ANNOUNCEMENT: The HR Happy Hour Podcast Network

I am super excited today to share some great news - the official launch of the HR Happy Hour Podcast Network, and the details of the three new shows that will soon debut on the HR Happy Hour umbrella. My co-host, Trish McFarlane and I are thrilled to be joined by such a great lineup of shows and contributors, and you can read the details of the announcement HERE.

Some quick backstory for folks who may not be familiar with the HR Happy Hour Show, (I know, shocking!), that will help explain and set the context for today's announcement.

Back in 2009 I was an adjunct instructor at the Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, NY teaching a graduate-level course for HR Master's students on the topic of HR Technology. At that time I got the crazy idea to try and record interviews with HR and HR Tech leaders, and make these audio files a part of the course's required materials for the class. I used the Blog Talk Radio platform to make the recording process a little easier for guests, as back then, even Skype was hardly in use by most folks, and fewer folks were recording podcasts on their own, in even a quasi-professional manner.

Since then, the HR Happy Hour Show has evolved and transformed. The first two or three years featured mostly live-streamed shows broadcasting at 8PM on Thursday nights, complete with callers, a lively Twitter backchannel on the #HRHappyHour hashtag, and even dedicated Google Wave threads!

In the last few years the HR Happy Hour has become a more traditional podcast, generally pre-recorded, or recorded live at industry events, and (lightly) edited to fit the now much more widespread and popular podcast format and formula. The last few years have seen a dramatic rise in the overall popularity of podcasting in a number of topics and domains, and I personally am proud that the HR Happy Hour Show was podcasting before podcasting was cool! We have had a series of great guests, covered the most relevant topics in HR, HR Technology, work, and the workplace, and had a lot of fun along the way.

And now with the launch of the new HR Happy Hour Network, these first three new titles, (details are in the release here), and to be partnering with such a great group of people, I am confident the next seven years of the HR Happy Hour will be just as much fun as the first seven.

Many thanks to everyone who has listened to, supported, or even guested on the show so far - stay tuned for more great and informative content, HR and HR technology insights, and hopefully - lots of fun from your pals at the HR Happy Hour Show and Network.

PODCAST - #HRHappyHour 252 - Employee Wellbeing with Chris Boyce, CEO, Virgin Pulse

HR Happy Hour 252 - Employee Wellbeing with Chris Boyce, CEO Virgin Pulse

Hosts: Steve Boese, Trish McFarlane

Guest: Chris Boyce, CEO, Virgin Pulse

Listen to the show HERE

This week on the show, Trish and Steve were joined by Chris Boyce, CEO of Virgin Pulse, a provider of market-leading, technology-based products and services that help employers improve workforce health, boost employee engagement, and enhance corporate culture.

Chris shared some insights on how HR and business leaders can evaluate and assess wellbeing and workforce health initiatives using data and analytics, and how it is important to consider measures of success beyond employer benefit costs and health care claims or participation. The most successful wellbeing programs use data to inform changes in productivity, engagement, safety, and organizational culture. There isn't a single measure for ROI on these programs, employers have to think about their unique and specific challenges to find the measures that will most impact their organizations. Chris also shared some important information around employee data privacy and how Virgin Pulse and their client organizations keep employee data private and secure, while still allowing organizational leaders to use aggregate and anonymized data to inform decision making.

Additionally, Chris shared his thoughts on why employee and organizational wellbeing has become a more global, and holistic phenomenon, and what that means for HR and business leaders in their efforts to find, attract, develop,and retain the talent they need to meet their organizational objectives.

You can listen to the show on the show page HERE, or by using the widget player below:

This was a fun and interesting show, many thanks to Chris Boyce and Virgin Pulse for coming on. You can learn more about Virgin Pulse at www.virginpulse.com.

Remember to subscribe to the HR Happy Hour Show on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, or your favorite podcast app, just search for 'HR Happy Hour' to subscribe and never mess an episode.

PODCAST - #HRHappyHour - Digital Transformation LIVE from Inforum

HR Happy Hour 251 - Digital Transformation & The Future of Work: LIVE from Inforum 2016

Hosts: Steve Boese, Trish McFarlane

LISTEN HERE

This week on the show join Steve Boese and Trish McFarlane as they come to you from New York City and Infor's INFORUM 2016.  

Inforum is the event where Infor hosts 7,000 customers, prospects, partners, industry thought leaders, and press/analysts from 74 countries in New York City.  They provided over 1,000 breakout sessions to cover all aspects of tools that help organizations manage their business.  As analysts who attend many events each year, we can safely say that from the HCM perspective, Inforum is one of the top events when it comes to learning opportunities and innovation.  They capped off the experience with an outstanding "thank you" to attendees~ a Maroon 5 concert!

We sat down after our main-stage presentations to discuss the increasingly important topic of how the workplace is changing.  Specifically, the changes that digital transformation is bringing is making a huge impact on how organizations work.  The way that business leaders are considering the approach to this transformation is paramount to many of the attendees at Inforum and likely, to you and your organization as well.

You can listen to the show on the show page HERE, or using the widget player below:

This was an interesting and informative show and we love bringing the news to you straight from the event. Many thanks to Infor for inviting both of us to speak at the event. To learn more about Infor, please go to www.Infor.com. 

Thanks for listening and remember to add the HR Happy Hour Show to your podcast subscriptions in iTunes, Stitcher Radio, or any of the major podcast apps. Just search for 'HR Happy Hour' to subscribe.

PODCAST: #HRHappyHour LIVE from Ceridian Insights

HR Happy Hour - LIVE from Ceridian Insights 2016 in Las Vegas

Hosts: Steve Boese, Trish McFarlane

Guests: Lisa Sterling, Jayson Saba, Ceridian

LISTEN HERE

In this special episode of the HR Happy Hour Show, Steve broadcasted LIVE from the stage at Ceridian Insights 2016Customer Conference in Las Vegas. Host Steve Boese was joined by Lisa Sterling and Jayson Saba of Ceridian to talk about some major themes and initiatives including organizational transformation, key issues in employee engagement and diversity, and how organizations can better align and organize to ensure the focus remains on customer success.

And since this was a special LIVE show from Las Vegas, you can be sure there will be some surprises along the way, including meeting the summer intern with the BEST internship ever.

You can listen to the replay of the LIVE show on the show page HERE or using the widget player below:

This was a really fun show in front of a live audience, many thanks to Ceridian to having the HR Happy Hour Show at Ceridian Insights.

Thanks of course to our show sponsor Virgin Pulse - go to www.virginpulse.com to learn more.

And be sure to subscribe to the HR Happy Hour on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, or your favorite podcast app, just search for 'HR Happy Hour' to subscribe and never miss a show.

PODCAST: #HRHappyHour 250 - Hot Topics in HR and HR Tech with Namely

HR Happy Hour 250 - Hot Topics in HR and HR Tech with Namely

Recorded July 1, 2016

Hosts: Steve Boese, Trish McFarlane

Guest Co-host: George LaRocque

Guest: Matt Straz, Founder & CEO, Namely

LISTEN HERE

This week on the show, Steve and special guest co-host George LaRocque welcomed Matt Straz, Founder & CEO of Namely, a leading provider of HR technology solutions comprisnig a full suite of HR, payroll, benefits administration, and time-tracking features for midsize organizations. 

On the show, Matt, George, and Steve talked about the continuing challenges that midsize organizations face around compliance and regulations, and how modern HR technology tools offer midsize and even small companies better access to leading and powerful technology solutions. Additionally, we talked about the increasing appetite for and adoption of mobile HR technology solutions in this market, and how at least according to Steve, we are entering a new 'Golden Age' of HR Tech.

George also shared some interesting findings from his recently released HRWINS report titled 'Where Purpose Meets Performance',  around employee engagement, cultute, technology, and benefits. Finally, Matt (beacuse Steve was irrationally fascinated), talked about Namely's recent TV commericals, and why they decided to pursue that marketing approach.

You can listen to the show on the show page HERE, or using the widget player below:

This was a fun and interesting show, thanks Matt and George for joining!

And thanks to our show sponsor Virgin Pulse, learn more about them at www.virginpulse.com.

Reminder: Subscribe to the HR Happy Hour on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, or your favorite podcast app - just search for 'HR Happy Hour' to subscribe and never miss a show!