I would love to attend the 2011 Illinois HR Conference on August 22-24 and/or the 2011 Ohio SHRM State Conference on September 21-23.   John Jorgensen (Illinois) and Steve Browne (Ohio) have put together a really stellar program for each of these states.

Check out the agenda for Illinois here
Check out the agenda for Ohio here

The quality of line-ups alone justifies attending.  Add the networking, entertainment, and food, and it a must-see event.

So, why am I not going?  I'm conferenced out.

One of my best friends says I am one of the luckiest people in the world.  My job gives me a really flexible schedule, I get to teach 18-22 year olds, and I get to do a lot of traveling.  Looking over the past 12 months, I have attended the following conferences:

August 5-6, 2010 - WI SHRM State Leadership Conference in Sturgeon Bay
September 23-26, 2010 - AABRI Conference in Orlando, FL
October 6-8, 2010 - WI SHRM State Conference in Appleton, WI
November 18-20, 2010 - SHRM Leadership Conference in Arlington, VA
February 24-27, 2011 - ASBBS Conference in Las Vegas, NV
March 4-5, 2011 - WI SHRM Student Conference and HR Games in Fond du Lac, WI
April 8-10, 2011 - SHRM North Central Region Student Conference in Romeoville, IL
April 29-May 1, 2011 - HREvolution in Atlanta, GA
June 24-29, 2011 - SHRM Annual Conference in Las Vegas, NV

Intermingled with the above is travel for family, weddings, sporting events (Brewers baseball, NFC Championship, Super Bowl, Final Four) as well as other work and volunteer related functions.

Looking ahead, I already have the following conferences scheduled:
August 4-5, 2011 - WI SHRM State Leadership Conference in Green Lake, WI
August 12-16, 2011 - Academy of Management Meetings in San Antonio, CA
September 30 - October 5, 2011 - HREvolution/HR Technology Conference in Las Vegas, NV
October 12-14, 2011 - WI SHRM State Conference in Madison, WI
November 17-20, 2011 - SHRM Leadership Conference in Arlington, VA
January 5-7, 2012 - AABRI Conference in Orlando, FL
March 2-3, 2012 - WI SHRM Student Conference and HR Games in Platteville, WI
June 22-27, 2012 - SHRM Annual Conference in Atlanta, GA

and....who knows, there might be another conference or two in that time frame.

So, yes, I am lucky.  I get to do a lot of traveling and attend a lot of conferences.  However, while I would love to be in Illinois and Ohio over the next two months, I am not sure I have the time, energy, or resources to make it there.

However, on behalf of John and Steve, I highly encourage you to go to those great events.  And, if you can't, come join us in Madison, WI, on October 12-14.  Check out the Learning Sessions here and early bird registration ends July 15.

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.

This past Monday, I was fortunate to appear on Bryan Wempen's daily blog talk radio show, "Drive Thru HR," to promote the Wisconsin SHRM State Conference, currently going on in Appleton, WI. The conversation turned to the topic of social media.

Of late, social media has become a growing component of the conference experience. The 2010 SHRM Annual Conference had their first annual blog squad to highlight conference activities, and a social media lounge. Illinois SHRM, HRFlorida, and Ohio SHRM had bloggers and heavy activity on the Twitter stream. As expected the HR Technology Conference was rife with social media experience with a number of bloggers and the HR Happy Hour. HR Southwest is starting up soon and it, too, will take a stab at carving up a part of the social media pie. You even see wonderful companies staking out a claim in this area, such as the Stelzner/Ruettimann powerhouse, "Voice of HR."

However, two major state HR conferences are going on this week, with relatively little fanfare: the 2010 Michigan SHRM Conference and the aforementioned 2010 WISHRM conference. While I can't speak for Michigan, WISHRM10 has over 1100 attendees, exhibitors, speakers, and guests....all with limited promotion on social media avenues. No major bloggers....no social media sessions....a relatively quiet Twitter stream.

So, I posed a number of HR bingo-type questions on Bryan's show: What is the return on all this social media activity? Is it creating a buzz? And is this buzz creating increased revenue to the state council? Are more people attending? Is it creating interest for future years of the conference? What is the bottom line of this activity?

Wisconsin SHRM enters its first full day of conference activity today. 1100 individuals will be busy enjoying the activities and learning, oblivious to the social media world's comments.