Blog BLR

HRExaminer Names BLR Editors Among Top 25 Voices in Employment Law

We are pleased to announce that HR Daily Advisor editor Stephen Bruce, PHR, and California Employer Daily editor Jennifer Carsen, JD, have been named among HRExaminer's Top 25 Voices in Employment Law. This is the first list from HRExaminer to measure online influence concerning legal issues in the HR industry, and the third list to be released this year.

"To do the research, we used the services of SocialEars, the service from HRMarketer," explained John Sumser in the recent release. Sumser is founder and editor-in-chief of the HRExaminer Online Magazine. "Sources range from Twitter, Facebook and blogs to a host of online publications and business periodicals. Rather than focusing on purely social media forms of communication, the SocialEars approach attempts to paint a clear picture of what’s available to be read, who wrote it and who is talking about it...One of the questions they try to answer is 'If I want to be heard on subject X, who should I be sure to talk to?'."

Stephen Bruce was previous listed #15 on Sumser's list of Top 25 HR Digital Influencers for 2011. "I am honored to be selected as a top online influencer in employment law," said Bruce. "It is important for HR to stay informed about changes in employment law, and as our industry continues to move into the digital marketplace, social media has become increasingly valuable to relay content to our audience."

“I’m thrilled to be part of this list,” said Jennifer Carsen. “HR is not an easy job, to say the least—but HR in California is particularly challenging, given the state’s uniquely complicated laws. It’s our privilege to provide HR professionals in California with timely updates on the news they need to do their jobs effectively.”

This list places Bruce and Carsen in good company - also mentioned are Drive ThruHR Co-Hosts William Tincup and Bryan Wempen, as well as attorneys Eric B. Meyer and Daniel A. Schwartz.

Stephen Bruce’s profile on HRExaminer can be viewed here: http://www.hrexaminer.com/lists-online-influence-employment-law-2012-v1/7-stephen-bruce/.

Jennifer Carsen's profile can be viewed here: http://www.hrexaminer.com/lists-online-influence-employment-law-2012-v1/17-jennifer-carsen/.

For more information about BLR, please visit http://www.blr.com/ or contact us at 800-727-5257.

BLR Founder Robert Brady Named to ISHN’s Power 101 List of Safety Industry Leaders

Robert L. Brady, Founder of BLR® – Business & Legal Resources has been honored by Industrial Safety and Hygiene News (ISHN) with inclusion to their annual Power 101 list. ISHN is the premier journal for safety and health professionals.

The magazine wrote: “Robert Brady is an attorney and CEO since 1977 of Business & Legal Resources, a subscription-based safety, enviro and HR interactive community and management services delivering daily, weekly and monthly compliance and professional info across multiple media platforms.”

To be included in the Power 101 list, Brady had to meet several criteria, including the ability to reach a national audience and create a community of professionals through conferences, seminars, and special interest groups, branded media products, websites, web forums, and other channels that enhance the safety profession.

The inclusion also reflects the magazine’s recognition of Bob’s “innovation and creativity — development of EHS-related research, theories, models, performance measures, communications products, and best practices.”

“I am extremely honored to be selected to the ISHN Power 101 list,” Brady said. “It’s the result of the hard work put in by a lot of smart and dedicated professionals at BLR who produce Safety Daily Advisor and Environmental Daily Advisor, our free electronic advisory services on the latest compliance management practices.”

HR Daily Advisor Editor Stephen Bruce Named One of Top 25 HR Digital Influencers for 2011

The HR Daily Advisor^® announced today that its editor, Stephen Bruce, PHR, has been named one of the Top 25 Digital Influencers for 2011 by HRExaminer. The list places Bruce in the company of HR leaders such as Kevin Grossman, Trish McFarlane, and Sharlyn Lauby.  

“The people on the list are (quantitatively) the most widely read, the most quoted and the most published people on the general subject of HR,” said John Sumser, founder and editor in chief of the HRExaminer Online Magazine. “These are the voices that drive the marketplace.”

HRExaminer had previously released lists in 2009 and 2010. This year’s list uses the same algorithm to measure the size (reach), repeatability (links and tweets to content), and alignment (the way the writer’s content maps against HRExaminer’s keyword cloud) of each HR influencer. Stephen Bruce is one of only 5 HR leaders new to the 2011 list to make it into the top 15.

“I am honored to be selected as a top HR influencer for 2011,” said Bruce. “As HR continues to evolve in the digital marketplace, our team strives to provide our audience with the high quality content they are seeking.”

Stephen Bruce’s profile on HRExaminer can be viewed here: http://www.hrexaminer.com/lists/top-25-hr-digital-influencers-2011/15-stephen-bruce.

The full list is accessible via HRExaminer Online. 

For more information about the HR Daily Advisor, please visit http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/.

HR.BLR.com Named Best Government Information Service

We're proud to announce that HR.BLR.com, BLR's compliance portal for human resources professionals, has been named the Best Online Government Information Service at the Software & Information Industry (SIIA) 25th annual CODiE Awards.

The award recognizes the online service that best utilizes information in the public domain whose primary services include legislative, regulatory and legal content; public record databases, and government reports and data.

BLR CMO Kathy Greenler Sexton and BLR CEO Bob Brady accept the CODiE awarded to HR.BLR.com Tuesday night.

Among the criteria the judges used to select the winner were:

• Ability to integrate into work flow
• Content relevance
• Customization or personalization
• Delivery options
• Depth of coverage
• Ease of use
• Features
• Overall design
• Search capabilities
• Timeliness

"This award means a great deal because SIIA is one of the preeminent trade organizations in our industry," said BLR founder and CEO Bob Brady. "Our editors work hard. They've worked for 30 years--and continue to work everyday--to put this content together. Technology really enables content and that's what this association is about. We're thrilled, and thank you for the award."

HR.BLR.com helps HR practitioners and business owners manage human resources and employment law issues and requirements. This on-demand, Web-based portal features national and state-specific compliance guidance on more than 200 topics, including discrimination, medical leave, sexual harassment, termination, and unions. The website also provides daily news and tips, community forums, a weekly newsletter, policy and salary applications, and hundreds of training tools such as ready-to-use forms, customizable company policies, and job descriptions.

Forty-eight products from 30 companies were selected as finalists in the content categories of the competition, selected from more than 100 nominations submitted by 65 companies.

"The CODiE Awards represent excellence in the software and digital information industries. By providing recognition of the best new technology products and services, SIIA proudly advances the important role participating companies play in the digital economy," sai SIIA President Ken Wasch. "CODiE Award winners are a testament to the power of technology to deliver innovative solutions to businesses and consumers. SIIA warmly congratulates all of the winners and nominees of the CODiE Awards, whose innovation is essential for continuing America's leadership in the global knowledge economy."   

HR.BLR.com's sister site, Enviro.BLR.com, was named a finalist in the Best Online Government Information Service category. Enviro.BLR.com delivers up-to-the-minute state and federal regulatory updates and news to environmental health and safety professionals to help them stay on top of ever-changing environmental rules and regulations. It's an on-demand, Web-based compliance portal that includes a complete library of regulatory proposals and requirements, prewritten sample plans, training tools, checklists, forms, and guidance documents, as well as BLR best practice white papers and reports.

This is not the first time BLR products have been honored by the SIIA. Last year, our Employee Training Center won the CODiE for Best Workforce Training Solution, and HR.BLR.com was named a finalist in the Best Online Government Information Service category.   

We're proud of this recognition because we've worked hard to make our compliance portals the "go to" resources for busy HR and EHS professionals. If you're not familiar with these products, we invite you to take a quick online tour, available on the home page of those websites.

Below: Bob Brady talks about what the award means for BLR.

BLR Named a Best Place to Work in Connecticut -- Again

We've known it all along, but now it's official: BLR® – Business & Legal Resources has been named one of the Best Places to Work in Connecticut for 2010.

The announcement was made by the Hartford Business Journal and Best Companies Group, which started Best Places to Work awards program in 2006. BLR made that initial list, and it was selected as one of the best places to work in Connecticut again in 2007.

This statewide survey of employees and awards program was designed to identify, recognize and honor the best places of employment in Connecticut, benefiting the state's economy, its workforce, and businesses. The Best Places to Work in Connecticut 2010 list is made up of 25 companies.

“BLR is honored to be named one of The Best Places to Work in Connecticut” said Robert L Brady, CEO and founder of BLR. “Our managers and supervisors are the ones who deserve the credit for this award. They care about our products and customers, but they also care about the people who work for BLR. It's great to see them recognized."

To be considered for selection, companies had to meet the following eligibility requirements:

• Have at least 15 employees working in Connecticut;
• Be a for-profit or not-for-profit business or government entity;
• Be a publicly or privately held business;
• Have a facility in the state of Connecticut; and
• Be in business a minimum of 1 year.

Companies from across the state entered the two-part process to determine the Best Places to Work in Connecticut. The first part consisted of evaluating each nominated company's workplace policies, practices, and demographics. That part of the process was worth approximately 25 percent of the total evaluation. The second part consisted of an employee survey to measure the employee experience. This part of the process was worth approximately 75 percent of the total evaluation. The combined scores determined the top companies and the final ranking. Best Companies Group managed the overall registration and survey process in Connecticut and also analyzed the data and used their expertise to determine the final rankings.

BLR will be recognized and honored at the Best Places to Work in Connecticut awards ceremony coordinated by the Hartford Business Journal on Thursday, March 25. The final rankings will be announced at the event.

For more information on the Best Places to Work in Connecticut program, visit BestPlacesToWorkinCT.com. For more information regarding BLR, including job openings, please visit www.BLR.com.

BLR Beefs Up Online Training Resources

Just because you have a good thing, that doesn't mean you can't make it better.

Take the BLR® Employee Training Center (ETC), for example. Last year the ETC won the coveted CODiE Award for Best Workforce Training Solution from the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA). But we didn't rest on our laurels, not even for a moment. We knew there were ways that we could make the training center an even more comprehensive and useful training tool for both new and seasoned training professionals.

So now we're proud to announce the new and improved Training.BLR.com, expanded in both breadth and depth. In addition to the core of more than 100 online, self-paced training courses, we now offer indispensable "train the trainer" articles on a dozen different topics, including:

• Construction Safety Training
• Employee Training
• Online Employee Training
• Online Safety Training
• OSHA Safety Training
• Safety Topics for Meetings and Talks
• Safety Training Certification
• Spanish Worker Training
• Workplace Training

and more. And we've also added a library of free white papers designed to make you (or your trainers) the best you can be. Among the critical training topics covered are:

• 50 Tips For More-Effective Safety Training (Vol. 1 & 2)
• Building the Best Training Program: Your One-Stop Learning Resource
• How to Choose an Effective EHS Training Program
• OSHA Construction Training Requirements
• Teaching OSHA Requirements to a Diverse Workforce
• Training Hispanic Workers Effectively

We're also expanding the areas covered in the training center. In addition to our HR-Employment and Workplace Safety Training libraries, we're now adding libraries of courses for Customer Service Training, Environmental Compliance Training, and California Sexual Harassment Prevention and Response.

The hallmark of ETC is still your ability to provide high-quality, compliant training for your employees without hiring expensive consultants or trainers, and without spending all of your time preparing and delivering the training. With only a few minutes’ setup, your organization can have a complete Web-based training program with professionally developed courses, employee testing capabilities, and systematic documentation of employee training sessions and scores. Among the ETC's popular features are:

• Unlimited, Web-Based Training
• Easy Set up and Customization
• Professionally Developed - Automatically Updated
• Two-Click Trainee Invitations
• Trainee Self-Registration
• Flexible Training Options
• Comprehensive Reporting Tools
• Recordkeeping
• LMS Compatibility

If you haven't yet visited the Employee Training Center, we invite you to stop by and view a quick demonstration. We think you'll find it worth your while.

BLR Compliance Portals Named CODiE Award Finalists

We know it's not good form to brag, but, as Dizzy Dean reportedly said, "It ain't braggin' if it's true."

And the truth is this: Two of BLR's compliance portal websites have been selected as finalists in the 25th Annual CODiE Awards, sponsored by the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA).

HR.BLR.com was chosen as a finalist for the second consecutive year in the categories of Best Online Government Information Service and Best Solution Integrating Content into Workflow. Enviro.BLR.com was named a finalist in the category of Best Online Government Information Service. Forty-eight products from 30 companies were selected as finalists in the content categories of the competition, selected from more than 100 nominations submitted by 65 companies.

"This is the 25th year we have recognized excellence through the CODiE Awards program, and the 9th year we have offered awards in the content categories," said Ken Wasch, president of SIIA. "The competition is tough, as many companies are looking to make their products stand out from the competition. The innovations in the content industry shine through in the products selected as finalists, and we are very excited to see how the voting goes this year."

HR.BLR.com helps HR practitioners and business owners manage human resources and employment law issues and requirements. This on-demand, Web-based portal features national and state-specific compliance guidance on more than 200 topics, including discrimination, medical leave, sexual harassment, termination, and unions. The website also provides daily news and tips, community forums, a weekly newsletter, policy and salary applications, and hundreds of training tools such as ready-to-use forms, customizable company policies, and job descriptions.

Enviro.BLR.com delivers up-to-the-minute state and federal regulatory updates and news to environmental health and safety professionals to help them stay on top of ever-changing environmental rules and regulations. It's an on-demand, Web-based compliance portal that includes a complete library of regulatory proposals and requirements, prewritten sample plans, training tools, checklists, forms, and guidance documents, as well as BLR best practice white papers and reports.

Our founder and CEO, Bob Brady, said, "The selection of HR.BLR.com and Enviro.BLR.com as CODiE finalists by industry leaders reinforces the impact that our sites have on the professionals and organizations that use them. BLR is a leader in providing companies with expertly designed resources to streamline workflow, and to reduce the risk and cost involved in complying with state and federal employment, safety, and environmental rules and regulations."

This is not the first time BLR products have been honored the SIIA. In addition to HR.BLR.com's finalist selection last year, our Employee Training Center won the CODiE for Best Workforce Training Solution.

We're proud of this recognition—justifiably, we think—because we've worked hard to make these portals the "go to" resources for busy HR and EHS professionals. If you're not familiar with these products, we invite you to take a quick online tour and find out what all the buzz is about.

Bob Brady Named B2B Publisher of the Year

We know it's not good form to toot your own horn, but sometimes you just have to. We're proud to announce that BLR founder and CEO Bob Brady has been named B2B Publisher of the Year, and inducted into the Mequoda Hall of Fame at the Mequoda Publisher of the Year Awards.

The Mequoda Group provides research, training and educational services exclusively for the publishing industry, including best practices for online media management and Internet marketing strategy.

The following report appeared in the Mequoda Daily:

Brady told publishers in the room that it's extremely important for your staff to understand the purpose of your company as a whole. "We have a .NET programmer who understands how marketing copy is a part of our efforts at BLR. Just the same, if you have an editor with no sense of marketing, you're losing an opportunity."

"I think one of the big reasons I've been successful at this, is that I was free to make mistakes, and there was no one around, because I own the company, to fire me," Brady joked. "In the culture that we're all in, we need to allow mistakes as long as we learn from them. You need to make mistakes and immediately know what you can improve next time."

Brady reminisced about the first time he used a CD, which was basically an encyclopedia on disc. He said, "I went in thinking, what can I do with a CD? I make books! But then I thought, I have 600 page books, that cost me $25 to mail. A light went off that this was a real opportunity."

Brady went on to explain that the Internet happened in the same fashion for him. "Being outside the company, talking to the "propeller heads", and people who are experimenting with new things can help you in your own business".

On the topic of creating new products, Brady told the audience that "the customer doesn't know what they want, it's our job to take on the challenge and figure that out."

Congratulations, Bob -- well deserved.

3 BLR Products Named CODiE Award Finalists

BLR^® is proud to announce that the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA) selected three BLR products as finalists in the Association’s 24th Annual CODiE Awards. The SIIA CODiE Awards recognize outstanding achievement and vision in the software, digital information, and education technology industries.

• The BLR Employee Training Center (Training.BLR.com), won wone the CODiE Award for Best Workforce Training Solution.
• HR.BLR.com^® was chosen as a finalist in two categories: Best Online Government Information Service and Best Solution Integrating Content into Workflow.

Read more about the awards.

BLR Employee Training Center Voted Best Workplace Training Solution

We are pleased to announce that the BLR^® Employee Training Center, our on-demand, Web-based training platform, has been named winner of the Software & Information Industry Association’s (SIIA) 24th Annual CODiE Award for Best Workforce Training Solution. The SIIA CODiE Awards celebrate outstanding achievement and vision in the software, digital information, and education technology industries and hold the distinction of being the industry’s only peer-reviewed awards program.

Find out more about the Training Center's Award.