2012 Membership is available at http://2012hinthr.eventbrite.com.

You are invited to the January 2012 education program of the Houston International HR Roundtable. Our speakers will be Tom Fox, Principal with tomfoxlaw.com and Advanced Compliance Solutions, and Marcel De Chermont, Compliance Manager with Aceteon Group Ltd. Tom and Marcel will present “The Local Compliance Advocate: FCPA’s New Best Practice.”

The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) is a daunting challenge for US companies. A recent study found that almost half of the $4 billion in penalties under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) were levied against companies in the energy sector. Many of those companies are familiar names in Houston.

HR is a key component of a FCPA compliance solution. HR’s role can include the onboarding process, training, employee evaluation, succession planning, hotlines and investigations, background screening, and assisting with government investigations.

A new best practice has evolved in FCPA compliance and HR plays a major role. A “local compliance advocate” is the concept of embedding compliance in the local business unit. The advocate receives specialized training and becomes the local point person for the company’s compliance program.

Our presentation will outline how this concept came about as a best practice. Tom and Marcel will also speak on the practical issues involved in this process and how HR is involved.

Learn about this new best practice, the FCPA and more at our January educational program.
Presenters:

Tom Fox is Principal with tomfoxlaw.com and Advanced Compliance Solutions. Tom is also a Featured Columnist at Corporate Compliance Insights.

Marcel De Chermont is the Compliance Manager with Aceteon Group Ltd. Marcel is responsible for overseeing his company’s global compliance program.

Don’t miss this important and timely presentation!

You are invited to the October education program of the Houston International HR Roundtable. Our speakers will be Henry Noey and Max Maggio of Aon Corporation. Henry and Max will present Current Challenges & Opportunities in Global Benefits Management.

Multinational companies face constant challenges as they globalize and expand their diverse and international workforce. One of these challenges is managing benefits around the globe. Multinational companies are faced with a plethora of financial, legal and human capital risks. How does an international human professional assist their company in finding solutions to diverse issues such as corporate governance, compliance, and regional/country issues?

Henry and Max will present current trends, challenges and fundamentals for companies working to manage benefits around the globe. The presentation will include a discussion of governance, compliance, and regional/country issues and importantly solutions to these challenges.

Presenters:

Henry Noey, as Aon Hewitt’s Local Market Leader, is responsible for leading the Company’s services and managing client relationships the Houston, Austin, San Antonio and the states of Louisiana and Mississippi. Henry has more than 30 years of business and human resources experience, including executive, operational and financial leadership. He has served clients as a Senior Consultant and Account Manager in strategic benefit redesign, global governance, organizational transformation and change management projects. He earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Sam Houston State University and completed the M.D. Anderson Executive Development Program in Health Care at the Jones Graduate School of Business of Rice University. Henry also received his certification as a Global Professional of Human Resources from the Society of Human Resource Management.

Max Maggio is an Assistant Vice President at Aon Consulting and works with clients in managing their benefit, compensation and talent development plans all over the world. His responsibilities also include leading the development of business initiatives in the Latin America and the Caribbean. Prior to his transfer to Miami, Max was Employee Benefits Director in the Mexico City office and, prior to that, was the head of the Personal Lines and Employee Benefits divisions in Aon Argentina. Max has published articles in insurance and benefits magazines in Latin America and spoken at HR events at a number of chambers of commerce, the Greater Miami SHRM and at the National Foreign Trade Council. Max received a BA in Marketing at UADE and an MBA at the Miami campus of the Adolfo Ibanez University. He is a Certified Insurance Agent in Mexico and Argentina and achieved a Certificate in Global Benefits Management in US. Max is fluent in English and Spanish; operational in Portuguese. He is active participant of the Colombian, Argentinean and Brazilian Chambers of Commerce in Miami.

Don’t miss this important and timely presentation!

Talent, Talent, Talent (Presented by: John Burke, Lee Hecht Harrison & UH HRD Advisory Board)

Do you know the health of your talent? Do your leaders know how to manage change while retaining and engaging key talent? Most companies spend their budgets in human capital resources on the top and bottom 10%. However, that means 80% of your employees may feel ignored. Can you imagine how productive your company will be if 80% of your employees are just 5% more efficient/effective?

The bottom line: know your talent – where is it and where do you want it to be?

Don’t just do something – SIT THERE! (Presented by: Dr. Peter Bishop, Associate Professor of Futures Studies, University of Houston)

That’s right, sit…and think. Spend just 2-3% of your time focusing on the future and you will be better prepared tomorrow. It’s easy for businesses to forecast where they want to be in 10 years – financially, socially, politically, but what about people? What skills will our workforce need 5 or 10 years from now? What will the client of the future expect of your company? What if, contrary to what we expect, the internet becomes so plagued with spam, that companies re-focus their learning events towards pre-recorded (instead of Live) learning? What are you doing today to meet the future expectations of your company’s leaders and clients? How much is 2-3%? It’s just 10-15 minutes a day. Get ready. The future is now.

Cross-Cultural Learning (Presented by: Beatriz Arnillas, Head of Educational Production and Outreach, University of Houston)

Not all learning is received equally. Did you know that most trainers teach or “facilitate” using their preferred learning style? Along with our individual learning preferences, we each have our own innate cultural preferences when it comes to learning. Therefore, in order for learning to be effective, we need to analyze the learner characteristics in relation to the specific business needs and the context in which the solution will be delivered. Not only do we need to be aware of learning preferences, industry’s culture and context country by country, but also region by region within that country (yes, I mean the United States too!). Make sure you understand the context of learning and HOW people in your audience have learned most effectively in the past.

Storytelling: Ties that Bind (Presented by: Steve Dowdall, Cardtronics & UH HRD Advisory Board)

How have MOST cultures learned in the past? Storytelling. Think back to our first recorded history found on cave walls and scrawled on tablets. These early historians were instrumental in documenting what happened, but more importantly, they provided future generations with a cultural narrative to preserve HOW the group was expected and known to act.

So…How is your company leveraging the power of stories to teach others valuable lessons within the context of your business? What stories have you and your leaders created to preserve and steer your culture in a positive direction? Think about it.

Learning and Development in India – Presented by: Madhuri Kumar, Director of Instructional Technology and Adjunct Instructor of Human Resource Development, University of Houston

India has the second largest population in the world, the 11th largest economy, hosts a population with a wide range of religious, urban and rural, modern and pre-modern, ethnic and language backgrounds (though English is the official one,) and is expected to soon become one of the largest, most influential economies in the world and it is already to preferred outsourcing location for Western corporations. The sub-continent’s cultural context is significantly different from Western cultures, exhibiting lower individualistic index and a very long-term orientation index. How is a Western company to approach learning & development for Indian professionals who will work in the West? How to develop those who will work in India?

We want to thank Jim Molloy, a member of our Advisory Committee for his assistance with the program. Jim is also on the UH HRD Advisory Board and is a Senior Manager, AERS Learning & Development at Deloitte.

If you seek expertise on assessing, training or growing your human capital, consider collaborations with students, faculty and staff at The University of Houston’s Human Resource Development Program and Futures Studies in the College of Technology. Dozens of interns and faculty members are actively supporting our community working with small non-profit organizations to Fortune 500 companies.

If you like more information, please contact Beatriz Arnillas at The University of Houston’s College of Technology, 713 743 4637.

You are invited to the September education program of the Houston International HR Roundtable:

Introduction to International Organizations Impacting Labor Relations

Following this session, you will have a basic knowledge of the international labor aspects of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the International Labor Organization, Free Trade Agreements, non-governmental organizations, industry codes of conduct, and many other international bodies and global standards.

This program has been submitted to HR Certification Institute for review.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

• Please see our recent blog post on the value of networking and membership in the Houston International HR Roundtable.
• We have announce new membership fees for the remainder of 2010. Our memberships and sponsorships are for the calendar year.
• We have several graduate students seeking mentors from the group. Please contact the Chair or our Mentor Committee, Steve Youngblood, if you are a member and would like to sponsor a student. Please include a short bio.
• Please join us on Facebook and Twitter.
  

Directions and Parking Information: Heritage Plaza is across from the downtown Doubletree Hotel.
Parking is available at the Doubletree hotel or Heritage Clay Street
Parking Garage, 200 Clay, Houston 77002.You can park at the Doubletree hotel and walk across the street to the building – proceed to the 45th floor. Alternatively, park in the Heritage Clay Street Parking Garage – address of the garage is 200 Clay Street, Houston, TX 77002. If you park in the Clay Street Garage, park in any space that is not marked “Reserved.” Take the elevator in the Clay Street Garage to the Basement (‘B’). Upon reaching Basement level, turn left and follow the hallway until you reach the wall with the large ‘H’ on it. Turn left and immediately on the right you will see two elevators. Take the elevator to the Sky Lobby (‘SL’). Once you reach the Sky Lobby, turn right and proceed to the middle bank of elevators. Proceed to the 45th floor to the Deloitte reception area – this is the floor where the meeting will take place.

2010 Host Sponsor - Deloitte Tax LLP

Please contact us regarding other sponsorship opportunities.

• international compensation and benefits
• security issues
• global diversity
• cross-cultural communication
• localization of long-term expatriates
• relocation issues
• spouse and family issues

Submissions should be made to Submit Presentation with “Call for Presentations” in the subject line.  Thank you!

Jordan’s presentations are always lively and contain real-world examples.  His presentation will provide an understanding of the relationship between US and non-US labor laws and how they differ in their application and purpose, and will equip the multinational employer with the right questions to ask before implementing terminations and other cost-cutting measures.

Jordan Cowman is a Partner in the Dallas, Texas, office of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP. He specializes in international labor and employment law and counseling on employment litigation, international public policy, cross-border matters and corporate compliance.Mr. Cowman is a director of the Texas Business Hall of Fame, the Dallas Assembly, the Dallas Committee on Foreign Relations, and a member of the U.S. Council for International Business’ International Labor and Employment Law Committee. He was an employer advisor to the United Nations’ International Labor Organization in 2002, 2003 and 2004. He is past chairman of the Texas Lyceum Association.

This program has been submitted to HR Certification Institute for review.

The Contest

We want to honor and recognize our members that innovate and create Best Practices in the field of international human resources. This is the opportunity for you and your HR department to receive recognition for the creative and innovative programs you implemented during 2009.  At our March 2010 educational breakfast meeting, we will announce the Best Practice of the Year for 2009.  We believe that by honoring and recognizing creative and innovative ideas that you will inspire your peers and colleagues to bring solutions to challenges they face. Although only “one” Best Practice will be chosen as the “Best Practice of the Year,” we will also recognize a select number of “Best Practices” at the meeting.

The Rules

The contest is open to all members of the Houston International HR Roundtable.  Nominations must be programs implemented between January 2, 2009 and December 31, 2009. The program needs to relate to international HR and could be related to expatriate management, international compensation and benefits, immigration program, global training, etc. The program may include other departments or groups or even vendors. Multiple nominations by a single company are allowed.

Nomination form is available by clicking below.