Why You Should Join HR Professional Groups?

Family life, 60-hour work weeks (if you’re lucky), soccer practices, helping with homework, diaper duty, PTA – in our hectic lives, who has time to join a professional organization, much less volunteer to help run a professional organization?

My response is, “Perhaps you simply start with baby steps.” Joining an HR professional organization is incredibly easy. Many of these organizations offer membership at no charge, resulting in incredible value. Target a group or two that are pertinent to your field, in my case HR groups such as IHRIM, SHRM, or OAUG. Initially, attend a few meetings as a guest, meet the members.

Often times, board members of professional organizations are mistaken for full-time paid employees. I wish! The fact is, many of us, like my fellow board members of OHUG, donate our time, sweat, and tears for lots of reasons. Whatever the reason, the rewards are limitless, both personally and professionally.

So, why join? In a professional group, you can:

• Socialize and network with your peers.
• Learn best practices – which makes you an MVP for your company and a more efficient worker. (And should cut into that 60 hr work week.)
• Learn through shared experiences.
• See cutting edge technologies and solutions.
• Enjoy and have fun – it’s not all work.
• Meet new friends with common interest and similar business anxieties. Life-long friendships are very commonplace.
• Contacts, contacts, contacts – build your personal and professional social network. You never know who you may meet.

Keys to being successful in a professional group; you should:

• Be a resource – offer your skills/knowledge. You will get it back 10-fold.
• Find a mentor or coach. Your mentor will gladly introduce you around.
• Be a kid – kids are the best networkers. Young ones are extremely open minded – don’t put up walls and don’t make judgments.
• Join with a friend and navigate the waters together.
• Smile!

Feeling really bold? Volunteer. Then run for a board position!

Guest Post By Marc Ramos, Director of Corporate Sales at Aquire