HR Vendors vs. HR Practioners - Workology

HR Vendors vs. HR Practioners HR Vendors vs. HR Practioners Jet lagged and sleep deprived I write this as Im waiting in the airport to board my flight home from HR Evolution.   It was once again a fantastic experience and so great to catch up with new and old friends.   Its my third time around for HR Evolution.   What I like most besides the very open and frank conversation is the intermingling between HR Vendors and HR Practioners. HR Vendors typically fill the vendor floor halls pimping their latest product.   Begging for your business card in exchange for cheap breath mint swag.   These vendors many times cut off from conversations and discussions that fill the session and after hour discussion of the average attendee.   Sometimes by choice but often due to the logistics of what a typical conference offers. Granted, I dont think that any attendee at a conference like HR Evolution is average, and neither is HR Demo.   Both conferences allow for fun, conversations, but serious business is done amongst the shadows, technology, and between cocktails.   Yup, it is that kind of place. Now, you may remember my conversation about how I believe were all hr vendors,and I still believe we are.   But for a moment, lets set aside my debate and talk about the HR Vendor and their role with the human resources community consulting firms and corporate HR types in the trenches. At events like HR Evolution and the upcoming HR Demo which I am attending as a member of their blog squad May 24-26th in Vegas, the conversations are less about the hard sell and more about relationships that lend to vendor and solution-based discussions.   Because lets be honest, when it comes to most HR Vendors, they come off salesy, abrasive, with no background running a recruiting desk or HR team. These type of conferences like HR Evolution and HR Demo allow for demos, dialogue, and discussions to occur.   Breaking down barriers.   Trust and relationships developed.   More conversation, discussion, and less hard sell tactics.   Thats why Im excited to attend events like these.   HR professionals can talk freely, openly with Saas competitors or social media monitoring technology vendors.   Cutting through the crap and getting to what really matters conversations.   And conversations that are more about conversating then meeting a monthly quota. HR Vendors vs. HR Practioners Because lets face it as a HR practitioner we need vendors.   I cant process payroll myself and I sure as hell dont want paper job applications.   I want solutions, and I need them now.   Because processing payroll with Excel spreadsheets and Quickbooks are so 1994. FTC Disclosure: I received compensation in the form of  travel accommodations and conference access  for mentioning HR Demo as a member of the conference blog squad in the above blog post. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s  16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”