Maine Human Resources Convention

Welcome! Convention Registration remains open throughout the morning. Visit the Convention Bookstore and the Internet Cafe. THANK YOU Convention Sponsor – MEMIC. Keynote Sponsor - MaineSense. Breakfast Sponsor - Payroll Management, Inc.

Enjoy breakfast in the Keynote Hall courtesy of Payroll Management, Inc.

What I Wished I Knew About HR... We are delighted to welcome Dr. Dora Mills to the stage to share the perspective of a non-HR executives view of the HR world. Dr. Mills is Maine’s leading expert on public health, a board certified pediatrician, and was recently appointed Vice President for Clinical Affairs at the University of New England in charge of public health and outreach programs. For fifteen years, she served as Director of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention, where she was known for building partnerships and moving Maine to the national healthcare forefront with acclaimed smoking cessation programs. She'll help us discover how HR is viewed by the C-suite, employees, and your clients; how HR can be the effective bridge between management and labor; how HR helps develop an organization's culture, values, and ethics; and how all this has been changing over time. HRCI strategic credit awarded.

Track A: Employee Management and Development. Maine has the oldest population of any state and faces an unprecedented talent shortage. Jeff Nevers, from the University of New England, will explore how employers need to adjust recruiting strategies, habits, and attitudes towards young adults. Learn how to partner with Maine colleges and universities in your recruiting efforts. Help make a difference curtailing Maine's “brain drain” one fresh face at a time. Hear what college students have to say about working in Maine after graduation. Observe how recruiters from away cater to younger workers. Identify what your organization and the state can do to keep Maine's young living and working here. HRCI general credit awarded.

Track B: Legal Compliance and Risk Management. What is the status of your workplace domestic violence policy? Join Kate Faragher Houghton and Jill Barkley as they help you champion employee safety and health. Participants will learn about domestic violence as a workplace issue and will discover the tools to implement a comprehensive workplace response. When leaders engage on this issue, and employees, whether victims or perpetrators of abuse, feel comfortable coming forward to talk about domestic violence, employers have the best chance of ensuring employee safety and productivity, and the best opportunity to apply appropriate accountability before a critical incident arises. HRCI general credit awarded.

Track C: A Strategic Role for HR. "How will we find (or manufacture) the talent we need to grow our business now and in the future?" April Clark, from Manpower, will provide a tool that will bring the HR professional's world closer to the way life should be. Become a true business partner for your organization. Understand the business, roles within the organization, the talent required to create the product/service of the organization, and how today's (and tomorrow's) talent landscape will impact the demand and supply of that talent. Begin to think about your talent strategies in a different way. The world of work is changing and if we want to keep up, we'll have to change too.  HRCI strategic credit awarded.

Track D: HR Skill Building. HR is the bridge to all parts of an enterprise, though in reality, HR professionals, even those who have attained SPHR status, struggle being and maintaining that bridge. Ariel Gill and Linda Varrell (Broadreach Public Relations) explore how HR professionals can create an image or a "brand" for their departments and for themselves. Building a strong image provides tangible and intangible benefits to the organization over time. Two important processes are inherent in building a strong image: repetition and association with value and results. Learn the elements of a strong brand image and steps needed to establish and sustain your brand while building overall brand equity. HRCI general credit awarded.

Jim Reidy joins us from Manchester, New Hampshire. He is an employment law attorney (and raconteur) at Sheehan, Phinney, Bass & Green, and he will use this time for two purposes: 1) to highlight the employment law knowledge gained by attendees during the convention week - from wage and hour law, to the ADA, FMLA, and healthcare reform; and 2) to present that information in a fun, memorable game show format making it easier to bring the highlights back to work. And, should you need other reasons to attend this session, the convention will be giving away $3,000 in prizes to game show winners and participants. HRCI general credit awarded.