Whats the best HR membership/subscription to get? AHRI or Workplace Info?

Im looking into obtaining an individual HR membership or subscription for the purpose of being able to learn & obtain HR information (such as assistance with writing policies & procedures) to help me in my current HR role (its a small business so nothing is established and no other HR support is available from within the company). I would like to get some feedback on what other peoples experiences have been and which group may would offer the most suitable membership for the purposes ive described above.

AHRI (cost of $347 per year)
-Have you ever used HR Assist to obtain advice or information? Was it useful?

Workplace Info subscription (cost $930 for 1 licence)

AI Group (unsure of membership cost, may be corporate only)


Also if there any other industry memberships out there that you know of & would recommend please mention.

Thanks

Personally I find little value in AHRI - gave up my m'ship very long time ago. Their advantage may be they put on a number of training programs in HR if learning is what you want.
AI Group or Employers Federation would be worth looking at - not sure what you mean by "corporate only"? If you mean, for employers only - then yes that is true but then so are other Workplace Info sites. Employees have Fair Work Australia.

Workplace Info is excellent for latest laws and cases reflective of laws - very worthwhile. So is, eg, Workforce Guardian which offers varied subscription options for businesses - in particular, good for small businesses. They offer all kinds of policy, form templates and employment contract templates + online filing - also definitely worth a look [url=http://www.workforceguardian.com.au] WFG also have an online advisory service so you can email in inquiries; plus a hotline (cost to subscribers but free if business is part of one of their partnering businesses.

I suggest you review each option and do a comparison spreadsheet listing what is critical to you, what would be good to have and what is not necessarily that important to you. Then weigh up what each has to offer and compare the costs of each vs value they will add for you
Tiger

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Originally Posted by Tiger

AI Group or Employers Federation would be worth looking at - not sure what you mean by "corporate only"? If you mean, for employers only - then yes that is true but then so are other Workplace Info sites. Employees have Fair Work Australia.

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Sorry what I meant by corporate only was that the organisation takes out the subscription/service, not me as an individual. Im not sure that my organisation would want to take out a subscription and also if I leave the business then the subscription would stay with them not me, which is not what I want. I suppose I could get around this as I do actually have my own abn so I could do the membership under my own business name, rather than my current employers.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Tiger

Workplace Info is excellent for latest laws and cases reflective of laws - very worthwhile. So is, eg, Workforce Guardian which offers varied subscription options for businesses - in particular, good for small businesses. They offer all kinds of policy, form templates and employment contract templates + online filing - also definitely worth a look [url=http://www.workforceguardian.com.au] WFG also have an online advisory service so you can email in inquiries; plus a hotline (cost to subscribers but free if business is part of one of their partnering businesses.

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Thanks for the suggestion I have never heard of WFG. Ive had a quick look at the site and it looks very promising. Subscription at the base level was $950 per year, so not out of the question. I will do a detailed comparison as you have suggested, thankyou!

May I ask what do you currently use in your employment/business?

Yes, most are there for the employer so yes a corporate resource. But as you have an ABN, there'd be nothing to stop you signing up under your own business name I suppose. However, you need to be careful you don't breach any of your employment (contractual) responsibilities. I can't think an employer wanting to do the right thing would baulk at such a subscription cost - unless they employed you understanding you knew everything!! You would need to sell it on basis that the best HR practitioners need resources as employment law is one of the most rapidly changing areas in Australia - it is guaranteed every time we have a new federal government (which is every election these days!!), there will be changes.
Personally, although a seasoned HR practitioner, I do a lot of reading to stay current - Workplace Express, HC Online Edition, HR Daily are some but I also recommend networking. The more you network with others in the field, the better. It's an opportunity to share knowledge and I've found in the past, most are happy to share but beware copyright issues with any document sharing.
Tiger