The CSRA chapter of the Society for Human Resource Management, or SHRM, commemorated its new membership in the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce, Thursday morning. SHRM is an association for human resources professionals, headquartered in Alexandria, Va.
“Basically, we’re a bunch of people that work in HR and support HR,” said Robert Kelly, vice president of Augusta Staffing Associates and chair of the local SHRM chapter. “We hire the people for the companies here in the area, we train them and make sure that they’re happy at work. And today, we learn how to make sure they’re saving for their future.”
The association hosted its ribbon cutting at Enterprise Mill’s event venue, after its monthly meeting. Chamber president Russell Lahodny helped usher in the chapter’s partnership at the ribbon cutting, touting area HR personnel as “the backbone of [the] business community,” and praising SHRM’s advocacy of local enterprises.
“We’re always excited for strategic partnerships,” said Wendy Perry, chair of the Columbia County Chamber’s Board of Directors. “But it’s not just about strategy, it’s about family.”
That familial sentiment seems to be a throughline in the affiliation between the chamber and the association. The SHRM chapter represents six counties in the CSRA, including Columbia, Richmond, Aiken and Edgefield counties. Members have the opportunity to network, acquire recertifications and other forms of professional education, and learn about recent laws (the meeting preceding the ribbon-cutting entailed a presentation on the 2.0 version of the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement, or SECURE Act of 2019).
Kelly, who is also vice-chair of the Columbia County Chamber, underscored how SHRM’s Chamber membership will help increase the chapter’s outreach and resources.
“We’re making sure that the businesses that are members of these chambers that we’ve joined know that we exist,” he said. “We’re here to support HR and to be to build a community of HR professionals.”
