Storytelling is a hallmark element of the human experience. Sharing stories is intrinsic to every society and culture under the sun. Books, films, paintings – and now podcasts – are examples of how we take part in this element of the human experience.
Technology has shaped and influenced the increasing popularity of audio storytelling, or podcasts, because smart phones and tablets provide media content on demand. According to Forbes magazine, 80 percent of all podcast listeners use their smart phones while listening. The great news for HR professionals is that we recently launched our very own podcast, the HR Break Room™, dedicated to bringing listeners interesting break room conversations with experts on the hottest topics in HR and HR technology.
While 300 million Americans are listening to the radio, an estimated 57 million Americans are also listening to podcasts. So, what’s the deal with this 21 percent of Americans who are listening to podcasts?
The Benefits
- Redeemed Time – Podcasts allow you to learn while redeeming time that would otherwise be spent on a mundane task, like driving. Remember when your college classes met an hour or two a week? Over the course of a semester, your hours added up and your knowledge of the subject matter increased. Consider this: An hour or two driving each day to and from the office also adds up. With podcasts, you easily can turn your commute into a classroom.
- On-Demand Tech – Most podcasts are free and are always on demand. You decide what you want to hear when you want to hear it. Once you’ve subscribed to a podcast, new episodes automatically are downloaded to your phone and you easily can listen at your convenience.
- Introduction to New Ideas – Much like watching broadcast news, when listening to a podcast, you are trusting the host to present you with different topics. Often, these topics may be new and unfamiliar, and you find yourself quickly learning concepts you hadn’t yet considered.
- Brain Stimulation – Listening to a podcast is good brain hygiene. Emma Rodero, communications professor of Barcelona’s Pompeu Fabra University, studies how audio productions (podcasts) retain people’s attention. Rodero said that listening, unlike looking at a written page, is more active, since the brain has to process the information at the pace it is played.
How to Listen
If you’ve listened to music on your phone, then you can subscribe to a podcast. The easiest ways to listen is through the iTunes® app for iPhone users, the Google Play™ store for Android users, or take it a step further and download the popular android podcast app Stitcher Radio.
- From your iPhone, tap the Podcasts app.
- Tap the Search icon on the bottom right of the screen, which allows you to search for Podcasts by name, category, genre, etc.
- Type the podcast title “HR Break Room™”
- Tap the “HR Break Room™” icon, which opens the podcast home page
- If you want to download a single episode, tap “get episode” and you’re done.
- If you want to subscribe to all future episodes, tap “subscribe” button in the top right of the show page.
- Listen and be inspired to harness the power of HR technology and to empower your people and organization.
- Rate the podcast, write a quick review and if you’ve liked what you’ve heard, subscribe!
- Launch Google Play Music app form home screen
- Tap menu button (three horizontal lines) on top left of screen.
- Tap Podcasts
- Type in podcast title to search for HR Break Room™
- Tap the podcast to which you’d like to subscribe.
- Tap checkbox next to auto-download if you’d like to automatically download the latest three episodes.
- Tap checkbox next to notifications if you’d like to receive a notification when new episodes are uploaded.
- Tap playback order to choose the play episodes from newest to oldest.
- Listen and be inspired to harness the power of HR technology and to empower your people and organization.
- Rate the podcast, write a quick review and if you’ve liked what you’ve heard, subscribe!
I’ve Subscribed, Now What?
Once you’ve listened to an episode, consider providing feedback by rating the podcast and submitting a quick review. If you want to hear more, tap the “subscribe” button.
The HR Break Room is Open
We recently launched the HR Break Room™, a free, 20 to 30 minute podcast dedicated to bringing you interesting break room conversations on hot topics in HR and HR technology. Each biweekly episode features different HR industry experts discussing the latest topics affecting today’s tech-heavy workplace.
When you subscribe to HR Break Room™ you’ll get new episodes on your smart phone before they are posted to the Paycom website.
The first three episodes of HR Break Room™ are:
- Episode 1 – Transforming the Future of HR: Learn about the current state of the workforce.
- Episode 2 – Overcoming the Challenges of Deploying HR Tech in 2017: Embrace new HR tech.
- Episode 3 – Employee Career Beginnings: Learn about the employee life cycle and successful onboarding strategies.
Upcoming Episodes
Episodes four and five of the HR Break Room™ podcast will discuss effective strategies for employee training with an award-winning corporate trainer and an interview with an actual Paycom client who recently revolutionized its large workforce through Paycom’s Learning Management System.
No matter what you choose to listen to on your smart phone while redeeming your time, we hope it stimulates your brain, increases your knowledge and expands on your own human experience.