Recommendation: Free Online Courses

04 August, 2012 - Singapore: For the last 2 weeks, I have been burning "midnight oil" ... studying online on various courses (e.g., HRM, Legal Studies, Growth Strategies for Business, Behavioral Base Safety (aka BBS), etc.). All the studies thanks to this website sponsored by ALISON (based in Ireland).

You should give it a try ... as they say in Singapore, "You need to periodically up-grade / up-date yourself ... to be competitive"

Try the link http://alison.com/

ANSI-SHRM: HR Metrix for Investor

04 August, 2012 - I came across an article about an initiative by ANSI-SHRM to develop a "HR Metrics for Investor". It talks about what "HR criteria" investors are looking for when investing in an organization.

For those HR professionals who wish to have additional knowledge on this topic, you may want to visit the following website:

http://hrstandardsworkspace.shrm.org/apps/group_public/document.php?document_id=6504&wg_abbrev=mamt02

http://creelmanlambert.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/hr-metrics-for-investors-the-coming-ansi-standard.pdf

Getting a Degree via Life Experience Learning ... Diploma Mills???

Jun / Jul 2012 - I decided to apply for a "life learning experience" degree from an online university (actually two). I though it was a non-traditional degree and would be something new for me ... too my shocking after submitting my "very detailed" CV ...  I was informed via email that I was eligible ... hmmm!! ... more like qualify to earn a degree via my working experience and other paper qualification [e.g., associate diploma (in US is known as associate degree) from TAFE Western Australia, MBA from University of Keele (formerly known as Keele University), a diploma from Ascentis UK, a diploma from NCFE UK and 'currently' pursuing an EMBA from AEU]

Initially, I accepted the offer and paid US559 (including shipping & Handling) - then my wife told me that it was a scam ... I did some Google and You Tube ... and got a lot of negative review from the victims. I wrote to the online university to withdraw my application ... and still waiting for the refund ... they deducted USD50 for processing fee!

I am not going to name the online university but would like to share with all of you about this website  .... it is an education guide and has detail information about "Life Experience Degree"

http://www.bakersguide.com/Articles/Articles/Life_Experience_Degrees:_Are_They_Legitimate?/ 

In the USA, there is only 3 state college that allow "prior learning accreditation" and they allow credit transfer (in Singapore / Malaysia, we call it Exception) for subject you have taken ... they don't use "life learning experience". The colleges are Excelsior College, Thomas Edison State College, and Chartered Oak State College. There are also known as the 'big3' in USA.

I am currently applying for admission into Excelsior College and 2nd choice Chartered Oack State College. I plan to enroll in their online degree program in HRM ... if they grant me around 90 credit hours ... mean I only need to complete 30 credit hours online. [Okay x2 .. I know I have a double master already but I still love to study ... education is a life time journey!]

Skip-Level Meeting

Another typical American HRM term ...

Skip-Level Meeting is a meeting between managers and team members who are one or more levels below them. The purpose of a skip-level meeting is for managers to get to know their team members, build trust with them, and understand their problems. Skip-level meetings can never take the place of direct communications within teams, but it can be a powerful adjunct to these efforts.

Skip Level Meeting Key Concepts:

• Group round-table meetings are more efficient than one-on-one meetings for skip-level meetings.
• Leading organizations plan a skip-level meeting with every team or workgroup at least once per year.
• Don’t wait for your boss or the HR department to arrange skip-level meetings for your direct reports.
• There are five key steps to conducting an effective skip-level meeting:

1. Plan the skip level meeting
2. Conduct the skip level meeting and record the feedback
3. Analyze the information collected at the skip level meeting
4. Create an action plan based on the feedback
5. Follow up and report progress

"Furlough"

I have learn a new wording this week - "Furlough" ... so what does it mean in HR term?

"Furlough"... a temporary layoff, involuntary leave or other modification of normal working hours without pay for a specified duration. Furloughs are used in the military for soldiers whose new assignments have not yet been determined. For businesses, furloughs are used for a variety of reasons, like plant shut-downs, or in cases where a broad reorganization makes it unclear which employees will be retained.