“Whips,” “Myths” and Olympics… Oh My!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: Meredith Masse, DisruptHR Denver Co-Organizer
Toll-free 855-865-4400
[email protected]

DENVER, CO, March 24, 2016 – Organizers of DisruptHR Denver, the only event of its kind in Colorado, today announced the line-up of troublemaking topics to be presented at the grass-roots, Ignite-style DisruptHR Denver event on April 14, 2016.  DisruptHR is built on the belief that how businesses and their leaders and managers have approached employees and talent in the workplace in the past won’t be the best way to approach them in the future.  Speakers are encouraged to submit topics that are “disruptive” to traditional human resources (HR) approaches and all efforts related to their people in the workplace.

Topics and speakers for the April 14th DisruptHR Denver event (in no particular order):

HR is Not a Dominatrix. Put Down Your Whip.  Erin Lawless, HR Director from Colavria Hospitality, asserts that positive workplace change starts with trashing policies, procedures and forms in HR and rethinking traditional disciplinary methods.

Dear NLRB, WTF?  Michael VanDervort, Executive Director, CUE, Inc., offers a humorous, culture-reference filled look at a most serious topic: how the NLRB is destroying workplace etiquette and civility.

Who Said You Have to Grow Up … When You Grow Up?  Bret Nelson, Talent Development Partner from IHS, stresses that the companies who will ace strategy and service in years to come will find ways to harness the energy of employees’ right brains by insisting on play at work.

Smooth Moves: 5 Rules for Success.  Diane Zile from JERA Partnerships talks about the 5 “smooth moves” foundational to success when closing one chapter and embracing the next.

Feedback – not Fruit – Loops: Breakfast of Champions.  A major trend now is to throw out traditional annual performance reviews.  Cathy Hawley, VP of People Development at Return Path, offers a practical (finally!) approach for better employee performance and development conversations.

Don’t be Mindless about Mindfulness: Managers’ Real Impact on Employee Health.  Ken Pinnock, Director of People Development at the University of Denver, says the real story about the bottom line is the one no one is talking about: how managers, their behaviors and basic management practices directly impact employees’ cardiovascular health, instances of diabetes, BMI rates, blood pressure and more.

Permission is for Sissies.  Are you as tired of the negative press HR as a profession is getting as global HR leader Ed Baldwin? His fictional story of HR showing up uninvited for an executive committee meeting and being asked to prove its worth will demonstrate the positive impact HR professionals know they can deliver from their critical functions.

HR Volunteering: Put Down the Paintbrush and (Actually) Transform a Community. Dan Weinstein, founder of hrCares, emphasizes skills-based volunteering as a means to increase engagement in the local community, the organizations we work for and ourselves.

Is UGLY the Next Protected Class? Known Disruptor Kathleen Brenk, CHRO/Chief of Staff at Recondo Technology, asks this tough question in the face of research that ascertains that taller, more attractive humans are more successful.

The Bachelor’s Myth – A Degree is NOT the Only Path to Success and Money.  Holly Reed, Senior Manager of Talent Acquisition at RK Mechanical, asks, “What happens when you need a plumber and there’s not one… anywhere?”  She quashes the myth that a college degree is the only way to succeed professionally, especially when there’s a huge lack of skilled tradespeople entering the workforce.

The Olympic Impact: Developing Ideas into Experiences for People Mandates Inspiration! Harris Kalofonos of the USA Wrestling organization challenges us with the idea that while the US has been tops in medal counts over the last several Olympic Games, we’re missing the point of the “Olympic impact” in our companies when it comes to making our employees and workplaces the best of the best.

Exceeding Expectations IS the Expectation. Luisa Ramos, HR innovator at Inspirato with American Express, asks employees, “How would you rate yourself on service?” and says most reply with “exceeds expectations” then list a number of “above and beyond” actions they’ve taken.  Her talk tackles the idea of “But if your job IS to go above and beyond, how could you exceed ‘exceeding’?”

DisruptHR Denver is April 14 at EXDO Event Center, 5-8pm!

To register before the event sells out: http://disrupthr.co/Denver

Support these sponsors and partners who make DisruptHR Denver possible!

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