and wellness with some practical and easy to manage initiatives.
4. Strolling through the largest HR exposition and engaging with the awesome vendors that provide HR professionals with all the right tools (and freshly baked chocolate chip cookies).
5. Hearing Marcus Buckingham’s forward thinking predictions of what’s in store for HR in the next five years…and of course just watching @mwbuckingham in action ;).
6. Discussing “Five Skills Every Leader Must Master” thank you @AndreaPHowe and @GarySJonesSPHR #Trust.
7. Timely (and entertaining) presentation on selecting HR technology from @TimSackett and @Kris_Dunn.
8. Learning who exactly Coach K is.  My apologies to every guy, ever.
9. Four days in Vegas.
   …AND…
10. Quality time with my co-worker @JamieNicoleRugh. (Thanks for scoring second row seats for Dr. OZ!) #OverAchiever

If you attended SHRM 2015, what were your favorite things about the week under the Las Vegas sun?

Jamie’s Top 10 List from #SHRM15 (actual HR takeaways in follow-up blog are coming soon):

1. Dr. Mehmet Oz (@DrOZ) from The Dr. Oz Show tells me it’s important to “never leave home without [my] nuts.”
2. Marcus Buckingham (@mwbuckingham) from The Marcus Buckingham Company (https://www.tmbc.com) is –in fact—very attractive in person…not just in his headshot (sorry Boyfriend).
3. What happens in #Vegas does not stay in #Vegas… it ends up on #Twitter…Buy your shirt here!
4. Someone should have warned me to take my Aspirin Regime Low Dose Bayer before Coach Mike Krzyewski “Coack K” gave his presentation.
5. Steve Gilliland (@SteveGSpeaks) taught me how to herd, feed and train a common barnyard animal.
6. Nicholas Epley, Professor of Behavioral Science at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, tells me I have superpowers… Do you buy into it?
7. HR Professionals are NORMAL people that like to have fun… weird I know.
8. As HR Professionals, we like caffeine (@jrkuhns). We don’t mind standing in 3.2 mile long lines even if it means we are late to our educational sessions.
9. Jeff Goins (@JeffGoins) is NOT Harry Potter/Daniel Radcliffe (even though this is the only reason I went to his session… kidding Jeff!).
10. Tim Sackett (@TimSackett) and Kris Dunn (@Kris_Dunn) demonstrate that Periscope is a lot less creepy than I had originally thought.