Role:
Human resources (HR) officers are involved in the personnel side of a company or organisation. They can be involved with recruitment, training and development and aim to ensure that the people employed by a business or organisation are the right people in terms of skills and experience.
Other areas covered include: working practices, pay, conditions of employment, negotiation with external work-related agencies, and equality and diversity.
Skills Required:
Candidates will need to show evidence of the following:
- Business awareness and management skills
- Organisational skills and the ability to understand detailed information
- IT and numeracy skills, with strong IT skills required if managing/operating computerised payroll and benefits systems
- Interpersonal skills to form effective working relationships with people at all levels
- Ability to analyse, interpret and explain employment law
- Ability to compile and interpret statistical data and communicate it in a professional and understandable manner
- Potential to handle a leadership role
- In some bigger companies and large organisations you may be required to work with overseas staff so any language skills and cultural awareness can be an asset.
Source: Prospects
Things to Consider:
The HR profession offers excellent opportunities for advancement and increased levels of responsibility.
A career in human resources offers great flexibility. You may choose to work in a small corporation, where each member of the HR team has a significant level of responsibility. Alternatively, you may prefer to work in a larger firm with a more expansive HR structure, where you would have a narrower range of duties and the opportunity to develop a more in-depth, specialized skill set.
New graduates entering the profession need to be flexible in terms of geographical location and/or the type of HR work they want as competition for vacancies is usually intense.
During a key recruitment intake or during a time of redundancies, there may often be periods of extended hours.
Useful Links:
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Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD)
Monster.co.uk- Why would I want to work in HR?
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