Igniting a Storm on the Discussion List

istock_000001721417xsmall.jpgSeveral weeks ago, I inadvertently set off a hailstorm of email on the CaribHRForum Discussion List with the following email. The response provoked a few things, including the speed with which this website was launched.

It seemed to tap into some thoughts that many have had for some time about what we are doing as a region in the HR field. Some 70-80 emails quickly followed from all corners of the region, pledging a commitment to the idea of working together.

(If you are new to CaribHRForum, then please join us in one of the most stimulating conversation you’ll find… Click on the “Discussions” tab above and follow the directions to join the Discussion List.)

Date: Wed, 28 Nov 2007 04:58:01 -0800
[email protected]
From: francis – at sign -fwconsulting.com
Subject: [CaribHRForum] Creating a Better Regional HR Conference

The HR Conference season is over for 2007, and I have some observations, and some goals I have set for myself that hopefully will spur on some exciting activities in 2008.

So far I have attended and spoken at 2-3 HRMAB’s, 2 HRMATT’s and 3 HRMAJ’s. I have been to a couple JEF conferences and also a JIM Conference. I may also have lost count of one or two here and there…

What is striking about our conferences is how limited they are to the attendees of the country. At HRMATT, there were 2 Jamaicans and a single Bajan. At HRMAJ there was one Bajan (the same one) and one Trini. At the last HRMAB conference there were 2 Jamaicans, and perhaps 3-4 Trinis.

The numbers don’t augur well for what we are all attempting to create — a regional body that unites all practitoners across the region. At the moment, the only unifying entity that exists is CaribHRForum, the regional discussion and email list.

Under the auspices of CaribHRForum, I am thinking about doing more to help regionalize our conferences. So far, I have come up with the following ideas:

1 – find out why people aren’t attending the conferences across the region (a survey maybe?)

2- determine what needs to change to enable them to attend

3- sharing the outputs from each conference across the region

4- giving cross-conference awards e.g. best paper submitted to a conference

5- granting conference discounts for those who travel to attend

6- setting dates early in the planning year to allow for those who want to attend to do so

7- approaching cross-regional companies to sponsor several conferences at the same time

Does anyone have any other ideas about what we can do in the short term to generate greater attendance? As budgets get created for 2008, does attending a regional conference show up on HR budgets as a priority?

If not, is it because the company has no interest in CSME, or is it because the case has not been made for HR to be an important part of the changes that are coming?

I am eager to hear. Let me know your thoughts.

Francis

[email_link]

1 Comment

  1. FrankJanuary 30, 2008

    This sounds interesting. I wonder if there are other conferences across the region in other disciplines that haev better attendance. Perhaps there is something to learn from them and what they are doing — some best practices?

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