Networking

Being a member of BC HRMA has great benefits. Recently I have been attending the round table groups. Such groups include: Recruiting, Training & Development, Generalist. Each group provides a chance to gain insight on practices within other companies and network with other HR professionals. One interesting situation happened to me while sitting in on a roundtable last week. I had decided to start a conversation with the person sitting next to me. I introduced myself and then she introduced herself. When I asked her where she works, she mentioned the name of a local gaming company. Surprised, I explained my background and interest in pursuing a HR career within the video game industry. We ended up exchanging information.

Bookworm II

I have been reading the book "Hiring, Managing and Keeping the Best: The Complete Canadian Guide for Employees" by authors Monica Beauregard and Maureen Fitzgerald. This great book really outlines the steps that should be taken in staffing and retention efforts. The book even provides structured samples to give readers a idea of format and content. Those with recruiting experience will find the read may provide additional ideas on how to approach certain staffing and retaining efforts.

Informational Interviews

I have been building up my network through informational interviews. Yesterday, I had an interview with a recruiter at a local game studio. I had prepared a list of questions including:

- what are some of the differences in working at an independent develop and a producer/ developer?
- how is the strategic value of HR preceived in your company?

After some discussion and mention of my other interviews, he asks me; from you discussions with of HR professionals, what are some of the issues employees have?

This was not a direct question I had asked but had come up indepentdently through discussion. However, I thought it was a great question to add to my list.

New Resume

JIMMY RAE OCKEY
jimmyraeockey@hotmail.com

SKILLS & EXPERIENCE
STAFFING
· performed job analysis and prepared detailed job descriptions
· implemented and monitored processes for attracting qualified candidates
· screened, tested, interviewed and hired staff on contract basis for small private college
· developed questions for both situational and behavioral interviews
· developed and implemented orientation policies and procedures for new employees

TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
· designed development programs with specific learning objectives to meet the training goals
· facilitated the delivery of development programs to groups and individual learners; used a variety of teaching methods (e.g. classroom, role play, games)
· established measurement tools and processes to evaluate development and training programs for effectiveness relative to the needs of the individual.

HR PLANNING
· forecasted HR supply and demand needs for growing private college
· researched, analyzed and created reports on potential HR issues affecting the college and on job opportunities for its students
· encouraged interaction between the college and its stakeholders (e.g. Private Post Secondary Education Commission, animation and video game studios, associations, and vendors)

EMPLOYEE RELATIONS
· developed, updated, communicated and provided support for HR policies
· developed a conflict resolution for resolving conflicts between school, staff, and students
· recommended action in response to known and suspected incidents of conflict

HR INFORMATION MANAGEMENT
· developed systems and procedures to improve employee record keeping and meet the standards of fairness and privacy
· assisted in the design and implementation of a computerized database system

EMPLOYMENT HISTORY
ENGLISH LANGUAGE INSTRUCTOR/ PROGRAM COORDINATOR, 2004-08
Nova Group/ G-Education, Oita, Japan

INSTRUCTIONAL SUPERVISOR, 2002-04
College of Interactive Arts, Vancouver, BC

ANIMATION INSTRUCTOR, 2001- 02
College of Interactive Arts, Vancouver, BC

COMPUTER ANIMATOR, 2000-01
Mainframe Entertainment, Vancouver, BC

PRODUCTION ASSISTANT, 2000
Mainframe Entertainment, Vancouver, BC

EDUCATION & PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Bachelor of Science, Business Management, 2007
University of Phoenix, On-line

Diploma in Digital Arts, 2000
Center for Digital Imaging and Sound, Burnaby, BC

CHRP - currently working towards designation
Canadian Council of Human Resources Association

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATION
BC Human Resource Management Association (BCHRMA), 2007-present

TECHNICAL PROFICIENCIES
Microsoft Office Suite: Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access.
Computer Animation Software (i.e. Maya, Soft Image, 3DS max)

REFERENCES
Available upon request

Going back to school?

I have been thinking about going back to school recently and take some Part-Time courses. I contacted a program advisor at BCIT. She will contact me next week to discuss my options. I was thinking about Occupational Health and Safety, Labour Relations or HRIS.

HR Bookworm

I have been reading a great book by Stephen Hammond. He has a background in law and is know a consultant, speaker, and trainer in the field of workplace Human Rights. The book is called "Managing human rights at work”. Stephen writing style keeps the reader intrigued by simplifying the language and by using real life examples. I have gained a greater understanding behind what people can and can not say in the workplace or perhaps should and should not, accommodation, and what constitutes harassment and I am not even half way through the book.

Business Cards

I am considering designing a business card for a networking tool during my job search. There have been a couple occasions where I feel it would have been professional of me to provide a card.

National Knowledge Exam

On May 3rd I wrote the National Knowledge Exam at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, BC. I got to the exam pretty early and refreshed my mind by skimming over the notes I had took during my studying. I was not too nervous. I felt I had done my best to prepare myself.
During the exam, I encountered a few surprise questions. I had not covered these topics in my studies in any detail so it was just a matter of guessing. However, most of the 150 questions, I felt pretty confident about my answers. I am now waiting until July to find out my final mark.