President’s Pen
by Andrea Davis, SPHR

Your board of directors and committees are busy implementing HRACI’s strategic plan. I’d like to take the opportunity each month to highlight our strategies and the progress we are making.

Become the recognized voice of HR in the local community
As you might recall, the foundation for our strategic plan aligns with the Society for Human Resource Management’s mission: serving the HR professional (STP) and advancing the HR profession (ATP). Our first strategy in support of ATP is to become the recognized voice of HR in the local community. While we all have a part to play in that through our leadership and contributions to the community, the communications committee is charged with spearheading this effort. The key objectives in this area include:

• Developing a plan to increase public awareness of HRACI. We are working with other business organizations (e.g., chambers of commerce) to explore collaborative HR educational efforts.
• Establishing relationships with local media. You might have noticed that we have made great strides in the area over the past two years. We are frequently called to be a source on HR and workplace-related stories with recent quotes in the Indianapolis Star, InTake, and Fox59 news. The communications committee is hard at work making connections with our local media. If you have any media connections that may help with our efforts, please contact Terri Ryckaert, Director of Communications, at editor@hraci.org.
• Developing a plan and ideas in order to serve as a resource to the community or local media on HR issues. One of the efforts under way in this area is to better link our members with needs in the community or with the media. We will be working this year to identify our members’ areas of HR expertise, which will enable us to utilize our resources more effectively.
• Producing and enhancing the quality of our monthly electronic newsletter. I won’t give away too many of the enhancements planned for our communications, but you’ve probably noticed some improvements over the past several months, including a recap of our educational programs and more up-to-date stories on current issues in HR. Keep watching for even more enhancements, including better use of all the great technology that will allow us to offer programming in real-time. If you are interested in assisting with the monthly newsletter, please contact Terri Ryckaert, Director of Communications, at editor@hraci.org.

Thanks to all of you who are helping make the great changes happen for HRACI!

Andrea Davis, SPHR

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HRACI is offering one scholarship in the amount of $1,500 to support a student pursuing a career in the human resource management field.

Application materials must be submitted and received by April 30, 2005. All applicants will be notified of their status in late May. Click here for additional details, eligibility requirements and application.

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It is always a good time for students to join HRACI and enjoy our member benefits like professional development and job services. Now is an especially good time, though, for upcoming graduates to become members. Joining now, students pay just $50.00 to become HRACI members. After graduation, the regular membership rate is $100.00. If you know of any students or upcoming graduates that may be interested, let them know more information on HRACI membership is available on our web site at www.hraci.com/HRACImembership.htm or by phone at 317-841-3236.

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If you would like to be contacted regarding HRACI volunteer opportunities, the following committees are seeking member volunteers:

Career Services
Be involved with planning and coordinating development opportunities sponsored by HRACI such as mentoring, Junior Achievement, Groundhog Job Shadowing Day and job fairs.
Certification
Get involved with this important HRACI structured group process for exempt level Human Resource professionals preparing for PHR/SPHR certification exams.
Communications
Represent HRACI with public relations activities that include the monthly e-newsletter, local media connections and general awareness of HRACI.
Membership
Help recruit and retain HRACI members by promoting a welcoming and nurturing environment for members to network and learn in.
Sponsorship
Help arrange monthly luncheon meeting sponsors, promote HRACI web site advertising and participate in creating new marketing strategies for our chapter.

Don't miss out on this fun and rewarding HRACI member benefit! Contact Tami Murphy, Volunteer Coordinator, at tami@temporaryavenue.com or 317-469-4141.

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IMPORTANT MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION

Up-to-date member information is important for us to be able to communicate with members. Please check the HRACI web site at www.hraci.com/edit.php to see that we have accurate information regarding your membership. You now have the ability to update personal contact as well as business contact information online. PLEASE INCLUDE YOUR PERSONAL CONTACT INFORMATION. This information is NOT displayed on the website (we only display the business information). If you change jobs and forget to update your business information, we will use your personal information to contact you.

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The HRACI Discussion Forum

Need advice on a human resource issue? The HRACI Discussion Forum offers you the opportunity to discuss HR issues with your colleagues. Visit http://www.hraci.com/forum/ to post a question or to offer your viewpoint on a question that has been posted by another member. Forums have been created for you to post questions and answers on HRACI programs, HR jobs and HR issues.

Did you know… The SHRM Foundation provides $30,000 annually to fund the Regional Scholarship Program? The scholarships support SHRM members working full-time and pursuing HR degrees or professional certification. Each of the five SHRM regions receives $6,000 to award to applicants in their part of the country. SHRM members, chapters and state councils may submit an application to SHRM by May 1 for consideration. Scholarship applications and complete details are available online at www.shrm.org/foundation under "Education Grants and Scholarships."
The SHRM Foundation: Investing in Your Future as an HR Leader

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Employment Expectations Remain Optimistic for Next 30 Days
(Alexandria, Va., February 22, 2005)—According to new numbers from the Leading Indicator of National Employment (LINE), February’s employment growth exceeded the sluggish pace seen in January. New job growth remains encouraging as most U.S. manufacturers reportedly plan to hire for vacant positions over the next 30 days.

Even though LINE and the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated job growth was slow in January, there was optimism among HR professionals that hiring would increase in February. This month’s LINE indicates, in fact, February overall job growth did rebound substantially from January, but remained below the pace of last summer. February LINE data also indicates that much of the job growth occurred with hourly production workers but not for managerial and professional positions.

February LINE Results
SHRM/Rutgers LINE identifies early economic trends and growth in the national job market by surveying HR professionals at manufacturing firms. The indicator reports on five employment measures, two of which add to existing indicators and three of which are new and unique to the indicator. An index value above 50 indicates employment is growing, while an index below 50 shows that employment is contracting. For a full copy of the report go to www.shrm.org/LINE.

Manufacturing Employment—February Index 60.4
The February LINE measurement indicates a rebound from January when job growth was sluggish. The January report, however, did indicate a substantial number of new vacancies among manufacturers, and it was expected that February job growth numbers would improve as employers filled those new positions.

Manufacturing Vacancies—February Index 65.3
An increase in open positions is among the earliest indicators of a shift in the balance between labor supply and demand. LINE’s job vacancy measurement for February indicates that HR professionals again reported an increase in the number of new positions, which is an encouraging sign for job growth in March.

Recruiting Difficulty—February Index 53.0
February’s LINE report showed no significant change in recruiting difficulty.

New Hire Compensation—February Index 54.2
February’s LINE report showed no significant change in new hire compensation.

Employment Expectations—February Index 70.3
The outlook for the next 30 days remains strong as HR professionals appear optimistic about short-term hiring trends. In January, most HR professionals said they had hiring plans for the next 30 days, and the February report shows that a significant number did increase employment. LINE’s employment expectations have proven to be a reliable gauge in determining short-term employment plans.

The February SHRM/Rutgers LINE survey was provided to HR professionals at over 500 manufacturing firms.

The indicator is released at 8:30 am EST on the fourth Tuesday of each month. A copy of the February report and answers to frequently asked questions can be found at www.shrm.org/LINE.

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The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) is the world’s largest association devoted to human resource management. Representing more than 190,000 individual members, the Society’s mission is both to serve human resource management professionals and to advance the profession. Founded in 1948, SHRM currently has more than 500 affiliated chapters within the United States and members in more than 100 countries. Visit SHRM Online at www.shrm.org.

The School of Management and Labor Relations at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, is a leading center of scholarly and applied research on human resource management issues. The school creates and disseminates knowledge that fosters a better understanding of the nature of employment and work in modern society. The Rutgers Master of Human Resource Management degree is one of the top human resource management programs in the nation.

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The Ogletree Deakins/HR Dimensions Human Resources Professional of the Year will be presented during the Indiana Chamber of Commerce Annual Human Resources Conference & Expo. The award is open to all Human Resources practitioners who are employed full-time in the Human Resources profession within the State of Indiana. Click here for further details chamber HR nomination form

Note: This is not an HRACI sponsored award. This award is sponsored by Ogletree Deakins and HR Dimensions and presented during an Indiana Chamber of Commerce event.

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Sondra Sorg
Michael Bolinger
Jama Tays
Leslie Dunn
Virgil Kessler
Linda Brummett
Lisa Lewis
Stephanie Volk
Roberta Martin
Kristal Pearce
Kim Myers
Kristy Morley
Laura McGrew
Javier Ramirez
Susan Brar

Robin Walker
Jenny Windsor
Janet Hambrock
Christopher Lower
Toni Richard Thompson
Philip Beanblossom
Tara Armstrong
Darien Paterson
Rebecca Schaeffer
Doreen Smith
Carrie Henry
Mark Wathen
Amy Gannon
Geraldine Sullivan
Erin Masterson