Like many of my Florida CFO Group partners, I like attending finance-oriented networking events like ACG, FEI, or the Florida Venture Forum. But I really love going to DisruptHR events. DisruptHR is a speaking and networking event that has spread to over 200 cities over the past 11 years. Their tagline is “the rebellious side of HR.”
Interesting Speakers
Under the inspirational leadership of Sommer Sherrod, Ricky Baez, and Leslie Mizerak, the DisruptHR Orlando events attract more than just high-quality HR professionals. The speakers and the audience have included experts in law, sales, marketing, entrepreneurship, leadership, communications, and even the occasional CFO.
Fun fact: Fifteen of the CFO Coffee Talk guests during our first three seasons have also been on stage at DisruptHR events.
And Lots of Fun Too
DisruptHR events are fun too! I learned that three years ago when Sommer asked me to speak for five minutes on how “CFOs are the Sonny to your Cher.” My fun idea for this talk was to plant Kim Shaw in the audience to be “my Cher”. Kim is a friend and an HR professional who is also a good singer. We got the crowd to join in on a singalong of “I Got You, Babe” – which was a great set-up for my closing line, “Don’t worry. I won’t report you to HR for calling me babe.”
For my second appearance, Kim and I led a singalong of “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” to cap off my talk called “HR and Finance – We’re the Rhythm Section.” Afterward, Sommer and I devised a plan to turn the next event into DISRUPTapalooza. We encouraged speakers to perform as rock stars. Sommer was Gwen Stefani. Florida CFO Group partner, Marylean Abney, joined Kim Shaw and my friend Regine Bonneau and performed on stage as The Supremes. Sommer asked me to be Elvis. It was great fun pretending to be “The King” interviewing for an HR Manager job while wearing his Vegas jumpsuit and singing the answers to interview questions.
Earlier this year, I did a talk called “Let’s Get Fractional” and convinced six fractional professionals to join me on stage as “Olivia Newton John’s” to sing and dance to a modified version of “Let’s Get Physical.” Thanks, Kim, for choreographing the “Let’s Get Fractional” dancers.
Last month, I found a way to end my five-minute talk by letting my alter ego, Frank Sinatra, take the stage as I led a singalong of “New York, New York,” which became a song titled, “DisruptHR.” Mr. Sinatra asked all the speakers to join him in singing, "We want to be singing to that crowd that never sleeps.”
And then, the Videos are Released
When I am on stage pretending to be Sonny, Marvin, Elvis, Olivia, or Frank, I really believe that I sound just like them. But then the videos are released, and I learn the truth. My singing is so bad that thoughts of these stars spinning in their graves linger in my head for quite a while.
I am grateful for the DisruptHR friends I have made. I look forward to every event. And I am grateful for my Florida CFO Group partners who indulged me by sponsoring the August 22nd DisruptHR Orlando event. Thanks, Partners!