HR Skills Academy

SERIES STARTS MARCH 6

HR Skills Academy

  • Training Just for You
Register Here


HR Skills Academy

HR Skills Academy is designed for early-career HR professionals and those seeking a refresher in core HR functions. This comprehensive series covers essential topics such as maintaining personnel records, creating employee handbooks, and developing job descriptions. Participants will also learn behavior-based interviewing techniques, how to conduct effective performance appraisals, and strategies for succession planning. Through practical insights and real-world applications, this series equips HR professionals with the foundational skills needed to excel in their roles.

Who Should Attend?

  • Those in a position that includes human resources responsibilities
  • New HR professionals seeking to broaden their knowledge
  • Generalists who need a refresher
  • Anyone seeking specific training in a particular HR discipline
Register Here
Sessions & Dates

HR Skills Academy

This series is on Thursday afternoons over eight months.

Class
1
Thu, Mar 6

Personnel Records: An Overview

2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
More

Establish best practices for maintaining accurate and compliant employee files

While there are many options for how personnel records are established and maintained, they are essential on a wide number of fronts. In this program, participants will explore the kinds of records required, electronic options, maintenance, proper documentation and the regulatory environment affecting personnel records.

This knowledge building session gives you the chance to:

  • List the essential elements of personnel records
  • Summarize the regulatory environment impacting the establishment and maintenance of employee records
  • Apply best practices of when and how personnel events require documentation
  • Evaluate options for how records are established and maintained for your organization
Class
2
Thu, Apr 3

Employee Handbook Overview

2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
More

Learn the steps to establishing policies and procedures

This class explores the questions “why should I have an employee handbook” and “what does it do for my organization”. You’ll learn how your handbook is your calling card, a contract between your organization and your employees, and a critical component of your defense in the event of a legal action. A properly constructed employee handbook is a work of art in communicating mutual expectations, company policies, and your code of conduct.

In this knowledge building session you’ll get the chance to:

  • Describe the key components of an effective employee handbook
  • Identify the benefits of a properly constructed employee handbook
  • Review how policies are incorporated into the handbook
  • Evaluate your current employee handbook against the standards discussed
Class
3
Thu, May 8

Job Analysis, Descriptions, and Evaluations Made Simple

2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
More

Best practices for hiring, managing, and developing employees

How can you attract, retain, and manage employees without understanding the responsibilities of the position? Job analysis, job descriptions, and job evaluations form the foundation of many HR practices including compensation decisions, training and development, performance management, and creating reasonable accommodation controls. In addition, they are used as a tool for recruiting and providing a solid foundation for legal compliance.

This skill-building session gives you the chance to:

  • Understand the components of a job analysis
  • Discuss the do’s and don’ts of job descriptions
  • Write clearly defined job responsibilities
  • Utilize job descriptions to evaluate positions for internal and external equity
Class
4
Thu, Jun 5

Getting Creative to Attract and Retain Talent

2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
More

Creative strategies for building a strong and diverse workforce

A pandemic, worker shortages, wage wars and a host of other factors have complicated the process of attracting and retaining talent. This session provides a up-to-the-minute review of what your competitors are doing, national trends, innovative approaches and innovations in recruitment. We’ll look at how HR should manage the process and investigate how talent acquisition isn’t an event or just a process but a strategic approach to keeping your organization fully staffed and growing.

In this knowledge building session, you’ll get the chance to:

  • Engage in workforce planning to move talent acquisition from an event to a strategic process
  • Describe the latest sourcing vehicles and trends in acquisition and retention
  • Identify changes to your interviewing process and content to maximize effectiveness
Class
5
Thu, Jul 10

Getting Started with Behavioral Based Interviewing

2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
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A practical guide to hiring the right candidate every time

While Talent Acquisition doesn’t begin or end with interviewing, it is the pivot point around which the process revolves. Identifying individuals who match your culture, who have the requisite skills to perform or have the potential to succeed in your organization depends on your organization’s ability to discern the wheat from the chaff. This program is about the skills required to ask the right questions, listen (and see) the right answers and match what you see and hear to what your organization requires. You’ll leave this class with a roadmap to effective behavioral interviewing and an understanding that interviewing is not the art of asking the right questions, but the science of translating what you see and hear into a decision. This session is a good follow-up to Soup to Nuts: The Complete Interview Cycle.

In this skill building session you’ll get the chance to:

  • Identify the key principles and techniques of behavioral-based interviewing
  • Demonstrate active listening and observation skills during the interview process
  • Apply behavioral interviewing techniques to assess and make informed hiring decisions
Class
6
Thu, Aug 7

Designing and Implementing Performance Appraisal Systems

2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
More

Building a Framework for Fair and Effective Employee Evaluation

This session equips you with the tools to create a fair, effective, and comprehensive appraisal process tailored to your organization’s needs. From establishing clear performance criteria to ensuring consistent and unbiased evaluations, this session will guide you through every step of designing and implementing a system that drives employee development and aligns with your strategic goals.

This knowledge building session gives you the chance to:

  • Understand the Fundamentals of Performance Appraisal Systems: Learn the key components and best practices for designing an effective performance appraisal system
  • Develop Clear and Measurable Performance Criteria: Gain skills to create objective performance standards that align with organizational goals and ensure fairness
  • Design a Tailored Appraisal Framework: Learn how to structure an appraisal system that fits your organization’s unique needs and culture
  • Integrate Appraisals with Employee Development: Explore ways to use appraisals as a tool for continuous employee growth, development, and engagement
Class
7
Thu, Sep 4

From Discipline to Termination: When Coaching Isn’t Working

2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
More

Guidance on handling employee performance issues

Telling an employee that they are failing on the job is something most leaders dread. Telling them they’ve lost their job is worse. This session focuses on what happens when improvement doesn’t materialize after coaching. You’ll learn why these conversations are so difficult and how our own values and the organization’s culture and discipline policy influences our decision-making. We’ll review conflict and communications basics and provide ground rules for these difficult discussions. You’ll practice in real world situations to build your skills.

This skill-building session gives you the chance to:

  • State communication and conflict basics to prepare for difficult discussions
  • Recognize why these discussions are so difficult for both the leader and employee
  • Illustrate risk management by applying applicable laws to scenarios
  • Prepare for those worst-case scenario conversations

 

Class
8
Thu, Oct 2

Succession Planning: Designing the Future

2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
More

Ensure a smooth transition of leadership in your organization

What is succession planning and why is it important? The simple answer is it is a process designed to help organizations ensure a smooth transition when key employees leave or retire. Through a combination of lectures, case studies, and interactive exercises, you’ll learn how to identify potential successors, assess their readiness, and develop a plan to prepare them for their new roles. You’ll also learn how to communicate the succession plan to stakeholders and manage the transition process effectively. By the end of the session, you’ll have the knowledge and skills you need to create a comprehensive succession plan that meets the needs of your organization and its employees.

This knowledge-building session gives you the chance to:

  • Identify the “what and why” of succession planning, along with the risk of not planning
  • Describe critical success factors for effective succession planning, including roles and responsibilities
  • Conduct an employee inventory, using sample tools to create your plan
  • Create talking points for championing, building, and implementing a succession planning strategy to present to your BOD or C-Suite team

HR Skills Academy

Register today to be part of this series, network with your peers, and learn how to power your career.

Register Here
Pricing

HR Skills Academy


AIM Members
Non Members
Price per person
$2,400
Series Name

HR Skills Academy

Registration is currently open

Sessions Begin

Thursday, Mar 6, 2025

Registration Deadline

Thursday, Mar 6, 2025



If you need help registering, please contact Kallee McGraw or schedule a call.
If you need help or have questions about the Express Grant, please contact Rachel Gillis or schedule a call.

Interested in training grant funds to offset the cost?

Learn how you can access this course at no cost through the Massachusetts Workforce Training Fund Program by viewing our Learning & Development Catalog.

FAQs

HR Skills Academy


What is the difference between “Training Just for You” and “Training for Your Company”?
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“Training Just for You” is a training program that any individual from any company can sign up to attend. You’ll join a group of peers from other companies for weekly training sessions. AIM HR Solutions holds these sessions virtually; you can view our calendar of upcoming “Training Just for You” events here. “Training for Your Company” means that we will work with you to deliver training to your company, virtually or onsite. Contact us if you want to learn more about holding training for your company.

Are these courses available in virtual and in-person formats?
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All of our Training Just For You programs are currently virtual only. If you are interested in AIM HR Solutions offering this program virtually or onsite for your company, contact us.

Is this course eligible for a grant?
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This course is eligible for the Express Program or the General Grant through the Workforce Training Fund Program. To learn more about this grant and how we can help, you can download our Learning & Development Catalog. If you still have more questions, you can contact us.

Do you offer in-person training outside of Massachusetts?
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All of our “Training Just for You” programs are held virtually and therefore can be attended by individuals anywhere in the world! Training for your company can also be offered in a virtual format to employees located anywhere. We currently do not offer in-person training outside of Massachusetts. To talk about how we may be able to support you, please contact us.

Can I register for one or two individual sessions?
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Yes you may! In order to register for an individual class, please contact Kallee McGraw at KMcGraw@AIMHRSolutions.com letting her know which session(s) you would like to register for.

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