With the SHRM Annual Conference almost upon us, HR professionals everywhere are filling up their itineraries for their visit to the Windy City. But if you aren’t a local, how are you supposed to know what is worth your time and what is truly a waste?
Tourist traps are expected in every large city. As locals, we here at Workforce.com feel like it is our duty to ensure you DON’T spend your time and money at some of these admittedly alluring locations.
Check out this list of tourist traps to skip while in town:
1. The WNDR Museum
The WNDR Museum in Chicago is often considered a tourist trap, as it focuses more on providing Instagrammable moments than meaningful art experiences for middle and high schoolers. Given the limited depth and originality of the installations, the hefty admission fee is hard to justify, making it a disappointing visit for those expecting a genuine museum experience.
2. 360 Chicago Tilt
The 360 Tilt in Chicago is frequented by out-of-towners but offers a brief, overpriced experience with minimal payoff. Located at the top of the John Hancock Center, the attraction tilts visitors outward for a few seconds to provide a unique but fleeting view of the city. Many find the $20+ ticket price does not match the short duration and long lines, especially when compared to the free or more reasonably priced observation points in the city that offer equally stunning views without the gimmick.
3. Museum of Ice Cream
Another Instagram trap with a ticket price of $50+ per person. The steep ticket prices gain visitors access to a series of brightly colored, themed rooms that are more about photo opportunities than immersive or informative experiences. The limited sampling of actual ice cream is underwhelming compared to the cost. Go to Jeni’s Ice Cream for ice cream that’s actually worthwhile.
4. Giordano’s Pizza
Giordano’s Pizza in Chicago is often seen as a tourist trap because it capitalizes on its reputation without delivering the authentic deep-dish experience that we locals prefer. While heavily marketed to those coming from out of town, its pizza tends to be overly doughy and lacking in a flavorful sauce and the ideal crust that defines authentic Chicago-style pizza. You can get Giordano’s in the frozen foods section of almost any grocery store in the nation. Instead, I would strongly recommend Pequod’s or Lou Malnatis.
4. The Starbucks Reserve on Michigan Ave
As they have a great espresso martini, the Starbucks Reserve’s crowds aren’t worth their prices. While the building is an elaborate, multi-story setup with unique menu items and brewing methods, the experience is usually accompanied by long lines and a busy atmosphere. Many find the prices hard to justify, especially when the quality of the coffee isn’t significantly better than what is available at standard Starbucks locations. I’d check out a local coffee roaster rather than your run-of-the-mill Venti coffee from Starbucks.
5. Navy Pier Ferris Wheel
Navy Pier should be walked through for its historical significance to the city, but no need to partake in any of its tourist attractions, such as the Ferris Wheel. Despite its iconic status, the ride provides a short and relatively unremarkable view of the city, which many visitors find disappointing given the high ticket cost. The surrounding area is typically crowded and heavily commercialized, detracting from the overall enjoyment.
6. The Bean
I hate to break it to you, but our beloved bean is under construction until mid-August. Regardless, the site is typically swamped with tourists, making it difficult to appreciate or capture it without crowds fully. Compared to the many culturally and historically rich attractions in Chicago, the Bean tends to be a superficial stop that doesn’t offer much beyond a photo opportunity, making it feel a bit overrated. I still highly recommend strolling through Millenium Park but be warned that you might not get the view of the Bean that you’re hoping for.
HR professionals everywhere rejoice – the SHRM Annual Conference is almost upon us. From June 23rd to the 26th, people from across the country will convene in Chicago to network, share stories, and discuss bold new strategies in the field of human resources.
But what happens during the downtime—that strange limbo between speaker sessions, exhibition events, and gastronomic endeavors out on the town?
Lucky for you, our team here at Workforce.com calls the Windy City home. As such, we see it as our duty to not only attend the conference but also keep you informed about the best things to do during your downtime.
Here is an extensive list of all Chicago has to offer during the conference week. From concerts to comedy shows to sporting events to musicals, there’s always something worth checking out, no matter the day of the week.
With the 2024 SHRM Annual Conference & Expo right around the corner, HR folks everywhere are understandably beefing up their itineraries for a four-day stay in Chicago, the host city.
As fate would have it, our team at Workforce.com is headquartered in the Windy City. As locals, we feel obligated to share our insider information on the best restaurants to hit while visiting the city. Of course, as any true local would know, we can’t share the closest guarded spots with you. But this is still a pretty thorough guide, so don’t worry.
Here is our list of must-tries categorized by neighborhoods from several local, self-proclaimed foodies in our office:
LEGEND:
C = Casual
B = Breakfast
L/D = Lunch/Dinner
D = Dessert
Restaurants
Lakeview
C B Ann Sathers – Iconic breakfast spot that serves some of the best cinnamon rolls you’ve ever had. Get the eggs benedict and some rolls to go.
C L/D Will’s Northwoods Inn – Lively casual sports bar with neighborhood vibes. Don’t miss the chicken ceasar chicken wraps, cheese curds, and onion rings.
L/D Dear Margaret – A very cozy, classic french restaurant, perfect for smaller groups and couples. Start off with the charcuterie, a glass of wine, and the duck bolognese for an entree.
Lincoln Park
C L/D Old Pueblo Cantina – Mexican joint with great tacos and even better margaritas.
C L/D Pequod’s Pizza – Iconic pizza that serves what’s arguably the best Chicago deep-dish style pizza in town.
D Annette’s Italian Ice – Window-service ice cream and frozen yogurt shop that specializes in their Italian ice. Known for their fruit flavors like lemon, blood orange, and passion fruit, don’t forget to bring cash!
Logan Square
L/D Cellar Door Provisions – A chill, laid back wine bar whose menu landed it a spot on the Michelin Guide. Please for the love of God, don’t miss out on the burger. One of my favorites in the city.
B D Sugar Moon – A bakery adored with an overwhelming amount of goods, each one of them more delicious and creative than the next. Don’t skip out on their jalapeno-cheddar scones or their tahini chocolate chip cookie.
B L/D Lula Cafe – New american food served in a very old school manner. For breakfast, get the french toast, the breakfast burrito, and/or the tofu and vegetable scramble. For dinner, the pasta Yiayia, fried mushrooms, and sweet and sour onion focaccia are standouts.
Palmer Square / Bucktown
C B Allez Cafe – If you’re looking for one of the best breakfast sandwiches in Chicago, look no further than Allez Cafe. My suggestion: one breakfast sandwich with a cream top coffee. Thank me later.
D Margie’s Candies – Over 100 years old, this ice cream shop is something to behold. I could drink the hot fudge from their infamous sundaes with a straw…
L/D Giant – This is the place you bring someone to when you’re really trying to impress them. Their ever changing menu makes it hard to recommend specific menu items, however you truly can’t go wrong.
West Town
C L/D Mott St – Asian fusion with a great outdoor space and an even better burger (only served prior to 7 pm!)
L/D Kai Zan – Amazing, fresh, quality sushi served at a reasonable price. If you’re feeling up for it, their 10+ course omakase menu for $90 has yet to be beat.
L/D Lao Peng You – Featured in The Bear, this chinese spot has some of the best dumplings and noodles in the city. With no reservations, I’d recommend going for lunch if possible.
Old Town
C L/D Ranalli’s – Sports bar that caters to huge groups, great outdoor space, and even better food. You cannot leave without having the hot honey soppressata pizza. Also, a special shout out to their chicken fingers… best I’ve ever had.
L/D Topo Gigio Ristorante – When you think of an old school Italian spot, this is it. The perfect order: an espresso martini, the calamari, Conchiglie Alla Sarda pasta, and tiramisu to finish. You might not sleep but it’ll be worth it, I promise.
C B Nookies on Wells – An adorable breakfast spot notable for their french toast, crepes (sweet or savory), and eggs benedict.
Gold Coast
L/D Gibson’s – A classic white table-cloth all-American steakhouse. Known for their surf & turf and their absolutely massive desserts – the carrot cake slice is something to behold.
L/D 3 Arts Club Cafe at RH Chicago – One of the most beautiful restaurants is in the historic landmark where Restoration Hardware resides. Their lobster roll is a 10 out of 10.
C B The Original Pancake House – A breakfast chain that has a place near and dear to my heart. I’ve been getting their 49er pancakes with a side of extra crispy bacon for the past 20 years and I don’t plan on stopping anytime soon.
River North
C B Doma Cafe – Small, european-influenced breakfast spot known for their hash browns, cevapi, olive oil cake, and burek.
L/D Lil’ Ba-Ba-Reeba! – Spanish tapas perfect for big groups. Must-haves: the dates, the brussel sprout salad, and the patatas bravas.
L/D Bavette’s Bar & Boeuf – My favorite restaurant in the city, hands down. Albeit, a more pricey option, but offers immaculate vibes, top-notch service, a french dip that will knock your socks off, a wedge salad worth crying over, and an ice cream sundae that I dream about. Can’t get a reservation, try their sister restaurant just next door: Gilt Bar.
West Loop
C L/D Green Street Smoked Meats – Open concept BBQ hidden in an alleyway offering some of the best BBQ Chicago (& beyond) has to offer.
L/D Duck Duck Goat – From Top-Chef and Chicago icon, Stephanie Izard’s take on Chinese fusion is done beautifully here. Please get the goat slap noodles, xiao long bao, braised short ribs, and the duck fried rice. Oh and save room for the seasonal soft serve ice cream.
L/D Au Cheval – All I have to say is they are known for their burger for good reason. Be sure to get it with their bacon.
Greektown
C L/D Greek Islands – Arguably the best Greek restaurant in Greektown, this place lives up to its name. Keep it classic with some saganaki, moussaka, and grape leaves.
D B Lou Mitchell’s – Opened in 1923, this old school diner is perfect for the classics: silver dollar pancakes, waffles, a Denver omelet (hobo style), and a side of raisin toast.
L/D Monteverde – One of Chicago’s most popular Italian restaurants. Hard to get a reservation with their handmade pasta and amazing appetizers. If you are able to snag a spot, start with the Burrata E Ham, any of their pastas for your main will most definitely suffice, and end with the butterscotch dessert or the tiramisu.
The Loop
L/D Cindy’s Rooftop – This rooftop restaurant and bar has incredible views of the lake and Grant Park. I recommend going for happy hour and grabbing a drink or two with a couple starters.
C B L/D Revival Food Hall – This place caters to everyone and anyone. A huge food hall that truly has the best of the best. From their on-site cafe for your coffee, to artisan sandwiches at Danke, fresh poke from Aloha Poke, health-focused bowls from Fare, and so much more. Definitely worth just checking out if you’re in the area.
C B L/D The Exchange – This place is pretty unassuming on the outside, but once you’re sat inside their atrium, you’ll understand why I strongly recommend this place. I encourage going for lunch and grabbing their turkey club sandwich with a side of fries.
South Loop
C L/D Nepal House – Authentic Nepalese Indian food can be found here. Keep it simple with their garlic naan, chicken makhani, and Momo’s.
L/D Bistro Monadnock – This french bistro is located in the historic Monadnock building. I strongly suggest grabbing a french onion soup to start as well as their croque madame for an early lunch.
C B Eleven City Diner – Another iconic Chicago diner serving up some old-school Jewish favorites. Think matzo ball soup, pastrami on rye, and a brisket sandwich on brioche-like Challah. Beyond good.
Bridgeport
D Runaway Cow – Newly opened vegan ice cream spot that serves oat-based soft-serve. I swear non-vegans won’t be able to tell the difference. It’s that delicious. Get a snowstorm; their take on a Dairy Queen Blizzard.
C L/D Kimski – This casual korean-polish fusion sounds like it might not work, but I promise it does. Don’t believe me? Get their Maria’s Standard and report back to me.
C L/D The Duck Inn – Worth it simply for their outdoor space. I’d sit outside and order the duck for two, prawns, and the mushrooms and polenta.
Chinatown
C L/D QXY Dumplings – This place is worth the wait. Put your name down, walk around Chinatown, and be prepared to feast on some unreal soup dumplings. Specifically the pork and cabbage, beef and onion, and the lamb and coriander. I also recommend getting a side of kimchi, wood ear mushrooms, and cucumber salad.
C L/D Go 4 Food – This casual Chinese seafood spot has been awarded a Michelin star for good reason. Be sure to get the bao taco, the walnut shrimp, and of course, the dungeness crab.
D Chiu Quon Bakery – A classic Chinese bakery that almost always has a line. Known for their pork buns, Portuguese egg tarts, sesame balls, and so, so much more. Be sure to bring cash with you!
Bronzeville
D Shawn Michelle’s Ice Cream Shop – One of our claims-to-fame when it comes to ice cream. The honey cinnamon ice cream and the banana pudding are incredible. But truly… you can’t go wrong with any of their flavors.
C L/D Cleo’s Southern Cuisine – This creole spot is known for having some of the best chicken wings Chicago has to offer. Order the sauced six with the mac & cheese. You won’t regret it.
L/D Bronzeville Winery – Whether or not you’re partaking in their wine list or cocktails, be sure to get the sweet potato ribbons, brussel sprouts, and watermelon steak (I know, just trust me).
Bars
There’s nothing better than a productive day at the SHRM conference; connecting with others in HR, checking out the latest in tech, and learning from some knowledgeable speakers. But the best part? Rounding it all out with a drink at a beautiful cocktail lounge, beer garden, or a rooftop bar. Here is a list of great spots to grab a drink near the McCormick Center for your next team happy hour or solo nightcap:
The following is a Q&A with Yolanda Ramirez, the CEM Manager and Exhibits Lead at PayrollOrg – the organization responsible for hosting this year’s Annual Payroll Congress in Nashville. Yolanda gives us the inside scoop on what attendees should expect for this year, how to get the most out of the conference, and what first-timers should know going into it.
To watch the full webinar, check out the video below:
Meredith (Workforce.com): First and foremost, I would love for you to tell me about some of the work that you do with PayrollOrg, also known as the host for the Annual Payroll Congress Conference.
Yolanda: I’ve been with PayrollOrg for just over 25 years, and I’ve been managing the expo conference for PayrollOrg pretty much that whole entire time. I work in our vendor relations department. I’m one of two other ladies, Susan Garcia, who is our director of vendor relations, and Diane Enriquez, who is our operations manager. So the three of us work on selling exhibit space, selling sponsorships, and just generally partnering with our exhibitors for either campaigns that they do with us for the year or things throughout as they come up, whether it be a webinar or paycheck advertising in our paycheck magazine or websites. So any of us can assist with that.
Meredith: How long have you been managing the conference and helping fill spots?
Yolanda: I would say pretty much the entire tenure that I’ve been with PayrollOrg. Wow. So, for the full 25 years, I’ve had my hands in the expo for that entire time.
Meredith: Amazing. So you’re the perfect person to talk to when it comes to tips, tricks, and little hidden secrets here and there. So, in terms of exhibitors like Workforce.com, how many exhibitors are we expecting this year? How filled out is the conference going to actually be?
Yolanda: We currently have around 75 to 80 exhibiting companies at the moment, and that is where we’re expecting to be hitting.
Meredith: So regarding previous experience on your end, Yolanda, what can one expect from the Payroll Conference this year?
Yolanda: I would say for an exhibiting company, they can expect great opportunities to network with our audience, and there will be opportunities for them to network one-on-one kind of not only inside the expo, but also there are networking opportunities that they can participate in. As for an attendee, obviously, we want them to talk to our exhibitors, whether they’re a current client of theirs or if they’re looking at possibly adding on a new service or product. There will be ample exhibitors for them to talk to. And, of course, let’s just say they’re working with the company, and they want to see what other companies are doing. Obviously that would be their opportunity as well, because I know there is a lot of exhibitor networking like exhibitor to exhibitor as well as attendee to exhibitor that happens on the show floor.
Meredith: In terms of any changes from this year in 2024 compared to previous years, is there anything to note that you’re excited about or anything that we should look forward to?
Yolanda: There hasn’t been a lot of change as far as the programming has gone. We’ve made some changes as far as our global networking. That reception previously was on the third day of the expo is now going to be on the second day of the expo. So that’s just one of the changes there. Other than that, there really hasn’t been a whole lot of changes to the program.
Meredith: For me, I’m personally looking forward to the costume contest!
Yolanda: Yes. And some of them get really, really into it. I’d love to watch them because our audience is super creative, and they can do some really fun costumes. And we have our categories this year as well.
Meredith: The categories are truly amazing. In terms of key themes, topics, and so forth, is there any overview that you can provide for key topics that will be covered during the conference itself?
Yolanda: Yes. So we do have educational tracks, and all of this information can be found on the conference microsite. We have our payroll thought leadership sessions and the OAR sessions that some of our exhibiting companies have will be teaching. And then we also have our leadership and excellence series, and then we’ll have some legislative and regulatory issues as well that will provide some updates. There’s payroll management operations that they can participate in as well. These workshops are going to be on the critical and effective operations of the payroll process. We also have our benefits and compensations track, obviously that’s going to talk about the compliance with benefits and compensation. And then we have our global payroll tracks, which is a ride spectrum of the payroll functions, risks and things like that, related issues for your global perspective. Then we’ll have a technology track and that is obviously focusing on the technology, covering the latest on artificial intelligence, blockchain, those types of topics. Then we have a professional development track and then we have PAYO tools. So that’s giving you how you can get involved with PayrollOrg, how to gain knowledge about our tools and our resources as an organization. So those are the topics that topics or education tracks that they can participate in.
Meredith: For first-timers, what sort of advice would you have to give for those who are attending the 42nd Annual Payroll Conference for the very first time?
Yolanda: I would definitely encourage them to possibly partake in our virtual orientation that is going to be held on May 3rd. If they’re already registered for the conference, they’ll obviously get the invitation to attend for that orientation day. That is a really great opportunity for them to get a bit more into detail about what they can expect. There’s also some really good articles that have been printed in Paychex. Actually, there’s one article that really helps them about how to prepare for getting the most out of their experience at payroll Congress. And there’s another article about what this person, this veteran, actually does to ensure her success while she’s there. So it’s very interesting.
Meredith: Great. I’ll have to check those out personally. So with the conference obviously approaching on May 7th, what are some key steps that you recommended attendees take beforehand to ensure that they get the most out of their experience at the conference itself?
Yolanda: We actually send out a lot of communication prior to Payroll Congress, so they should be receiving those communications already. If they are just starting to, if they’ve just registered, they should be receiving all of that communication as well. So that’s going to be a really great first step for them. Obviously taking advantage of reviewing our microsite, which is the payrollcongress.com, that has a ton of information on there for them as well. And then definitely try and make a Congress buddy that is really important. We’ll also have a conference app as well that they can utilize while being on site.
Meredith: Are there any materials or resources available for those who are registered, or even for those who have not registered yet and maybe planning on it, that they should check out beforehand?
Yolanda: Yes. So our microsite for the conference would be a great starting place and if they haven’t already registered, we actually have a letter that they can provide to their boss, just a letter that they can tweak to request attending our conference. I think that would be a great opportunity for them.
Meredith: Nice. We touched on the networking aspect of these conferences, obviously it’s just a big part of conferences in general, how do you recommend an attendee prepare for the networking opportunities to come?
Yolanda: That is a good question, especially if this is their first time. We do have onsite, besides the orientation, that will be done virtually onsite. We have a meet and greet that is held on Monday. Definitely think that would be a great place for them to begin their networking with their peers and things like that. That should be Tuesday morning, and I believe there’s going to be coffee provided there and maybe some light refreshments. I think that would be a great place for them to try and find someone that has similar interests as them.
Meredith: In terms of the speaker sessions, I know that there’s a good amount of people lined up, which is super exciting to see. Are there any specific sessions you recommend checking out? Are there any that you’re excited about?
Yolanda: I’m not too heavily involved because I am more on the exhibit side, but I do know we have a lot of great sessions. Our workshop selection has more information on that website as well. When they go to the education tab, they can select the workshops and things like that there, and it’ll give them a little bit more information about each of them.
Meredith: To close out, if you had to narrow it down to one or two top tips, actions or takeaways that our audience can leave with to better prepare for the payroll congress conference, what would those be?
Yolanda: Definitely take advantage of reading those articles and things that way. Go to the blog, our Congress today blog page that is also linked from our microsite as well. I think just really delving into that. If they know anyone that has been to Congress in the past, talk to them and see what their response is. But I know, I believe it was Gretchen who wrote how she prepares for Congress, so that’s interesting. She will be presenting as well.
Meredith: Yolanda, thank you so much for coming on. This has been super, super helpful.
The 42nd Annual Payroll Congress is coming up! Here at Workforce.com, we’re as excited to learn from the keynote speakers as the next guy… but what better way to prepare for a conference than checking out a local’s guide to navigating Nashville – a city known for its food scene, bars, history, and of course, live music? We’re looking forward to helping transform your payroll management over a beer at Urban Cowboy.
East Nashville[closest area to the conference venue]
Bars:
Rosemary: Awesome cocktails, indoor and outdoor space. Overall such a fun place.
Attaboy: Speakeasy with amazing cocktails, but difficult to go with a ton of people
Red Door
Urban Cowboy: Great for group outdoor seating. Awesome pizza.
Noble’s: Fun sports bar with cheap beer
Lakeside Lounge: dive bar with $3 frosty’s, pool table, and darts
Casual/Cheaper Eats:
Mas Tacos Por Favor: Taco stand loved by the community
Redheaded Stranger: tacos, crunch-wrap, burger)
Greko: Good for lunch
East Side Bahn Mi: Excellent Vietnamese
Mitchell Deli: Great sandwiches
Joyland: Sean Brock’s fast food restaurant is open until 2 am Friday and Saturday
Five Points Pizza: New York style by the slice
Nicer Restaurants:
Lou: Amazing, but not ideal for a bigger group
Butcher & Bee: Awesome for a big group. Mediterranean shared plates
Audrey: Sean Brock’s latest fine-dining restaurant
Two Ten Jack: One of my favorites. Japanese shared plates/sushi and ramen
Downtown
Bars:
Popular, big-time honky-tonks with fun rooftops:
Kid Rock’s
Luke’s
Aldean’s
Ole Red
Acme
Smaller, classic honky-tonks:
Robert’s Western World: Get the Depression Special at Robert’s: Fried Bologna Sandwich + a beer for $5
The Stage
Tootsie’s
Wild Beaver: Great for karaoke
Alley Taps: Iconic Printer’s Alley bar
Restaurants:
Husk: Sean Brock’s first Nashville restaurant
Jack’s BBQ: Nashville staple for food on Broadway
5th and Broadway: Food hall where there’s something for everybody
Twelve Thirty Club: The bottom floor is a Honky Tonk with good food. The top floor has great cocktails
Blanco: Fantastic Mexican food
Acme: Bar that also has great food too. Different types of cuisine on each level
Pinewood Social: bar/restaurant and really fun to do bowling for a group. Also has great cocktails.
Midtown/Vanderbilt Area
SATCO: Low-key Mexican joint
The Graduate Hotel: Has awesome coffee in their lobby
Hillsboro Village:
The BEST shopping
Pancake Pantry
DoubleDogs Sports Bar
Dose: Good breakfast sandwiches and coffee
Barcelona: A great restaurant for bigger groups, it’s not unique to Nashville but a good option
The Gulch
Activities:
Station Inn: The most amazing live music venue. Buy tickets in cash at the door. They sell beer/popcorn
6th and Peabody: Big sports bar with a huge outdoor area, moonshine distillery, and Yeehaw beer
Pins Mechanical: Fun games place and bar
Nice Hotel Rooftop Bars:
LA Jackson
L27
W hotel
Restaurants:
Adele’s: Worth going if for brunch. Huge buffet that’s a 10/10
Mockingbird: Great for a large group
Superica: They don’t take reservations, but you can join the online waitlist
Marsh House: We love their brunch
Peg Leg Porker: Awesome BBQ
Otaku Ramen: Really good, but sadly doesn’t take reservations
12 South
Really cute strip of awesome boutiques for shopping.
Restaurants:
Buttermilk Ranch: A fan-favorite brunch spot with fun pastries, but it doesn’t take reservations
Five Daughter’s Bakery: Famous/delicious donuts
Frothy Monkey: Great for breakfast or coffee, but this location usually has a long line on weekends
Edley’s: BBQ
Epice: Fantastic Lebanese restaurant
Wedgewood Houston
Nvr Nvr: Great dive bar
Dozen Bakery: Another fan-favorite place. Best avocado toast ever, awesome coffee/pastries/food
Germantown
Restaurants:
Rolf and Daughters: Many think this is the best in Nash, make a reservation ASAP if you want to go
Oku: Best sushi
Geist: Craft cocktail bar with good food
Henrietta Red: My personal favorite restaurant in Nashville
The Optimist: Really good seafood, cool bar upstairs with yummy oysters
Big Al’s: Greasy awesome soul food breakfast, sit-on-a-plastic chair vibe, I love Al so much
Monell’s: Southern family-style experience
Bars:
Monday Night Brewing Co.: Great chill brewery with good beer and tons of indoor/outdoor seating)
Mother’s Ruin: So much fun late night, awesome cocktails
Von Elrod’s: Beer garden, next to Sounds Stadium
Jonathan’s: Low-key sports bar, could go to if in the area for 2 for 1 beers after 10pm
Neighbor’s: Another sports bar, multiple locations
Other Notes:
I like Prince’s for authentic Hot Chicken, but Hattie B’s is great too
People are torn on Martin’s vs. Edley’s for BBQ, but I prefer Martins
There are awesome coffee shops everywhere, my favorites are Crema and Barista Parlor (many locations)
Loveless Cafe is outside of Nashville but historic and so awesome for southern comfort food.
Richland Park Farmer’s Market on Saturday mornings 9-12 is great and has food trucks/vendors too
The Listening Room is a famous Nashville writers-round style show you buy tickets for and sit at a table and order food/drinks. It’s really fun, intimate, chill, and I love going. Never know if you’ll see someone famous!
A fun morning activity is to rent bikes and ride the trails around Shelby Park https://bikethegreenway.net/
Pedal taverns are also super fun for a daytime activity
As of February 2023, the inflation rate is at 6%, which is a significant improvement from the previous two years following the pandemic.
Understanding how the Consumer Price Index (CPI) reflects the state of the economy can help you decide how to respond and support your employees. — More
Keeping an eye on interest rate hikes will aid you in forecasting inflation and, as a result, the effect on the job market. — More
Job growth has remained strong recently, yet there are still many unfilled jobs and a volatile work environment marked by layoffs and high turnover rates. — More
Wages and salaries are not keeping up with inflation, further contributing to the volatile job market. — More
The possibility of a recession remains uncertain as experts weigh in with opposing predictions. — More
Inflation, recession, interest rate hikes, GDP growth, stock market crashes… It seems no matter where you look these days, the media raises concerns surrounding these economic indicators. Considering the toll that the pandemic has had on the economy, it is no surprise that people want to know what we can expect from the economic landscape of 2023.
In general, the Federal Reserve aims for an annual inflation rate of around 2%. This is a slow, steady, and predictable level of inflation, which is a sign of a growing and healthy economy. But when the measure of inflation increases too far above that ideal number, as it has recently, we begin to see a ripple of negative effects.
Inflation can negatively impact the cost of living and the labor market and increase the likelihood of a recession. Staying informed on inflation statistics can help you prepare for the worst while looking out for the best interests of your employees and your business.
Current Consumer Price Index
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a methodology used by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to calculate the average change in prices over time. This change in the US economy is represented as a percent change, which is reported monthly. Keeping tabs on the changing CPI can give you insight into economic changes that may be impacting you and your employees.
As of February 2023, the inflation rate is at 6%. Though it is lower than the rates last year (a sign of improvement), it is still a high rate, which most people in the US and around the world have certainly felt the impact of.
From “Monthly inflation rate U.S. 2023,” Bureau of Labor Statistics. Copyright Statista 2023.
If you take a look at the details of the current CPI data, you’ll see the weighted averages spent by all urban consumers for a market basket of goods and services.
The rising cost of living can affect how much your employees spend on healthcare, housing, food, and other essentials. For example, egg prices have risen 8.5%, which is 70.1% higher than a year ago. However, thankfully, inflation does not necessarily affect all avenues equally. Medical care services, airline fares, and used vehicle prices have gone down in recent months.
A CPI inflation calculator helps you evaluate price changes between months or year over year. This can help you make informed decisions about how to keep business costs low and operate as efficiently as possible.
To support your workers during these tough financial times, consider providing additional benefits to reduce cost burdens. These could include offering:
Additional health benefits such as fertility treatment
Payments toward student loan balances
Daycare subsidies or daycare services at work
Educational growth opportunities and certifications
Weekly meal stipends or team lunches
Interest rate hikes and inflation forecasting
Paying attention to interest rate hikes and inflation forecasting is another way to prepare your business and workforce for what may unfold. Last year, price inflation rose to the highest level it had been in 41 years. Since March 2022, the central bank has increased its benchmark interest rate eight times. As a result, the inflation rate is poised to be trending down over the next year.
However, raising interest rates too high or too quickly can slow down the economy and impact the labor market. For example, raising interest rates can increase unemployment as higher interest rates may discourage business expansion and, thus, hiring.
Recently, higher interest rates have also made it costlier for consumers to take out loans for homes, cars, or other large retail sales. As a result, demand drops, and jobs become at risk of being cut while the fear (and unfortunate reality) of layoffs increases. This causes yet another cascade of consequences that further impact economic growth. For example, as consumers become more conservative in spending, sales and the amount of work to be done go down. As a result, turnover increases as workers fear layoffs and leave for more secure roles.
To avoid layoffs, it’s best to be conservative about hiring and slow down recruiting efforts during these precarious times. It is also important to stay organized and maintain transparency throughout your company. This might mean hosting more routine financial meetings or check-ins to keep everyone on the same page and allow leadership to make informed monetary decisions.
Job growth
According to a poll from Monster, 96% of workers reported the intention to look for a new job as of January 2023. In fact, one survey reports that 85% of those in the gig economy have increased or plan to increase their workload to combat inflation.
Luckily, as of February 2023, job growth has been strong. The unemployment rate is at 3.6%, which is relatively low. The labor force participation rate is at 62.5%, which is close to the number we had pre-pandemic. However, although more people have returned to the workforce, there are some companies, particularly in the services and healthcare sectors, that still struggle with a labor shortage.
Currently, there are nearly 11 million unfilled jobs across the nation. This may have two negative effects on your business. First, if you are one of those businesses with unfilled jobs, then those who currently work for you may be burnt out by the amount of extra work on their plates. Second, the fact that there are so many jobs available may cause your employees to leave if they are too stressed, overworked, or dissatisfied in their current roles.
It’s important to monitor your workforce and make sure everyone has a realistic workload. You should also create an action plan in the event that you do see an increase in employee turnover. For example, both in the face of inflation and based on your financial needs, is it best to replace, repurpose, or outsource the work done by those staff members?
Lastly, it’s vital to pay attention to how turnover affects employee morale, as it has a contagious effect. If you can take precautions to prevent turnover, or at least take care of and reward those who are still with you, you might be able to avoid a hiring crisis at work.
Wages & salaries
When prices rose due to inflation, average hourly earnings fell 1.3% from the previous year. In a report by Remote.co, 80% of respondents said that their salary was not keeping up with inflation. When everything is more expensive, and salaries either stay the same or decrease, the real-life consequences are brutal. Essentially, employees are doing the same work but can afford less. Unfortunately, on a global scale, lower-income earners have been the most impacted by these changes.
In some places around the world, monetary policies, such as minimum wage standards, have been used to combat this discrepancy. For example, in California, the minimum wage rate was increased to $15.50 per hour as of January 1, 2023. By working against the deterioration of real wages, states can help maintain economic growth and higher employment levels.
From an HR and leadership perspective, there are measures that you can implement to protect your staff’s wages and supplement their income. These include:
Providing grocery vouchers or gift cards, especially to low-income households
Offering bonuses and salary increases to keep your best talent and keep up with inflation
Adjusting performance expectations and goals to reduce workload and reflect adequate work for fair pay
Offering health and well-being benefits such as access to gym memberships, flexible work options, extra time off for vacation, and wellness programs
The possibility of recession
There are various theories for what exactly causes a recession. In some cases, it is caused by high inflation with too-high interest rates, while in others, it’s due to high inflation with too-low interest rates. The one thing we do know is that if we go into a recession, the labor market will likely suffer.
Depending on who you ask or where you are in the world, some economists will say the data points to a thriving economy in which we avoid a recession. Other economists point to slow growth as a signal of a high likelihood of a global recession.
David Mericle, Chief US Economist at Goldman Sachs, believes that we can avoid a recession. He states that “a continued period of below-potential growth can gradually rebalance supply and demand in the labor market and dampen wage and price pressures with a much more limited increase in the unemployment rate than historical relationships would suggest.”
Mericle also believes that we will continue to see a drop in the job-workers gap, which has fallen from 5.9 million to 4 million. However, Mericle and his team estimate that the gap needs to shrink to 2 million in order to be more sustainable with wage growth.
Another reason Mericle states that we may be able to avoid a recession is because of the overall decline in core inflation. He notes that although the supply chain recovery took a while, there seems to be a pattern of deflation in core goods.
Nobody can predict the future for certain. However, you can take steps to help protect the mental health and financial security of your workforce. For example, are your employees financially literate? Do they understand how to prepare for a potential recession?
Here are a few ideas to support your staff:
Invest in leadership training, especially around mental health and supporting workers that are stressed about a potential recession or other financial issues.
Offer educational courses or share resources on how to plan and manage their financial futures.
Offer a flexible work-life balance, such as remote work, hybrid work, or four-day workweeks, to cut down on commute time/stress and expenses.
What the experts predicted
Late last year, Curtis Dubay, Chief Economist for the U.S Chamber of Commerce, provided some insight on the trajectory of the economy heading into 2023. According to Dubay, inflation expectations for 2023 “remained anchored” at the time due to pressure from higher interest rates. From what we have seen so far through March, these expectations have clearly been realized.
To hear more from Dubay’s talk, check out the free webinar below:
While things are undoubtedly improving, businesses still need to remain hyper-focused on their labor costs. With inflation still relatively high, it’s important for operations managers to optimize where, when, and how labor is distributed.
For example, with Workforce.com’s scheduling and forecasting solutions, you can adjust your staffing levels based on predicted demand. If demand is low, you can easily scale back your scheduled labor, preventing costly, overstaffed scenarios. This is especially crucial during unpredictable financial times when saving money and increasing efficiency is a top priority.
To find out more, get in touch with our team today.
A few too many under or overstaffed shifts. Angry team members who feel they’ve worked more night shifts in the past week than their colleagues. Labor costs through the roof to cover a high amount of overtime. No call, no show absences.
These issues, and more, are all byproducts of ineffective or broken shift planning procedures. To add insult to injury, your HR team probably spends way too much time every month navigating Excel spreadsheets and shift templates to get it right.
It doesn’t have to be this way. Employee management tools like Workforce.com are specifically designed to help guide you through the employee shift planning maze with your sanity intact.
In this guide, we’ll run you through some of the important steps to adopt that will make shedding blood, sweat, and tears on shift planning a thing of the past.
Planning a shift schedule
The best preparation you can do for shift planning is to know your business inside and out. Filling all your shifts is meaningless if done randomly. Here are the basics you should cover before assigning employees anywhere.
Monitor demand: The most efficient work schedules take into account and even forecast the unique demand patterns of your company. When are you the busiest? Which nights are typically quiet? What regular events impact your foot traffic?
Know your staff’s skills and abilities: This is where managerial knowledge becomes priceless. For example, knowing which workers are particularly good at handling customers or which ones are great at mentoring less experienced staff means you can always put the right people in the right place at the right time.
Check safety regulations: Don’t overlook the practicalities. If you’re legally obligated to have a certain number of trained first-aiders on shift or need to maintain a ratio of staff to kids in a childcare setting, this needs to be baked into your schedule from the start.
By making these a core part of your shift management system, you’ll head off lots of future problems and build your schedules on rock-solid foundations.
Creating a shift schedule
Once you’re armed with intimate knowledge of your market conditions and predicted needs, it’s just a case of filling those empty shifts. With the right preparation, this part of the job should already be less intimidating, but here are the key things to keep in mind when you create a shift schedule.
Know your staff availability: Assigning workers to shifts they cannot attend isn’t just inefficient for you, but it’s also frustrating for employees. Keep track of things like childcare arrangements, evening classes, and other important things in your workers’ lives. It allows you to get your schedule right the first time and shows them that you are taking notice of what matters to them.
Communicate schedules quickly and accurately: Don’t leave employees in the dark about their shifts. The earlier you can inform them of their hours and the clearer the information is, the sooner you’ll identify any potential problems.
Use the right tools: Many companies still use spreadsheets or even pen and paper for shift planning. Not only are these methods inflexible and prone to error, but they’re also hard to distribute and make it easy to lose track of details. Specialist shift planning and time tracking software can automate the hardest parts of scheduling and send up-to-date shift information to your workers’ phones in real-time.
Always plan ahead: If you’ve taken all the previous steps into account, you should be able to confidently plan shift schedules at least two weeks in advance. Indeed, depending on where your business operates, you may be legally obligated to.
It can be a lot to take in, and for people new to shift planning, this is where the feeling of being overwhelmed can rear up again. Trust your data, be methodical, and even the most complex shift planning job can be broken down into manageable parts. Remember, you can always use scheduling software to automatically match employees to shifts based on your criteria.
Navigating predictive scheduling laws
If you manage shift workers and aren’t yet familiar with the concept of predictive scheduling laws, then you should brush up on the details even if you don’t operate in an area where they are in effect.
What are predictive scheduling laws? These laws, also referred to as “Fair Workweek,” generally require shift workers to be given at least two weeks’ notice of their schedules and mandated rest periods between shifts. This means no “clopening,” where the same employee closes up at night and reopens the first shift the next day.
Where are predictive scheduling laws in place? So far, one state (Oregon) and eight cities (San Francisco, Berkeley, Emeryville, Los Angeles, Chicago, New York City, Philadelphia, and Seattle) have passed predictive scheduling laws. Other states have bills coming up for debate. There are regional variations, so be sure to find out if these laws apply to any of your operations and, if so, what the specific requirements are.
The penalties for breaching these laws can be steep as they apply to each infraction. If you have multiple shift workers whose schedules do not comply, the fines will mount.
Careful planning and good recordkeeping will help ensure you are not exposed to unnecessary legal risks. As well as compiling your shift data automatically, employee scheduling software can be easily set up to catch infractions at the scheduling stage, eliminating the danger of falling foul of predictive scheduling legislation in your region.
Even if you are not legally required to follow these laws, it’s worth implementing some of the changes regardless. Studies have shown that workers who have advance notice of shifts and healthy breaks in between are more productive and stay with companies longer. If staff churn is an issue for you, taking a long-term approach to shift planning may help retain employees.
Managing time-off requests
No schedule is written in stone, of course, and employees will want to take personal time off. This doesn’t need to throw your shift planning into disarray, provided you have established a clear framework for managing employee time-off requests.
Create a PTO policy: If your company doesn’t have an existing policy dictating the rules of personal time off, create one as a matter of urgency. It doesn’t have to be pages of legal language. A common-sense policy that lays out what is expected of both employees and the company is all you need.
Implement a PTO policy: The crucial aspect of any PTO policy is notice periods. How much notice must employees give when booking time off? How quickly will the company approve or deny requests? These are the questions your policy should answer.
As a manager, keeping track of who has time off and when is vital. You don’t want to approve requests that leave you understaffed. Using scheduling software is the quick and easy way to avoid this, as it can automatically alert you whenever a time-off request creates a problem elsewhere on the schedule.
Dealing with staff shortages
Emergencies will happen, and staff will sometimes not be able to work for unpredictable reasons. While this is never ideal, staff coverage doesn’t have to be a problem. In fact, you will already have insulated your business against this issue by preparing properly for shift planning in the first place.
Plan shifts using past data: You should already know when your highest sales periods are and when business is typically slow. Prioritize having backup staff for shifts that typically get slammed and cannot be understaffed.
Communicate schedules early: You should also be in the habit of assigning shifts a few weeks in advance. This won’t save you from staff with transport problems on the day of or trips to the ER, but it will give employees the opportunity to alert you of unexpected occurrences that aren’t same-day emergencies. Even a day’s notice is better than no notice at all.
The most robust way of minimizing the impact of staff unavailability is to allow employees to swap shifts to plug these unexpected gaps.
The idea of shift swaps, or shift replacements, can create anxiety for some managers. Giving employees the option to request shift replacements seems to fly in the face of shift planning. A shift trade policy can actually be a benefit to both the staff and the company when properly managed. Not only does it help fill the gaps caused by unexpected staff shortages, but 87% of workers now want to have more control over their work schedules.
Create a shift replacement policy: As with a time-off policy, this doesn’t need to be complicated. Simply make clear the period in which shifts can be dropped and picked up by available employees, subject to managerial approval.
Communicate the policy: Let your staff know that they are encouraged to request shift replacements if needed and won’t be penalized for doing so. Encourage them to use the process, and many of your last-minute staffing problems will fix themselves.
Automate with technology: Shift replacement processes are only as effective as the level of automation invested into them. Instead of scrambling last minute to find replacement staff over text and email, replacements should be completed on a single, online system. When an employee requests coverage for a shift, their peers should automatically get notified and a bidding process should follow. – this workflow takes the logistics of seeking replacements off a manager’s plate.
Retain managerial oversight: Just like booking time off, you should still approve requests carefully to make sure that appropriately skilled staff are swapping like-for-like shifts and that any trades don’t nudge workers into overtime.
If you still handle your shift planning using spreadsheets or pen and paper, then tracking and implementing shift trade requests does become exponentially more complicated. Scheduling tools make the process painless by allowing employees to make their requests digitally while empowering managers to offer open shifts to specific workers. Any changes or requests will be instantly available to both employees and management through notifications through employee communications software.
Now you can be confident in your shift planning
Shift planning is less intimidating when you approach it fully prepared and break it down into a methodical process. Taking control of shift planning doesn’t just make the life of managers less stressful, but it also results in more efficient use of your employees and a company culture that is less likely to be derailed by staffing issues.
There’s nothing involved in this process that can’t be done using manual techniques, but if the complexity still overwhelms you, consider shift planning software to ease the strain.
Shift planning software uses automation to facilitate the building of schedules and timesheets, making the organization of shift work much easier.
Try it out for yourself today, or, check out the free webinar below on the ROI of shift planning software, featuring exclusive research from Forrester Research:
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Workforce.com has a steady flow of requests for proposal (RFP) from companies looking for a new workforce management software solution. So we decided to help make the process even easier by offering a complete workforce management RFP template that can easily be edited and used for finding the right vendor for your organization.
Parts of this template are specific to workforce management systems, but it can also be adjusted for any type of software search.
This process is tough for companies seeking new software, but it can also be long and complicated for the solution providers. The key to making it a smooth process for all parties involved and shortening the time spent trying to cut through the clutter is to make the initial RFP as simple and direct as possible without leaving any important details out.
Below is a shortened version of what we included in the template, but we are also providing the full template available for download and use here: Workforce Management Software RFP Template
Your workforce management RFP template should include the following:
Background and current process
Give the vendors a description of your company mission, the business challenge you are trying to solve with a new software vendor, and what is and is not working about your current process if applicable.
Submission instructions
Be sure to include key dates, submission requirements, and contact information early on. A vendor will likely come back to this over and over as they prepare their response, so it’s efficient to keep the top priority information front and center.
General terms and conditions
This is never the fun part, but it’s important to make your liability and expectations clear. If you have standard legal language, include as much as you can here to cover yourself.
Desired business outcomes and stakeholders to consider
Listing a precise business outcome and how it will be measured will help vendors speak directly to what matters to you most. Also providing a list of stakeholders and their titles allows the vendor to help you with change management and upselling the solution to all your colleagues involved with this project.
How will you help us achieve this outcome? (character count limit)
This question can help create an executive summary of each vendor’s solution for you to help speed up the selection process. Including a character count will make it more manageable so that the vendors stick to their high-level selling points instead of rehashing all of their features to you again.
Identify current solution and what you want to be different in the next provider
This is an important point if you’re looking to replace an existing solution. You’ll want to include any required software integrations, hardware requirements, and unique needs to your workforce or locations.
Required integrations
All you need here is a simple, straightforward list of payroll software, HCM software, and other relevant software for vendors to use to self-qualify themselves in or out quickly.
If you have any qualifications for the type of company you want to work with, include that here. Do they need to have experience operating in certain countries? Do they need to be a certain size? Do they need any specific certifications? Is there anything unique about your billing process that needs to be observed?
Feature requirements
This is where you put your giant wish list. Be as detailed as possible and just use an excel worksheet or Google spreadsheet to keep track of the answers. This can be the most tedious part, but it’s your chance to involve the other stakeholders so that you don’t get major objections on the vendors late in the game.
Ask vendors to provide a screenshot of the platform whenever possible
This is a quick way to assess the user experience. If a vendor checks all the boxes but their system is outdated and hard to navigate, that will make your job of user adoption that much more difficult.
Links to reviews
You can’t just take a vendor’s word for how things will go once you choose their solution. You can always ask for referrals, but a good first step is to see what type of public reviews they have. Trusted industry analyst firms like Gartner and software review sites are helpful but don’t forget to also search for frontline worker reviews in the App store or Google Play store. Sometimes they tell a different story.
This is your chance to directly ask about their experience and success with companies like yours.
RFP timeline and project timeline
Set expectations with a chart like the one below. This will cut down on unwanted status questions from all the vendors you contact as you work through your process.
Action Item
Date
Issuance of RFP
[Issue date]
Questions about RFP due
[Question deadline]
Response to questions distributed
[Answers distributed]
Response to RFP due
[Closing date]
Respondents notified regarding participation in Phase 2
[Phase 2 notify date]
Presentations at [company location]
[Demo date]
Selected vendor notified
[Award notify date]
Implementation schedule or time to value of your solution
You need to know whether implementation of this new software will take a month or a year. This is where you can require vendors to give you a high level view of what their implementation process will look like to see if it matches your organization’s culture. You should also ask if they have an estimate on time to value. If their solution promises to provide you time or cost savings, how long might it be before you start to see that value promise realized?
This is often discussed later in the process, but adding it in the RFP will save you from getting your hopes up about a solution that will be rejected by your IT team later.
Pricing
You can leave this open ended if you like, since there is always room for negotiation. But if you want a specific breakdown of the pricing based on your use case, it’s faster to just provide that info upfront.
Proposal evaluation criteria
This should differ based on a company’s unique needs, but the following is a good sample of what to keep in mind:
Product features
Company strength and maturing
Technical architecture
Services
Cost of ownership
This template was supplied by Workforce.com. To learn more about our product, please click on the product tab in our navigation menu.
