The calendar has turned to March, which means, as a SHRM student chapter advisor, it is time for the HRGames. Tonight, for example, 20 teams from around the state of Wisconsin descend onto Oshkosh to test their knowledge of human resources.

What are the HRGames? The HRGames consist of a one- or two-day series of Jeopardy-style matches, between teams of up to three undergraduate students from various colleges and universities. The questions for the matches are divided into categories similar to those used in the PHR certification exam (i.e., Management Practices; Selection & Recruitment). In each round, students select points and a category of questions. The question is read twice and the teams have 15 seconds to supply the correct answer. After a series of initial matches, teams with the best records participate in the championship rounds for first and second place. The hope is that students who prepare for the HRGames will, in turn, be successful when taking the PHR Certification

A sample question might be:
Q: This is the pay rate that is below the minimum of the pay range
A: What is a green circle rate

The top four teams in Wisconsin, for example, will receive travel money from the WI SHRM State Countil to attend the North Central Region Student Conference and HRGames at Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN on April 23-24. The significance of winning the regional competition is even higher. The winning team of undergraduates not only gets the pride of winning the competition, but SHRM will provide each team member with a $1,000 scholarship, as well as free conference registration, hotel, airfare, and food budget, to attend the SHRM Annual Conference in San Diego.

As noted, the 2010 SHRM North Central Regional Student Conference will take place at Purdue University in Indiana on April 23 and 24, 2010.

The 2010 SHRM Northeast Regional Student Conference will take place at Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania on March 5 and 6, 2010.