9/4/08 2:00 PM

In the Twin Cities, the Action Isn’t All in the Center

By Steve Bates

ST. PAUL, Minn.—After the 2008 Republican National Convention returned to its planned agenda following Hurricane Gustav, and the sideshow centered on Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, Sen. John McCain’s running mate, most of the attention returned to the action inside the Xcel Energy Center.

But the convention hall, where the GOP gathered for official business Sept. 1-4, wasn’t the only place where politics, policies and parties could be found. Throughout the Twin Cities region, critical HR-related issues were being debated at a variety of news briefings, receptions and other venues. Much of the business conducted was educational, including functions sponsored by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).

“This election tees up HR issues like maybe no other election,” commented SHRM COO China Miner Gorman on Tuesday, Sept. 2, at a panel discussion held at the Minneapolis Club that featured SHRM’s Minnesota State Council, The Hill political newspaper and seasoned political pundits. Referring to immigration, health care and other hot topics for Republicans here and in Washington, Gorman said, “all are in play and will end up on the desks of our members.”

Forum on Financial Literacy

Earlier in the day, SHRM Board Chair Janet N. Parker, SPHR, participated in a panel discussion on financial literacy in which she and other presenters urged the news media and business leaders to emphasize how important it is for Americans to understand how and why they need to save for retirement.

A member of a presidential commission devoted to spreading the word on financial literacy, Parker conceded that the world of finance is complex and that many Americans feel like they are too busy trying to pay today’s bills to think about saving for unexpected expenses, let alone their later years. But that just means that HR has to work harder to get the word out. Surveys show that even basic things like knowing one’s credit score and setting up a personal or family budget are not as common as they should be.

Businesses have a vested interest in helping workers acquire and use these skills, said Parker. “We want our employees to keep focused and to drive financial results” for their organization, which they can’t do if they are distracted by their own financial issues, she said.

Accepting responsibility for one’s finances “isn’t a concept that should be new,” she added.

SHRM’s Role: Education

Several SHRM leaders and staff had attended the Democratic National Convention in Denver the previous week, with the same goal: to educate politicians, their staffs, other policymakers and, to the extent possible, the general public, about what HR professionals and SHRM do, and can do, to help drive public policy on employment issues. SHRM is nonpartisan, Society representatives emphasized, and it was bringing the same HR-related agenda to the Twin Cities that it brought to the site of the Democratic gathering.

It’s not about arm-twisting. “We hope that if we provide key players with information about key HR issues, they will make a good decision,” said Larry Bourgerie, MAIR, SPHR, who operates Bourgerie Consulting in Minneapolis and teaches part-time at the University of St. Thomas in the city.

Bourgerie, a SHRM member for more than 20 years, a former president of the Twin Cities megachapter and current legislative director of the Minnesota State Council, said he was pleased to have the Republican National Convention in his home town. “It’s really exciting to have them here. You get to see the political process up front and in person” even without a convention floor pass, by watching on television and by attending events such as SHRM arranged or co-sponsored in the Twin Cities.

Key issues for Minnesota HR professionals, said Bourgerie, center on employment verification, family and medical leave, and compensation issues such as overtime protections—precisely the same issues that are at the top of many other states’ agendas and being debated in Washington, D.C.

When providing information to policymakers about the impact of regulatory and legislative matters, such as E-Verify, the federal government’s employment verification system, HR is in effect participating in matters of national security, said Bourgerie.

“It’s not a candidate-oriented discussion, it’s an issues-oriented discussion,” he stated. In these policy conversations, Bourgerie continued, “we keep that culture of HR—a helping profession and a strategic profession.”

Grilled by CNN

Bourgerie was among SHRM members and officials who gathered Sept. 3 at the CNN Grill, a restaurant adjacent to the Xcel Energy Center where CNN news celebrities did live television reports and briefed Society attendees about the volatile state of the presidential campaigns. SHRM is a major sponsor of CNN’s political coverage during 2008.

CNN election reporters John Roberts and Joe Johns said the campaign should remain interesting all fall. Palin is “a real wild card,” commented Roberts. “She’s a tough, tenacious woman” who should match up well in a debate against Democratic vice presidential nominee, Senator Joe Biden of Delaware.

On a personal note, Roberts joked that “I’ve always lived by the creed that it’s best to avoid HR when possible,” but he spent time after his presentation talking with Parker, Gorman and members of SHRM’s Government Affairs Department, who spent the four days fanning out all over the Twin Cities area.

Individuals Getting Involved

One HR professional who was at the center of the action was Alan Duff, vice president of global HR for Norgren Inc., a Colorado-based manufacturing firm. Duff was a delegate to the GOP convention representing Colorado. The experience, said Duff, “really allows you to see the whole process of democracy play out.”

Though it’s exciting to see, and even meet, some of the most famous political figures in the United States, Duff said the lasting value of participating in the convention is gaining new appreciation of “the importance of having clear messages,” whether in politics or in the work that HR professionals do. “It’s about understanding employee needs and putting together coherent plans that you can take to management.”

Duff says that just as political leaders must be able to turn on a dime, as illustrated by the quick work that Republicans did to line up behind Palin after her surprise selection by McCain. “Companies and management need to be nimble.” If the unexpected happens, “what are you prepared to do? How do you communicate with your employees and their families?”

Another lesson Duff says he is taking home from St. Paul: “Often, HR gets caught up in day-to-day actions.” But when an opportunity to break out of the grind occurs—such as the chance to participate in a political convention—“get involved,” he advised.

The SHRM Brand

SHRM COO Gorman agreed. “The SHRM presence was felt throughout both conventions,” she remarked. Board members, senior staff, government affairs and other staff were highly visible, the SHRM logo and advertising campaign were prominent, and policy leaders at every level heard the Society’s message and learned of its mission.

“It’s about creating the right relationships,” said Gorman. After the votes are all counted and the next administration is in office, key policy leaders will know more about SHRM and will be more receptive to its input on the crucial issues, she said. “Our brand is known. We will be in the conversation helping shape public policy.”

Steve Bates is manager of online editorial content for SHRM.