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| The team is comprised of College of Business Administration students. |
College of Business Administration students competed against some of the top students in the state in an event that required a comprehensive knowledge of human resources law and policies.
A California State University, Stanislaus team took home the top prize during the Feb. 29 to March 1 competition in San Jose but the event, known as HRGames, provided other important benefits to the Cal Poly Pomona team.
“The HRGames is a learning opportunity, a chance to network with HR professionals and faculty, and students from other CSU campuses and a chance for students to bond,” said Cheryl Wyrick, chair of the Management and Human Resources department and the team's faculty coach.
Business faculty members at California State University, Fresno created the HRGames more than a decade ago and created a “Jeopardy!” format in which the host reads the answer and the participants provide the question. The goal of the competition is to help students become qualified human resources professionals and prepare them for the rigorous examination they must take to receive a Professional in Human Resources certification.
Since the beginning of the year, eight Cal Poly Pomona students have given up their Sunday afternoons to study every aspect of human resources including employment law, strategic management and staff recruiting.
April Chen, a team member and a fourth-year Management and Human Resources (MHR) student, said preparing for the competition helped her become a more focused student because she knew topics her professors were teaching could be an answer in the HRGames.
Being an HRGames participant may also help Chen in her search for a job in human resources, a career path she is passionate in pursuing.
“I'm drawn to human resources because I want to help make working conditions better for people,” Chen said.
Team member Eddie Trieu said preparing for the HRGames was one of the more enjoyable academic experiences he has had at Cal Poly Pomona. The fourth-year MHR and International Business and Marking (IBM) student also liked that he had an opportunity to meet other business students.
“It's a tough competition but everyone is fair and pretty nice,” Trieu said. “After the games, we went out and talked.”
In addition to Chen and Trieu, the team members consisted of Jeremy Tran, Tommy Tran, Ryan Lee and Sammi Situ. The alternates were Jerrilyn Phu and Em Pham.
The top six teams will move on to the regional competition April 4-5 at California State University, Long Beach.
For information on how to support or join next years HRGames team, contact Cheryl Wyrick at (909) 869-2431 or crwyrick@cpp.edu.