By Erin Engstrom

What do The Beatles, Mark Zuckerberg, Oprah and Henry Ford have in common?

These visionaries challenged the status quo and questioned the way things were done. In their own regard these four leaders were catalysts of change and progress through innovation and… influence.

Most of us desire to become more influential in our personal and professional lives but have you ever questioned why we rarely talk about it? Why does saying ‘I want to be better at influencing others’ feel narcissistic? Do people associate influence with coercion? Is this a Canadian phenomenon?

Not to be confused with manipulation (making someone think and act as you want them to), influence is leadership.

Developing and understanding the power of influence has been identified as a key goal for many HR professionals. In fact, we made it central to this year’s conference theme.  Listen to conference speakers such as Dan Pontefract, Gregory Schroeder, Louis Vong and Dan Ariely as they explore elements of influence such as:

• Understanding why people behave the way they do
• Discovering how you can you become more influential
• Unlocking the secret to fostering and attracting influential leadership in your organization

Cast your vote.  Who is the most influential person in HR today?

Erin Engstrom is the conference and events manager at BC HRMA. When Erin isn’t working, she can be found cooking for friends at an impromptu kitchen party or racing her kids between the pool, rink and pitch. Erin never stops—but that’s because she’s afraid that she would be too tired to jump back into the race of her wonderfully chaotic life. e.engstrom@bchrma.org.

Register today for the HRMA Conference + Tradeshow in Vancouver, May 1-2, 2013.