Often imitated and never duplicated, the 2015 Season (our 6th edition) of The 8 Man Rotation is here.   While it may be mid-June, the takes from Steve Boese, Kris Dunn, Lance Haun, Tim Sackett, and myself are just as fresh today as they were when they originally written.  The thing about sports and HR is the lessons one learn from the sports world remain timeless.

So, just in time for your trip to Washington DC for SHRM Annual or for that father who enjoys sports as well as HR, this compendium is well worth your time to download.

Check out the 2010 Season here

Check out the 2011 Season here

Check out the 2012 Season here

Check out the 2013 Season here

Check out the 2014 Season here

Like the Replacements 2015 tour, the latest edition of the 8 Man Rotation is back by unpopular demand.  Hot takes from Steve Boese, Kris Dunn, Lance Haun, Tim Sackett and myself on all that happened in the world of sports in 2014 and how HR can learn from our favorite athletes.

What is the 8 Man Rotation?  From the 1st edition:

Better late than never, it is the 2013 Season of the 8 Man Rotation - your compendium of all things sports and human resources.  The team of Steve Boese, Kris Dunn, Lance Haun, Tim Sackett and yours truly have once again assembled to bring you all the highlights from 2013 in the sports world that impacted or is related to human resources.

What is the 8 Man Rotation?  From the 2010 season, "In basketball parlance, it refers to the five starters and three players off the bench who play the primary amount of minutes during a game.  Given that most basketball rosters contain 12 or more players, the coach has decided that the combination of these 8 players provides the team with the best opportunity to win.  Team chemistry and production are at its maximum."

This edition highlights such chemistry and production with 60+ posts covering Manti Te'o, Earl Monroe, Triple H, and LeBron James.  Find out what is meant by the phrase, "Ball Don't Lie."  Get a detailed look at the NBA Summer League.  In addition, you get a foreword from Saints superfan, Robin Schooling.

So, download it now, and read it in parts, or in one piece all weekend. Bring it on the plane for some light reading on your trip to Utah for Hirevue's Digital Disruption or Orlando for SHRM Annual.  It also makes a great Father's Day gift!

As always, you can get the 2013 Season, as well as the 3 previous seasons at the8manrotation.com.

That's right, ladies and gentlemen.  The 8 Man Rotation e-book is back for another year....and its our biggest edition ever!!!

You admired the inaugural season covering the year in sports and HR for 2010.  You loved the 2nd season covering 2011.

Now, be in awe of the 3rd edition of the best sports and HR writing from the minds of Steve Boese, Kris Dunn, Lance Haun, Tim Sackett, and myself.

Over 60 posts!!!

Over 150 pages!!!

With gracious forewords from China Gorman and Dwane Lay.

And, a special thanks to Lizzie Maldonado for putting together the 8 Man Rotation logo seen above.

So, what are you waiting for?!?!?  Check out the 2012 Season of the 8 Man Rotation here.

Take the rest of the day off....you're going to need it.

Last week, I finally got to meet the HR Capitali$t himself, Mr. Kris Dunn, as he was the keynote speaker to close out the WI SHRM State Conference. We were able to chat before his presentation, and the conversation turned to the many individuals we have been able to meet over social media. It occurred to me that there is no one I haven't met and maintained a relationship with on the various social media mediums that I haven't liked. So, it begs the following question:

Is likeability a necessary precondition to success in social media?

Anyone who is reasonably successful and gains a lot of followers on Twitter and/or Facebook must be worthy of being followed. We rarely maintain a relationship or follow someone who ends up being mean, hateful, etc.

So, it follows that if likeability is a necessary precondition to success in social media, why, then, are people reluctant to get involved in social media (beyond the artificial barriers placed on social media tools by employers)? Do people feel that the Social Media world is much like Heathers and they feel like they will be picked on like Martha Dumptruck? Where does the fear derive from?

This is all prologue to the plug I am making for the Social Mentoring project being put together by Ben Eubanks and Victorio Milian. If you fear getting involved in social media, or need help getting started, this project is for you! Don't hesitate in joining, either as a mentor or a mentee, as everyone involved is truly likeable.

So, you’re back from HREvolution. You’re fired up and driven. You’re feeling warm and fuzzy and ready to take action. You want to influence like Jason Seiden and Paul Hebert. You want to make work meaningful like Dan Debow and Jay Goldman. You want to break out of the echo chamber like Laurie Ruettimann and Lance Haun.

You really want to take action? Well, I am going to tell you the first thing you should do. It is subversive. It is brilliant in its deviousness. Shhh….are you ready? Don’t break out of the echo chamber, break INTO the echo chamber. And, how should you do that?

.

.

.

Get involved with SHRM.

.

.

.

That’s right! I said it. Get involved with SHRM. The Big Bad. The 800 lb. gorilla in the room. Godzilla. The Towering Inferno.

That’s crazy talk. You just left HREvolution, an “unconference” that, in many ways, is supposed to be the very antithesis of SHRM. However, there’s a method to my madness…

Now, More Than Ever

This afternoon, in my role as District Director on my SHRM State Council, I will be holding a Chapter Presidents Forum, with the 6 chapters in my region. What’s a major topic? Recruiting volunteer leaders. What was a major topic of discussion when I started as a SHRM chapter president 5 years? Recruiting volunteer leaders. What was a major topic of discussion when I first began getting involved with SHRM as a volunteer leader over 10 years ago? Recruiting volunteer leaders.

The demand is there, the supply is not.

Thought Leader Mark Stelzner implored the audience during the final session of HREvolution to “Speak, Publicly Speak!” However, without that advocate within that local SHRM chapter or state conference, who is going to give you that opportunity to voice your thoughts? You want to effect change? Be the one making the change.

*Serve on your local SHRM chapter board. Did you like the speakers and the conversation at HREvolution? Get on your chapter’s programming committee and have those very speakers come to your turf. Want to know who is speaking at my SHRM chapter’s monthly meeting in 9 days? Thought Leader Laurie Ruettimann.

*Serve on your SHRM state council. Grab a position on the SHRM state council and influence who will be speakers at your state leadership conference. Want to know who will be the keynote speaker closing out our state’s leadership conference in August? Thought Leader Mark Stelzner

*Serve on your SHRM state conference planning committee. Want to make your conference as exciting as HREvolution? Get involved in planning the conference and influence who will be the speakers. What to know who will be the keynote speaker closing out our State SHRM Conference in October? Thought Leader Kris Dunn.

*Talk to SHRM student chapters. This might take time as schools are ending their academic year. But, I don’t know one student chapter who wouldn’t want to have experienced thought leaders share their thoughts about what HR is really like.

China Gorman

A common topic of discussion at HREvolution was the departure of China Gorman from SHRM. To some, she was seen as “The Great SHRM Hope,” “a visible, energetic agent of change for SHRM, an actor on the stage that SHRM really hadn't had before.”

Nothing would carry out the legacy of China Gorman more than taking the energy and spirit of HREvolution by getting involved with SHRM and carrying out her vision.