Blogging4Jobs Covers HR at SXSW in Austin

"Keep Austin Weird" with viral Grumpy Cat at SXSW

HR has hit the streets of our capitol Austin, Texas at South by Southwest Interactive.  If you are there, remember to tweet the following hashtags after your tweets, so your fellow HR professionals can follow you (#HR and #SXSW).


If were not able to go to congregate with your HR peers at or meet SHRM's social media DJ, Curtis Midkiff at SXSW don't be a Grumpy Cat.  We have our Austin Networking Mixer coming up in April.  Our event is headed by employment attorney Vanessa Gonzalez and it will be a great spring gathering.

Below are some SXSW articles featured on Blogging4Jobs.com.  Jessica Miller-Merrell is the founder of Bloging4Jobs.com, a workplace resource for HR professionals and business leaders is in Austin until Wednesday!  Her site was listed as a top 75 career resource by Forbes Magazine in 2012. Jessica is the president and CEO of Xceptional HR, a digital technology and consulting agency, and a published author of Tweet This! Twitter for Business. Jessica is listed as the 7^th most powerful woman on Twitter and the 2^nd most influential recruiter on the Internet. Because of vast industry expertise and knowledge, Jessica’s professional opinions and expertise are sought after and sourced by publications and media including: CIO Magazine, 20/20, ABC, CBS, Entrepreneur Magazine, and SHRM’s HR Magazine. Visit her About Page to learn more.

Top 10 Sessions in the 2013 SXSW Lineup for Workplace, HR, and Recruiting

http://www.blogging4jobs.com/events/top-10-sessions-in-the-2013-sxsw-lineup-for-workplace-hr-and-recruiting/

In our yearly installment of Top 10 Sessions in the 2013 SXSW Lineup for Workplace, HR, and Recruiting we are taking a look at sessions and meetups that you must attend in order to gain valuable insights in the HR, Workplace, and Recruiting industry. While there are 100s of sessions to attend, here is my advice in what panels you should pick to increase your knowledge in these areas.
The Real Problem with Hiring : It’s Way Too Easy (Friday March 8^th, 5 PM) Almost everyone will tell you hiring is a huge challenge. But consider how much we suck at picking people; look at marriage success rates. The real problem is that hiring is actually way too easy to do. It’s as simple as saying, “You’re hired.” View Full Description
Declaring War on IT Turnover (Saturday March 9^th, 12:30 PM) We have become a job-hopping culture. Company ‘lifers’ that maintain a career and knowledge in just one company for most of their working lives are essentially extinct. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, workers stay with their jobs an average of 4 years. In IT, the trending number is less. View Full Description
Your Desk Job Makes You Fat, Sick & Dead (Saturday March 9^th, 3:30 PM) The productivity of the average worker has skyrocketed thanks to technology, but it comes at the price of a sedentary lifestyle. Mounting research suggests that sitting at your desk for eight hours a day can have a dramatic impact on your health. In the 1960s, nearly half of all jobs required physical activity. Today, less than 20% do. View Full Description
Praise & A’s: Maximizing a Millennial Workforce (Sunday March 10^th, 3:30 PM) By 2014, Millennials (born between 1980-1995) will make up 36% of the workforce. This new group of workers, raised with technology and praise, brings a new set of expectations and demands. They were parented by overachieving Baby Boomers and GenXers who had their children running the rat-race in kindergarten. Primed at an early age to always think about their college application, these kids grew up in an era of grade inflation, extensive participation in extracurricular activities, and minimal free-range play. View Full Description
Millennials Speak Out: How to Manage the GenX Boss (Monday March 11^th, 11 AM) The media is flooded with stories of this new generation of workers, their need for constant praise, and perceived sense of entitlement. Millennials are described as arrogant, needy, and lacking in the work ethic found in the generations that came before. Research shows that Millennials are confident, interested in personal growth & communication, and have a quick ability to learn new technology. View Full Description
Destroy Your Cubicle: Make the World Your Office (Tuesday March 12^th, 11 AM) “The place we choose to live affects every aspect of our being. It can determine the income we earn, the people we meet, the friends we make, the partners we choose, and the options available to our children”. View Full Description
There Is an “I” in T-E-A-M (Monday March 11^th, 11:15 AM) For years, the preferences of individuals, or “I’s”, have largely been ignored in favor of the Team. Organizations have eagerly implemented team-building exercises and trendy collaboration tools to support team effectiveness and productivity; but in doing so, have overlooked individual work styles and preferred tools, leaving individual employees feeling frustrated and unempowered. View Full Description
Ok, Women Can’t Have It All, but Maybe No One Can (Monday March 11^th, 1230 PM) Anne-Marie Slaughter writes an open letter stating she never felt she could manage her job and have a healthy family life. Marissa Mayer becomes CEO of Yahoo! and announces she’s pregnant and working through maternity leave. Sheryl Sandberg gains attention with a somewhat contradictory suggestion that women need to step up, not take no for an answer, and work harder. View Full Description
Culture Is King: An Integrated Life Approach (Tuesday March 12^th, 11 AM) Survey after survey shows that strong organizational culture and philanthropic focus hold an increasing amount of weight for prospective employees when choosing a job. Yet, too often, employees are asked to check the other important aspects of their lives at the door when they come to work each day. View Full Description

11 Cool LinkedIn Tips for Job Seekers at SXSW

http://www.blogging4jobs.com/job-search/11-cool-linkedin-tips-for-job-seekers-at-sxsw/

South By Southwest 2013 is just around the corner and there’s quite a lot of online buzz about it… What started out as a small festival back in 1987 is now a giant mega-conference catering to lovers of music, film and all-things-interactive. More than 30,000 attendees are expected at this year’s event and that’s a lot of opportunity for networking if you are looking for a job or thinking about changing jobs in the near future.
LinkedIn is a must-have for jobseekers in general, but it also has a lot of functionality and features that can enhance your job search / networking at SXSW. Here are 11 key tips you can’t afford to overlook:
1. LinkedIn Profile: First and foremost, be sure to update your LinkedIn profile and optimize it. If you’re planning to network in person, then your online presence should be spit-shined and ready for the spotlight! There won’t be paper resumes passed around at SX; it’s your LinkedIn profile that the people will be checking out! Update your experience, add some skills, grow your network, get recommendations, make it SEO-optimized. Make it shine. Bonus tip: Consider mentioning in your Summary that you’ll be attending SXSW and would love to meet up with recruiters and hiring managers. This profile update will make your profile show up in SXSW search results and get your message out to your target audience!
2. LinkedIn Status: In the days heading up to the event, be sure to update your LinkedIn status daily to talk about SXSW, share articles about it and/or remind people that you’ll be attending. This is a great way to stay at the forefront of people’s minds and potentially set up a time to network “in real life” with your online connections.
3. LinkedIn for Research: Do you already know of specific companies and people that you plan to approach at SXSW? Do your homework beforehand! LinkedIn is the perfect tool for knowing more about someone’s background, experience, education and interests. The perfect icebreaker or key detail could make or break your conversation! Bonus tip: Apply for jobs online and then follow up with the recruiter via LinkedIn. Use SXSW as a perfect lead-in and reason to reach out. Ask if anyone from the company will be attending so that you can connect in person and meet the team.
4. LinkedIn Mobile App: LinkedIn’s mobile app enables you to link up with people you meet at the event and/or quickly research someone you’ve met or are about to introduce yourself to. Be strategic. Having a little insider info can guide you to know what to say, who to meet and where to devote your time.
5. Cardmunch App: How many times have you left a networking event with a handful of business cards that you never acted on? Cardmunch is a handy app that allows you to snap a photo of someone’s business card with your phone and automatically add them to your LinkedIn contacts. You can do it right then and there. Most recruiters will want to connect with you and this makes it easy for both of you to stay in touch down the road.
6. LinkedIn Company Pages / Groups: Engage with your target companies by following their LinkedIn Company Page and joining their LinkedIn Group. Some companies even have a Company Careers Group where their recruiters, hiring managers and employees engage with jobseekers. Gain insights on the company, learn about the company culture, reach out to ask if they’ll be attending SXSW. Find out where they’ll be so you can show up and network with hiring managers, recruiters and other employees. A little proactive legwork can go a long way in helping you network and stand out from the pack!
7. LinkedIn Signal: This often overlooked tool allows you to search status updates on LinkedIn, both inside and outside of your network. Use it to find relevant articles and recruiters, hiring managers and industry peers who are talking about SXSW. Respond to these updates, engage with others, find out who will be there so you can connect in person. A quick search just now turned up several company updates announcing that their recruiters would be attending SXSW (including details such as where and when). You might even discover a great opportunity, event, party or employer that would have otherwise never crossed your mind.
8. LinkedIn Today: This “morning paper” found on your LinkedIn home page highlights the most popular articles shared on LinkedIn and is even customizable based on criteria you select. Find great articles about SXSW, share interesting content with your network, remain relevant and active without having to repeat yourself everyday by saying “Hey, I’m going to SXSW. Who wants to meet up with me?”
9. LinkedIn Groups: Join LinkedIn groups related to SXSW. There’s South By Southwest (SXSW), SXSW Interactive, Unofficial SXSW Guide and even a group dedicated to the 2013 Tech Career Expo. Network within the groups. Let others know you’ll be attending and would love to meet up. The coolest thing? Joining a group means that you can message fellow group members for free. That’s close to 10,000 people, just in those four groups! Also engage in your other groups (job-specific, industry-specific) to see if anyone else is planning to attend SXSW. The hiring managers, industry peers and recruiters in those groups just might take notice and reach out to you!
10. Tech Career Expo: The 2013 Tech Career Expo is a two-day job fair held March 8-9. It’s a free event but if you pre-register, they will share your LinkedIn profile and top three skills with the 47 companies participating in their event. It’s a great way to get a head-start on the competition and get maximum exposure for your newly-updated LinkedIn profile!
11. SXSocial: Last but not least, SXSW has an online networking platform called SXSocial where you can introduce yourself, share your social profiles and mingle online with fellow attendees. Recruiters are sourcing candidates here, so be sure to include a link to your updated and optimized LinkedIn profile. It could lead to meetups, interviews and ultimately, an offer from your dream company!

How are you using Linkedin at SXSW?

Share your personal tips on how you are using Linkedin to land the job of a lifetime!