Welcome to the first issue of Vibrant HR; a thought provoking monthly publication committed to inspiring and supporting personal and professional development within the HR community. For once, this isn’t about your clients or the external market; it's all about you!

In each newsletter you will:

• Meet an inspiring HR professional who will share with you the pearls of wisdom they have gathered on their journey of personal and professional development.
• Find two thought provoking articles that will support and inspire you to move forward in your HR career.

This month I am excited to introduce Alec Bashinsky, Deloitte Australia’s HR Partner. Alec is a true ambassador for HR and I am enthusiastic about sharing his insights with you.

We hope our publication inspires you. Please feel free to share it with fellow professionals!

Creating and living your brand

Being the CEO of Me Inc.

In today’s dynamic business environment we are all the managing directors of our own one-person companies, or as Tom Peters says, “the CEO of Me Inc”. Just as successful companies stand out, our own company needs to stand out too. If we can clearly communicate what we have to offer and how different we are from those that are seemingly identical, we can be confident that when the right opportunities emerge, we will be the ones considered.

Put simply, we all benefit from having a personal brand; a brand that is instantly recognisable. It’s not about being someone you’re not, but simply illustrating why you are authentically exceptional and unique. Something that communicates who you are and what you are committed to.

How do you come up with your own personal brand?

Start by considering these questions or asking others who know you well:

• What sets you apart from your colleagues?
• What unique contributions do you make?
• What values do you stand for?
• What are you passionate about?

The answers to these questions will provide you with the raw ingredients for defining your own brand. Once you’ve identified these building blocks, consider the behaviours and actions of someone who lives them on a daily basis. How would you know they were living their brand? Finally, to bring your brand to life, consider creating an image that represents your brand. Whether it's word or picture based, place it somewhere visible so that you can view it everyday.

Living your brand

Once you’ve uncovered and defined your brand, embrace it and communicate it to others through your words and actions. This will enable people to get a powerful sense of who you really are and what you stand for.

And what does this do for you? It gives you something that money can’t buy: a sense of achievement and personal satisfaction. You will be perceived as the person you really are, not the person you feel you should be. Once you have established your own personal brand, decision making will become so much easier, because you’ll instinctively know whether your decisions reinforce or detract from your brand.

So the next time you are facing a challenging decision, think twice and select the path that reinforces your unique brand.

The meaning of life for the HR professional

United we stand

We are a diverse but united profession. Though we have evolved into many sub-disciplines and adopt various forms and names in our different organisations, what actually unites the HR jigsaw?

Do people lie at our core?

• We find people, develop people, reward people, protect people, engage people and provide advice to people.
• Many of us entered the profession to use our people skills and to make a difference to the lives of others.

So if people are our core, it seems a little ironic, but understandable, that in order to elevate the credibility of our profession, we’ve had to move further away from this perceived “softer” world towards the “harder” world of our business counterparts. To be seen as strategic players and business relevant, we have tried to cover up our unique core by emphasising our commercial savvy and our value to the bottom line.

This journey has been valuable and generated significant rewards. These steps have certainly impacted on all of our careers and will continue to do so into the future.

Finding the middle ground

Has the time come for us to find a middle ground? One that continues to create value and credibility for our profession, whist helping us find meaning for ourselves as individuals? When we hear a business leader being quoted as saying, ‘people are our most valuable asset’, should we be scared that this view will move us backwards towards the HR of yesterday? Or should we celebrate that our core is being recognised? Our actions can directly impact the people in our organisation and their ability to perform and prosper. Isn’t it time for us to nurture our core and openly recognise the extra dimension that we add to our organisation?

Where to for you?

Why not uncover the parts of your career that give you true meaning? Consider what legacy you want to leave. Don’t be constrained by feeling the need to hide your true meaning or the core of your profession. Find it, embrace it and see your fulfilment grow. As a direct result, your business will thrive!