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Winter e-newsletter 2012

Branch update
CIPD South East of Scotland branch e-newsletter
Winter 2012
 
 

Message from the Chair


Welcome to our Winter Branch update. As we are blown into December with a mixture of high winds and driving rain, you’ll be pleased to know we will be running our Christmas Party and Quiz, hopefully we won’t get snowed off, and the March 2012 Scottish Conference is already taking bookings.

I attended the ACE in Manchester in November and my take on some of the sessions is in the latest issue of INFORM  The big message for me was the extent to which the CIPD is now being listened to by Government as regards employment issues and longer term policy.

In the New Year you have the chance to find out for yourself when Ben Willmott (the CIPD Head of Public Policy) comes to the Branch. We have struggled a bit to get a response to the various consultations that we have been asked to comment on and we hope that some of you will come forward to join a small group of local HR practitioners to act as a sounding board for future policy consultations.

While December is a quiet month for the Branch, behind the scenes we are looking at ways to improve the services we can offer members and into 2012 we will be launching our Mentoring programme. Apart from that in the New Year we will continue to offer a varied programme of events and opportunities to hear key speakers from the local HR community so I look forward to your continued support.

As it is the last update before Christmas and the New Year, and it looks like next year will bring no better news for employment and economic wellbeing than this one, I am sure that you will continue to rise to the challenges ahead. So, on behalf of all the Branch Committee may I wish you all a peaceful and restful break and a Happy Christmas and a Good New Year.

See you in 2012.

Chris Donegan
Chair

 
Branch events coming up ...
 
HR Leadership - Wednesday 18 January
Standard Life’s Group Transformation & Operations Director Sandy Begbie will be presenting at our first event in the New Year. Sandy recently won the Hr Network Outstanding Contribution to Scottish HR award. He joined Standard Life in April 2010 was recognised by an independent judging panel for his services to HR in Scotland and the UK.

Motivating Change, Tools to help you be Lean and Keen in 2012 - Wednesday 25 January
During this session we shall look at ways in which our approach to change can affect the outcome, and discover how savings can be made in time and effort by thinking differently. All with a view to achieving desired outcomes more easily! The session will be run by Lesley McDonald, an international NLP coach, trainer, consultant and speaker.

How the CIPD shapes government policy - Wednesday 8 February
Ben Willmott, Head of Public Policy at CIPD, joins us in Edinburgh to describe the route through which CIPD can influence Public Policy. His talk will cover the purpose of CIPD Public Policy work, how this is undertaken and how ‘influencing’ is achieved. Ben will conclude by looking at the key areas for 2012/13 and how CIPD knows if it has made a difference.

Practical Motivation - Wednesday 15 February
There are several theories about motivation, so what stands up best in the current work climate? Tony Reeves will be facilitating discussion around this topic and looking at what we can do, so that we can support a keen workforce. Tony is a familiar face at our CIPD meetings and has inspired many a student studying at Napier University where he was an HR lecturer.

Find further details on all branch events here.
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Scottish HR Conference 2012
 

Book now for our 2012 Scottish HR Conference which takes place at the Doubletree Dunblane Hydro on 8th and 9th March. We’re offering early bird discounts on day delegate rates and residential packages booked before 30th December.

The conference features an impressive range of keynote speakers from leading organisations including IBM, PwC, RBS, CIPD, Cass Business School and one of the UK’s highest profile head teachers. The event also includes our Annual Employment Law day, and workshops on HR in the Public Sector, Managing Redundancy, Organisation Development, Team Building and Developing Skills for Profit.
 
Visit our website for more information

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New, simplified membership upgrading process now online

Now is an ideal time to look at upgrading. We have streamlined the forms you need to submit - making them much easier to complete for both you and your colleagues providing feedback. The standards and criteria against which you are assessed have not changed, but you should find the online process is now much more straightforward. You can find out more here.

The membership section of the CIPD web site includes some useful tips on preparing to upgrade. You can also contact a member of the Branch membership team to review your upgrade application before submitting it. If you are currently a Graduate member you can take advantage of the free automatic regrade to Associate Membership. To do this you do not need to complete any forms, just contact the CIPD Membership team directly on 020 8612 6208.

 
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Update on Branch mentoring programme
Thank you to everyone who responded to our call for members to volunteer as mentors and help set up the programme - we had a terrific response!  The Steering Group is now formulating the details of the scheme and we hope to be able to launch to members interested in being mentored in early 2012.

This will be a free service to Branch members, offering mentoring from trained mentors to help you develop professionally. We have a large and diverse group of volunteer mentors who have come forward, so once the training is complete we aim to make the programme available as widely as possible.

Whether you're a student, not currently working in HR, looking to work internationally or develop your career in some other way, we hope to offer you some valuable support. If you are interested in being mentored, you will need to apply to join the programme. Application forms should be available early next year.

Volunteering vacancies
Your branch is always looking for new members to join the committee/special interest groups. It is a good opportunity to network, meet new people and add to your CPD. You can help plan and support events and contribute to the development of the branch. The time commitment can be suited to your availability. For further information, contact the Branch Administrator.

E-mail Updates
If you would like to register to receive regular updates on branch and other
events, please go to the branch web-site home page and click on the purple box.

 

Place your advert here

If you would like further details on how to advertise in this box, contact the Branch Administrator.

 
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