Reflections on the TRU USA Recruiting Unconference

I spent this past Monday and Tuesday in Madison, Wisconsin with dozens of very experienced and very thoughtful recruiters and other human resource professionals. Unlike typical recruiting conferences where the agenda is pretty much set in stone and the sessions consist of a presenter delivering a PowerPoint and answering questions at the end of the 60 or 75 minutes, this was an unconference in that there were no presenters and no PowerPoints. Instead, each track or topic was led by a small group with experience in the issue being discussed and the questions and comments flew back-and-forth. Everyone was involved and everyone’s opinions mattered.
One of the most enjoyable aspects of the TRU USA conference was getting to see again and in some cases meet for the first time many of the thought leaders in the industry. Each and every person shared their knowledge openly and without hesitation, even though they were at times sharing the secret sauce. Geoff Webb did a masterful job of keeping the unconference on track and on schedule yet allowing for some sessions to run a bit long when helpful and others to be completely changed when something unexpected happened. He was calm and cool under pressure.

This was the third of these conferences put on by Geoff and Bill Boorman with the next two being in the Netherlands and New Zealand. I very much look forward to attending another when they return to the U.S. or Canada. Anyone who can fit these into their schedules needs to do so. You’ll walk away envigorated and enlightened.