Setting up HR – Getting it Right from the Earliest Stage

Learn what you can do from the earliest stage of building your team to avoid messy HR distractions as you scale, and create an intentional and stage-appropriate HR foundation and culture.

Shannon Swift is the CEO of Swift HR Solutions, Inc., a provider of strategic HR services and products for early stage companies. Shannon has more than twenty years of human resources experience, combined with successful executive level management and business development roles. Prior to starting Swift HR Solutions in 2004, she held executive HR roles at GoAhead Software, Nastech Pharmaceutical, and Health Team Northwest, formerly Home Health Care of Washington. She has also held senior level business development roles in outsourcing firms TriNet VCO and PMSI.

Shannon’s passion and expertise is in facilitating effective growth/building capacity in organizations. She has extensive experience in growing human resource infrastructure from start up or early-stage to mid-size, mid-stage organizations. Shannon also opened, developed, and managed TriNet VCO’s first successful branch office (in Bellevue, Washington), after which she added managing four other branch offices around the country. She works effectively with executive teams and boards of directors to ensure that all HR efforts and results are aligned with corporate values and organizational objectives.

Shannon holds a B.A. in Psychology, with a business supplement, from the University of Washington, and has achieved life time certification as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR). She is past president and a current member of the Lake Washington Human Resources Association (LWHRA), a chapter of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), and was named Chapter “Member of the Year” in 2002. Shannon is a member of Entrepreneur Organization (EO) and currently serves on the Seattle Chapter Board. She is also a current Board member of the Washington Technology Industry Association (WTIA) and served on the Board of the Northwest Entrepreneur Network (NWEN) from 2007 – 2013, where she was Chair of the organization from 2009 – 2011. Shannon was recognized as one of the 2009 “100 Top Women in Seattle Tech” by Tech Flash, and was also honored with the “Best Service Provider to Start Ups” award by Seattle 2.0. Shannon is a frequent public speaker on various human resources issues and “best practices”.

Fundamentals for Startups is a weekly one-hour lecture series featuring notable experts who share startup-related information, experience, and insights with our entrepreneurial community. From raising capital to scaling to exit strategies, these seasoned guest speakers deliver valuable content designed to help startups and entrepreneurs thrive. Lectures are typically 30-40 mins, followed by open Q&A.

Each lecture is filmed, live streamed and archived on CoMotion’s Startup Training Videos page.

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