Part 3 in The Future of HR Series comes from Buzz Rooney of The Buzz on HR,  for all the details on this series click here.

Time really flies. I can’t believe HR Remix has already been around for a year!! It is one of my favorite blogs to read – and Melissa has quickly become one of my favorite people in the HR blogosphere. I am so happy I get to watch and share her journey. And I am honored and super excited to be a guest for the Anniversary Edition.

But Melissa only gave 800 words max on The Future of HR so I got no words to waste on mush and sentiment …Here we go!

One of the things I noticed awhile ago with HR is how predictably cyclical it is. The profession goes from being Generalist-focused to Specialist-focused to Outsourcing-focused. About every 3 – 5 years, the focus changes and one of those 3 becomes “the hotness” again. I think we are headed back into “Specialist” time in the next 2 – 3 years followed by “Outsourcing” time.

Advice: If you are a Generalist, consider focusing more on one area of the HR space and become an expert at it – BUT don’t let your Generalist skills go completely rusty. If you love being a Generalist and don’t want to pick a specialty, make sure you like where you’re working and be prepared to bunker down in that role for awhile.

Social Media continues to be a game changer in the workplace … If and how to monitor it. How to write and enforce policy about it. How to use it in recruiting and engagement … It’s not going anywhere and HR has a real opportunity to be leaders and innovators in social media adoption for the business and workplace.

Advice: Get knowledgeable about social media. Use it for yourself for personal fun and for business learning and networking. Strategize on how to advance the goals of your organization and keep employees motivated in their work thru social media.

Along the same lines as social media, technology is also changing the game in the HR space … HRIS programs are getting more expansive. More vendors and programs are creeping into the space and adding value. Mobile technology is making people more accessible and changing both design, expectation and user interface … This gives HR a real opportunity to move away from the paper-pushing of the past and step into a more efficient future. It will make gathering, tracking and analyzing data much easier for us – which should free up time to be more strategic and develop value-added programs for our organizations.

Advice: Embrace the technology and use it to make your HR life more simple. Encourage and emphasize user adoption. Study trends and vendors to know what is and isn’t working in your industry so you can make wise decisions. Keep “mobile” in mind as more and more people use smartphones and tablets as their primary computer – but don’t forget the potential implications of mobile on compensation and the FLSA with how you classify and pay people.

And that’s it. Focus, social media and technology are the Future of HR as I see it. Get on board – or get boring, stale and left behind.

Buzz Rooney is a practicing HR Professional with over 10 years experience in the production, manufacturing and retail industries. She currently works for a large retail franchise handling employee relations, health benefits, COBRA, wellness, leave of absence and compliance.

Buzz has Bachelor’s Degree in Communication Studies with a focus on Organizational Communication and Leadership as well as a Master’s Degree in Human Resources Management. She is also a part-time HR consultant offering basic management coaching/training, process improvement, resume writing, compliance assistance and human resources generalist services.

When not working or writing or researching, Buzz is a single mom with 2 young children living in Raleigh, North Carolina. She enjoys mindlessly watching television, spending time with friends and family, reading, eating and sleeping.

Read more of her writings, connect and contact her through her website, The Buzz on HR