So you think you are a qualified human resources practitioner?  Here are a few questions to ponder.  What makes a qualified professional Human Resources practitioner?  The question posed by Mike Deblieux is this:  Would you go to a doctor that did not belong to the AMA?  Would you hire an Architect without a license?  What credentials can an HR person have that shows that they know what they are doing?  How can someone demonstrate their knowledge and experience?  Does experience trump education and if so how?  How did you get your job?

HR is the profession of a lot of people.  In other words, it is there livelihood.  It is how they make their living.  The question is why should an employer hire an individual?  What makes one HR person more qualified than the other? 

It seems to me that their is a growing option that divides the expert from the amateur.  There is an exam or two or three that demonstrates proficiency in the field of HR.  The PHR exam shows that you are a specialist in the field of Human Resources.  The Senior PHR exam shows that you re a specialist in the field of Human Resource Management and basic organization management.  The California certification exam shows that you understand California law.  The Global exam demonstrates your understanding of world Human Resource practices.

One other important action that HR pros and HR pro "wannabees" need to do is join professional human resource associations.  Associate with other HR people.  Attend monthly luncheons and events to stay on top of important HR issues.  Learn where to get information that your employer needs to not only be in compliance but to be profitable and to stay in business.

How many of you reading this blog are currently certified?  Would you like to be certified?  If you are looking to be certified, why?  How many of you are SHRM members or PIHRA members?  If you are a member of an HR organization, tell us about it.

Be sure to join the TMT Club.  It's free!  Just go to our website at www.trainmetoday.com  and click on "Join the Club".

        

December is just a few weeks away and many of you will be preparing to take either the PHR or the SPHR exam.  There are so many ways to study using the SHRM Learning System.  But, don't expect that memorizing the PowerPoint presentation or every word in the modules will ensure success on the exam.  The SHRM Learning system will help you learn and retain key content, but you must know the information and have confidence that you know it.  It is a widely believed myth that the HRCI exam is somehow connected to SHRM Learning materials.  Some HR practitioners get very frustrated because they feel that the questions were not related to the SHRM Learning System. 

Here are some practical tips for preparing for the exam (from the SHRM Learning System):

• Plan "Study Time".  We all have busy lives - families, HR jobs, many of us are in college, holidays coming up, etc..
• Don't Cram.
• HRCI does not test state-specific laws on the PHR or SPHR exam.
• For the areas that you must memorize to learn use memory techniques such as analogies, images, rhymes, acronyms, repeating it out loud a number of times or intentionally remember.
• Taking the class is not enough - you must combine lectures with reading and understanding the text.
• Interaction and reinforcement with others is the best way to actually learn the material, especially if you are struggling with a topic.
• Read the questions carefully.  Do not panic if it does not make sense to you.    If you find you are paralyzed by a question, move to the next question and return to the "scary" question once you have gained your composure.
• Trust your first impressions.
• Avoid over analyzing.
  

Now, here are my personal recommendations.

• Have self-confidence!  You know this stuff.
• Get plenty of sleep the night before.  It is a scientific fact that brain gets tired and performs better when well rested.
• Remember your special place. If you begin to feel anxiety, go to your special place for 30 seconds.  Close your eyes.  Believe me, no one in the room is actually looking at you, except for the facilitators - they know what you are doing and it is OK with them.  (If you did not take the IE SHRM Study Group and want to know more about this, just let me know).
• Think Federal not California.
• After you study, get a good amount of sleep (even take a nap).  Science has proved that if we sleep after learning we retain more. Know the information. 
• Know the federal laws that are essential to HR folks in doing our job, Title VII, ADA, ADEA, CRA 1866, PDA, Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection, IRCA, WARN Act, Polygraph Protection Act, Fair Credit Reporting Act, EEO, etc.   There are precedent setting cases, like Griggs v. Duke Power. 
• Take the study test at www.HRCI.org. It costs money, but it helps you identify your weak areas.  For example, I was very weak on how Union's work.  I took every precaution my entire career to keep our organizations free from Unions.  So, I really had to bone up on how Unions are formed and what a ULP was and what percent of vote had to be before a Union was certified (and what certified meant).  To my horror, a number of Union questions showed up on the exam!
• Read the question carefully...please...I have heard from many...including myself..."I read the question wrong". 
• Don't rush.  I know people that have failed the exam, but I don't know anyone that "timed out".  (I was one of the last ones in the room).
• Postive Energy!  I will be thinking positive thoughts for you!

        

So, we left the discussion of Descriptive Statistics to blogging!  We commonly use statistics in HR as you will see through this blog (I hope).  Statistics provides an indicator of variation around "central tendency" values. 

Blog back and tell me what you think that means.

To understand Descriptive Statistics we need to look at a few words.

Range is the distance between highest and lowest scores.  Percentile is the specific point that has a given percentage of cases below it and the standard deviation is how much scores are spread out around a mean. 

In what aspect of HR do we commonly look at range?

Measures of Association - Correlation - shows the relationship between two variables. 

What are variables?

Measures of Association - Regression - refers to the effect of one variable to the other. If two variables are related and one changes, the second will change.  This relationship is represented by a regression equation.  Regression equation is used to construct a regression line (usually a straight line) on a scattergram.  (You can find a sample of a scattergram in most Excel programs). 

When might HR use a regression analysis?

Inferential Statistics -  form a conclusion by studying a sample of the population.  Population is the entire group (all employees).  A sample would be part of the employees (20 randomly chosen employees). 

Normal distribution is the expected distribution given a random sampling of a large population.

For what purpose would we (HR) use inferential statistics?

Qualitative Analysis - Let's look at the words - together they look scary, but dissected in parts they are simple.  Qualitative relates to the quality of something not its size or quantity.  Analysis means looking at something in detail to make some sort of a decision.  In HR, we use qualitative analysis to look at employee motivation, feelings, attitudes, morale, perceptions and to generate ideas about change. We might gather information from employees through interviews, surveys and questionnaires, observation, file studies, testing, etc. 

Reliability  - Is the information reliable?  is the measuring instrument consistent?  Are the results consistent?  For example, two tests are given to an applicants.  Applicant A passes both tests at 95%.  Applicant B passes one at 75% and the other at 95%.  Applicant A test scores are more consistent and therefore more reliable.

Validity - Is the information valid?  Did it measure what was intended to measure? A reliable instrument is not always valid.  A valid instrument is always reliable. 

Give an example of something we do in HR that is reliable but may not be valid.