KNOXVILLE –- Forty-eight undergraduates studying human resource management at 15 universities will converge on the University of Tennessee April 7-8 to test their knowledge of the field.
The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the world’s largest association devoted to human resource management, is bringing the Southeast Regional SHRM Games to the University of Tennessee. The annual Jeopardy-style games will be held at the University Center.
Sixteen three-person teams from across the Southeast will compete in the games. Participating students will come from schools such as North Carolina State University, University of Georgia, Meredith College, James Madison University and University of South Alabama. UT’s College of Business Administration has two teams competing.
SHRM is the world’s largest association devoted to human resource management and created the games to help students study for the Professional Human Resource (PHR) Exam. The games cover six key areas in human resource development: strategic management, human resource development, employees and labor, compensation and benefits, safety, and workforce planning.
“The games test students in all the areas in which they will need to be proficient as professionals,” said UT SHRM faculty adviser Debbie Mackey, who worked with the national SHRM organization in bringing the games to UT.
Senior management student and UT team member Megan Scott joined the team in order to study for the PHR exam. “Practicing for the games gave us a structure for preparing for the PHR exam,” Scott said. “It’s been a valuable experience for me.”
Mackey said that the games are much more than a study aid. “The games build camaraderie,” she said. “They help students build relationships with other students and create connections with professionals.”
Each year, a group of certified human resources professionals judge the competition; other corporate volunteers assist in scorekeeping and running the event.
The panel for the 2006 games will include professionals from companies such as Denso Manufacturing, Kimberly-Clark, Panasonic, Target, UT-Battelle, and Nova Information Systems.
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Amy Blakely, (865) 974-5034, amy.blakely@tennessee.edu
Cindy Raines, (865) 974-4359, craines1@utk.edu