AC2021 - 114: Ding Happens! How HR Professionals Can Improvise, Adapt, and Innovate in an Ever-Changing World

Qualifies for CPD hours - HR Strategy - Professional Practice - Talent Management - Workforce Planning

Anyone can perform well when everything goes right. The real test of you and your organization is how you react when things go wrong – and they will! These make-or-break moments are the “Dings!” of life. Handle them well, and you come out looking like a rock star. Handle them poorly, and you can end up adding unnecessary stress, difficulty, and complication to your life.

As Human Resources Professionals, you are at the forefront of change. You are the first to hear when things go wrong, the first place people look to fix the problems, and it is your job to prepare and usher in needed changes in your organization.  In this interactive and engaging program, you will learn the fundamentals of great improvisation and leave with specific techniques to use those fundamentals to respond to change and increase innovation in your organization and your own life.  If things go 100% as planned for you every time, then you can skip this session; otherwise, attend and learn how to improvise, adapt, and innovate in an ever-changing world!

Learning Objectives

• How human resources professionals can react quickly and effectively to unexpected events in a way that reduces stress and moves problems quickly to resolutions.
• Techniques HR professionals can use to find opportunities within unexpected setbacks to get ahead, rather than behind, when things go wrong.
• Strategies to be a leader in your organization or industry by shaking things up and questioning assumptions to create your own unexpected events.

Avish Parashar

Motivational Improviser and Professional Speaker
Avish Parashar Productions, Inc.

Avish grew up in “exotic” Poughkeepsie, NY and now makes his home in Philadelphia, PA. Though he performed all through high-school, he decided to stop performing when he went to college to “focus on his studies” (his parents were very proud of this decision).

That resolve lasted only a few months, as the first time he saw an improv comedy show he fell in love (his parents were slightly less proud). One week later he auditioned for the campus improv group, got in, and the rest is history. After graduating, he started Polywumpus Improv Comedy, which performed regularly in and around Philadelphia for seven years. Avish closed up Polywumpus to focus on the speaking and training side of the business – using improv comedy as a tool to teach valuable business skills such as creativity, innovation, and adaptability.

Weaving together humorous stories, jokes, audience interaction, and improv comedy games, Avish keeps the audience engaged while imparting a key lesson: Planning is Important, but Improvising is Essential! No matter how well you plan, things will go wrong, surprises will arise, and the Universe will throw you a curveball. Your success and sanity are directly related to how you respond these challenges. By the end of one of Avish’s presentations you will have key tools to flow with all that life throws at you. Avish has spoken to the very creative (actors and directors), the very un-creative (accountants), the very casual (college students), and the very business-like (sales professionals). The end result is always the same – smiles, laughs, and a new way of looking at life and business.