With the news that hotel reservations are now being accepted for the 2014 SHRM Annual Conference, I bring you my 5th annual expose of SHRM hotel costs.
I look at selected SHRM conference brochures (i.e., the ones that I still possessed) over the past 14 years to see what it would cost a person to book a single room on a per night average. Clearly, prices in 2001 will be different than in 2014, so I use an inflation calculator to adjust costs to today's dollars. So, how does the 2014 Conference in Orlando compare to years past?
Cost of an Average SHRM-Affiliated Hotel (per night)
San Francisco (2001): $262.71 (standard deviation of $57.92)
Chicago (2008): $262.19 (sd of $30.18)
Chicago (2013): 248.49 (sd of 20.58)
San Diego (2010): $250.22 (sd of $43.07)
Washington DC (2006): $238.34 (sd of $40.95)
Philadelphia (2002): $223.02 (sd of $559.63)
San Diego (2005): $210.37 (sd of $51.29)
Atlanta (2012): $202.33 (sd of $22.57)
Las Vegas (2007): $171.69 (sd of $33.09)
Orlando(2014): $162.07 (sd of $36.07)
Las Vegas (2011): $132.56 (sd of $18.38)
On average, Orlando looks to be one of the best hotel bargains in years for SHRM attendees. Half of the hotels are below the median cost of $151.50. The first quartile is at $139, and the 3rd quartile is at $186. The lowest price hotel is at $99 with a top price of $244.
Given that the average price of a Chicago hotel was $248.49 last year with significant hotel and food taxes, SHRM14 attendees will be saving an average of $86.42 a night...more than enough to buy a ticket to Universal Orlando or Walt Disney World.
See you in Orlando
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All was accomplished with aplomb.
Content
The agenda kicked off with a range of topics, from a discussion of generations with Matt Charney and Ben Eubanks, to early technology adoption with China Gorman, to global HR with a panelist of HR professionals from New Zealand, Canada, the UK and the US.
Craig Fisher once again provided the latest and greatest in HR Tech tools, while Lois Melbourne provided an important lesson on the importance of passion in what we do in HR.
At lunch, HR Improv made its triumphant return, much to the delight of the audience. A bevy of volunteers had to give a 5 minute presentation from a PowerPoint deck of slides they had not seen before. From the difference between English and French Cheese, to "what is a birthday?" the audience had a rollicking good time.
Seasoned television veterans Kelly Kahl and Phil Gonzales gave their unique perspectives of HR from an industry few in the audience were familiar, while Teela Jackson and Crystal Miller kept the audience engaged with their session on employer branding.
The last set had Tincup and Sackett talking about the problems of "A" Talent, while Dwane Lay led a raucous session where HR professionals tried to top one another with their HR horror stories.
Anne Meath provided a fitting close with how Wegman's provides a great place to work.
Networking
With over 100 attendees, HRevolution provided not only an opportunity for old friends to reconnect, but to welcome new attendees to, what Trish McFarlane describes, as the 'family.' From 9 6-time attendees to over 50 first timers, the opportunity to discuss the latest in HR as well as their own personal experiencing, provided a warm, inviting environment.
Extended Conversation
As recommended, it was not surprising to see conversations go beyond the agenda. Lance Haun led an impromptu session on "Not Talking About HR For An Hour," while Bill Boorman broke off with "Every Time You Talk About EVP, a Puppy Dies." As always, one never knows where the conversation will go at HRevolution.
Thanks again to SumTotal for sponsoring the evnt, fisherVista for sponsoring the Saturday evening Tweetup, and co-organizers Steve Boese, Trish McFarlane, and Ben Eubanks for their tireless efforts over the past few months to pull the event together.
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