Maine Human Resources Convention

This pre-convention session is open to SHRM State Council members and board members of SHRM's eight affiliate chapters in Maine. Session Coordinator: Kris Avery, State Council Director. Kris will be joined by several of our friends from SHRM this morning: Brian Dickson (SVP, Professional Development and Strategic Partnerships), David Lusk (Senior Associate for Member Advocacy), and our Field Services Director Phyllis Shurn-Hannah. In addition to Maine SHRM business, this session incorporates two workshops: 1) Best HR Practices Brazilian Style; and 2) Shaping HR Public Policy.

With special thanks to Leadership Day Sponsor: Fit2WRK

Welcome! Convention Registration is open through the day (hosted by Harvard Pilgrim).

Special Thanks to Convention Sponsor - MEMIC.

Please visit the Convention Bookstore (hosted by FA Peabody) and the Internet Cafe (hosted byJobsinME.com). Thanks also to: the Tuesday Keynote Sponsor, Preti Flaherty; the Tuesday Reception Sponsor, New England College of Business; Convention Tote Sponsor, Bernstein Shur; Convention Guide Sponsor, Springborn Staffing; Wellness/Spa Sponsor, Insurance Trust; Lanyard Sponsor, The Holden Agency; and Strategic Partner, Halogen Software.

Communication Styles and the Leadership Connection. The best leaders know that strong working relationships are essential to success and that effective communication is the bedrock of good working relationships. Robert Keteyian  (Elias and Keteyian in Ellsworth), author of "Do You Know What I Mean? Discovering your Personal Communication Style," will help you create congruence between your leadership and communications styles. His session offers an in-depth approach to conversation dynamics and provides HR professionals with specific skills for modeling and encouraging constructive communication. HRCI general credit awarded.

Move from Transactional HR to Strategic Differentiator. Join Sandra Monfiletto (Chief Administrative Officer), Laurie Minott (Vice President HR), and Greg McCarthy (Vice President of Health Plan Operations), as they take you on their journey to build a high performing culture and organization at Martin’s Point Health Care. The outcome of this process resulted in Martin’s Point surpassing their 5-year strategic revenue goals and achieving employee engagement survey results that are aligned with Fortune’s 100 Best Companies. They will talk about the challenges they encountered and will share the tools used to assess the organizational talents on hand, determine future needs, and develop a robust plan to address the gaps. HRCI strategic credit awarded.

Join our buffet lunch, then head to the Maine HR Awards Ceremony!

Look for our twice daily "Convention Newscasts" on the convention floor and online, courtesy of Media Sponsor: JobsInME.com, with production assistance from Filmosity.

Barista-made coffee anyone? Join Brittany and the other fabulous brewmeisters from Bard Coffee in Portland. Sponsored by: Cairn Leadership School.

Maine's SHRM State Council presents the third annual Maine HR Awards. Discover who will be the "HR Leader of the Year," who will be inducted into Maine's "HR Hall of Fame," who will be the "HR Student of the Year," and which organization will win the "HR Best Practice/Project of the Year."

With thanks to HR Awards Day sponsor: Pro Search, Inc.

Dynamic Leadership Lessons from History. What do Eleanor Roosevelt, Margaret Thatcher, and Sojourner Truth have in common? Convention historian Governor Angus King returns to the Maine HR stage for the sixth time and looks at the lives of these three leaders, finding common talents that made for accomplishment not normally associated with women of their day. Using their stories, Angus will describe the moral compass each leader used to create a strategic vision and inspire others to greatness. And he constructs a ten-point HR leadership checklist based on the role of uniqueness, vision, purpose, implementation, and communication. HRCI strategic credit awarded.

Track A: Employee Management and Development. Effective training does much more than enhance employee skills; it should contribute to the strategic direction of the organization. Michael McCann, from Matchbox Group in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, helps you structure an in-house Leadership University that blends classroom with real work experience, influences the culture at work, develops leaders, is accomplished in a cost-effective manner, and produces measurable business results. This session uses a workbook with sequential modules that you can take home to begin the process of creating your Leadership University. HRCI general credit awarded.

Track B: Legal Compliance and Risk Management. This interactive and fun workshop will concentrate on new FMLA interpretations and trends from other jurisdictions that we can expect to see applied in Maine. Anne-Marie Storey (Rudman & Winchell in Bangor) offers case studies on what the term "needed to care for" means and how new technology might change that definition, how a leave policy prohibiting travel while using sick leave can be applied to limit trips while on FMLA leave, what constitutes medical treatment versus a spiritual pilgrimage, and what it takes to qualify for the "key employee provisions." HRCI general credit awarded.

Track C: A Strategic Role for HR.  When organizational culture and infrastructure includes talent identification and development, HR professionals are in a great position to succeed. Catharine MacLaren, Ph.D., (Workforce Performance Solutions in Portland) and Liz Bentley, who joins us from Cold Spring Harbor, New York, will show us how to position talent management as a core business strategy, review the concept of nurturing high performers, practice creating competencies related to specific positions or levels within an organization, and identify the costs of creating and not creating a talent pipeline. HRCI general credit awarded.

Track D: HR Skill Building. How can HR and employers do the right thing and avoid public relations nightmares? A panel of experts – Peter Lowe (Brann & Isaacson), Peter Fitch (Lee Auto Mall), Wendy Estabrook (LL Bean), and Edward S. O'Meara, Jr. (Garrand) – will help position employers who face serious complaints. They will focus on best practices for assessing when to investigate complaints, how to manage a high profile investigation, how to balance legal risks and liability, and how to control and direct the public relations message within the organization and the media. The presenters bring this workshop to life by analyzing the scandal that engulfed the legendary Penn State football program. HRCI general credit awarded.

Track E: Benefits. Want to know how, as an HR professional, you can help employees realize "the way life should be?" HR professionals create a wide variety of programs to assist their employees in understanding and utilizing their benefits and maintaining overall wellness. By understanding the theoretical framework for change, the incentive models that guide employees, and the ways to brand and create a single unifying document and program, Heidi Wurpel, from Crescendo Consulting Group, will show you how HR can tie together many disparate programs and help employees start on a journey to real behavior change. HRCI general credit awarded.

Story-Telling and Building Great Teams. YES... after a two-year respite, it's the return of the fabulous keynoter Norm Bossio. Most talents demanded of HR professionals connect to your unique relationship with the people of your organizations. Keynoter Norm Bossio uses stories - sometimes funny, sometimes poignant - to speak to the common humanity of our relationships at work. Norm will focus on our role in building diverse teams. And, as the conference theme suggests, everyone thrives when HR is on top of its game, because human resources is the bridge to all parts of your enterprise. HRCI general credit awarded.

Join the convention's opening reception. It's a great way to renew HR acquaintances and make new HR friends. Enjoy the delicious hors d'oeuvres and the musical stylings of Curt Bessette and Jenn Kurtz.

Reception Host: New England College of Business.

Most of the SHRM chapters in Maine will host Dutch Treat dinners at the Samoset and at area restaurants. Look for information in the weeks leading up to the convention.