The Punk Rock HR Girl Laurie Ruettimann caught an interesting thread of conversation while she was at the ERE Expo. The question of the moment was, “Should Recruiting Report Into HR?“

Ruettimann’s response:

None of it matters. The only thing that matters are results. Your reporting relationship is an excuse — not an explanation — for your inability to make a dent in the way that talent is acquired and managed at your company.

So here’s the answer to the great Recruiting/HR conundrum.

• Do your job.
• Do it with integrity.
• Fight mediocrity

Great advice, Laurie!

This request appeared today on the e-mail list for Boulder, Colorado HR folks.

Hi!

We allow employees to bring their dogs to work. This worked great when only a couple of employees wanted to do this. Now the number is growing.

We are wondering if there are any other local companies who allow dogs to come into the workplace. If so, have you instituted dog policies?

If you do have a dog policy, would you be willing to share it with me?

Sincerely,

Stephanie

I’ve been working in the “People’s Republic of Boulder” for over 10 years, and I’ve seen the doggie-at-work thing many, many times. I’ve actually had people accept a job because of it.

Can anyone help out Stephanie?

UPDATE 14-FEB: Check out the thread by Mike M on The Furry Receptionist

Last week, the first Boomer applied for Social Security. Aren’t these folks the ones who first branded themselves with the mantra, “Never Trust Anyone Over Thirty”? That great sucking sound you hear is billions of dollars leaving the Social Security Trust Fund.

America’s first “baby boomer” filed for Social Security benefits Monday, becoming among the first of nearly 80 million Americans born after World War II who are expected to apply for such benefits over the next two decades.

Kathleen Casey-Kirschling, 61, was born one second after midnight on Jan. 1, 1946. She becomes eligible for Social Security in two and a half months. On Monday, she completed filing electronically for the benefits before a horde of reporters and photographers at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

[snip]

In what’s being called America’s “silver tsunami,” 10,000 Americans a day will become eligible for Social Security benefits over the next 20 years.

This could be the start of the Great Boomer Workforce exodus. These same 10,000 Americans will be changing their work habits. We don’t yet know if these Boomers will have enough on hand to start retiring at 62.5 years, but some will.

This could lead to more part-time and intermittent workers as these Boomers start taking time off to smell the roses. On the other hand, some analysts suggest that the Boomers lack of strong money management skills will mean that many will be forced push off retirement until they’re in their 70’s. The upcoming labor shortage will also mean that some companies will provide incentives to keep their Boomers on the payroll.

Or, this could be the start of what The Onion named the “The Long-Awaited Baby Boomer Die-Off“.

Articles of note:

• CBO: The Retirement Prospects of the Baby Boomers
• About.com: How Baby Boomers Will Change Retirement
• CNNMoney.com: Corporations woo baby boomers

Discrimination. Arbitration. Me-too legalism. Fiduciary Liability.

Just the things we all stay awake at night contemplating.

The Supreme Court session starts in October, and this year’s session brings some interesting cases. Michael P. Maslanka at Law.com has an interesting take on four cases on the docket that will possibly affect how we all work together:

Four Employment Cases on the U.S. Supreme Court’s Menu
Michael P. Maslanka
August 9, 2007

What is the U.S. Supreme Court dining on from the employment law menu this coming term? It’s a four-course meal, and here is what the discerning diner needs to know.

Click the title above for more on these four cases:

• Holowecki, et al. v. Federal Express Corp.
• Hall Street Associates LLC v. Mattel Inc.
• Mendelsohn v. Sprint/United Management Co.
• LaRue v. DeWolff, Boberg & Associates Inc.

Over on ERE, Ken Forrester has an interesting article on “What Your Kids’ Basketball Coach Knows“. After dissecting some of the challenges that we face, Ken makes some suggestions of what to do:

Move recruiting from HR to sales and marketing. Prior to the Internet, recruiting and HR folks were never on the same page philosophically; one was focused on results and the other on procedures. Like sales and marketing, recruiting is one of the most challenging professions; it requires a certain type of individual with a competitive risk-taking mentality, strong self-discipline, and interpersonal skills to be successful. The typical HR personalities tend to be more cost driven, bureaucratic, and administrative. Having recruiting report to HR is certainly not a good marriage and will only guarantee mediocre recruiting performers.

This disconnect between the HR gatekeepers and the “go-go” recruiting staff will always be a source of tension in a company.

The best way to put this is the analogy I proposed to CTRN back in the day:

But just try to convince your VP of HR about that.

Topics include:

• Interviewing 101 – Part II
• A War for Talent Mindset May Be Hazardous to Your Results
• Truth in Advertising (or How to Succeed in Recruiting Without Really Lying).
• How to Negotiate a Pay Raise with Game Theory.
• Quantifying Good/Bad Turnover
• Recruiting Stars: Top Ten Ideas for Recruiting Great Candidates.

Check it out:
http://humanresources.about.com/b/a/257938.htm