#WISHRM24 SMILE Team Spotlight: Mary Williams

It is an honor to lead the 2024 WI SHRM State Conference SMILE Team. This year's team is made up of six amazing HR professionals who are excited to share some pre-conference sneak peeks and share their conference experiences with all.

Today, I spoke with one member of the SMILE Team, Mary Williams, about her career, SHRM volunteering, and more!

Q & A with Mary:

1. How did you get your start in HR?

HR found me! My early career was in high-tech start-ups and so we all wore many hats and contributed in multiple areas (wore many hats). HR has long been part of my hat collection :-)

2. You are one of the founding members of the WI SHRM SMILE Team. What is your favorite SMILE Team memory so far?

I have many fond memories of visiting the Piano Bar and singing loudly and dancing poorly and laughing like crazy - literally a HIGHLIGHT of the YEAR every year! Last year's team had a ton of fun visiting the exhibit hall and taking photos together - I keep one on my bulletin board in my home office!

3. Which three sessions are you most excited to attend at the 2024 WI SHRM State Conference?

tough to pick only three... but...

-Sarah Noll Wilson!!!, Rebuilding Connections: Navigating Conflict and Repairing Relationships at Work and another session: A Year of Transformation: Harnessing Best Practices to Create a Coaching Culture

-Megan Nail, Pay Transparency: Moving Beyond Compliance to Strategic Advantage on Thursday, October 10 afternoon.

-Friday keynote: You're Mad. You're Stressed. You Might Be A Mess. Speaker: Colene Elridge

4. What sets the WI SHRM State Conference apart from other conferences?

It’s an outstanding, well-organized, and well-attended state conference. The caliber of speakers is excellent—many of the speakers are fresh from speaking at the large national SHRM conference stage. The vendors and exhibitors are impressive, and the exhibit area is much larger than I expected it to be. I am very excited about the SHRM Store again this year.

5. What is your favorite gif or meme?

Most used Hashtag: #BeKind

Favorite / most used Gif or meme is probably a version of "Sprinkle Kindness Like Confetti"

6. What are three things that should be on every conference attendee's packing list?

-Comfortable shoes you can walk in for 12 hours and 20,000 steps that you have already broken in;

-Pre-charged portable chargers and cords;

-Device of choice: my preference is my smart phone

-Notebook and pen to jot notes.

-Pack and plan to dress in layers for the temperature varied in the conference session rooms

-Bring your energy and enthusiasm to connect and network and learn

7. If you were to request a song at Redd's Piano Bar and Lounge, which song would it be?

That place is SO MUCH FUN!!! In the past years, we all LOVED singing (or shouting) "Don't Stop Believing" as a group. That's a great memory.

Meet Mary:

For over 20+ years, Mary Williams, SPHR, has brought a unique, common sense perspective to the business of HR. Mary inspires individuals to tap into their unique strengths, values, passion and purpose to create stronger, more fulfilling and effective careers & work teams. Mary has many years of progressive human resources management experience ranging from an HR Department of One for start-ups to larger organizations. She holds her Senior Professional Human Resources certification (SPHR) from HRCI. Named to The Most Inclusive HR Influencer List featuring the top 150 HR and HR-adjacent leaders, Mary enjoys giving back to the HR community by participating in her local SHRM chapter, HRA of Oakbrook. Mary was also a member of the SHRM Annual Conference and Exposition Blogger Team since 2018 and named as a SHRM Influencer for the 2021-2024 SHRM national conferences. She currently serves as Head of People at Pinnacle Advertising and Marketing Group in the greater Chicago area. Connect with Mary on LinkedIn or on Twitter @conmkw.

Follow the 2024 WI SHRM SMILE Team: https://linktr.ee/wishrmsmileteam