Human Resources: A Career Research Report

August 28, 2009

[Thanks to Celia for sharing the career research report on how to become a human resources representative and related work information.]

I previously worked in the human resources department for this great company. After 3 years my assignment ended. I never really thought about this as a career path, but I have learned from others in the field, and my work experience has this HR background. I noticed that usually anywhere you always will have someone from HR, so I began to look into this as a possible long term career.

I know that I want to do something with employee relations but usually in this career you may need to be open to all sorts of different aspects before you pick a specific area. I am content and interested in this focus because you work with people. I know about HR to a certain extent but need to get more familiar with employer/employee laws and other important factors.

A description of my career occupation would be working with the public or employees and being the main point of contact for benefits, work related questions, providing them with any particular resources needed.

The work atmosphere is of course busy but not chaotic. It is in an office setting that typically is open during normal business hours which are Mondays through Fridays. You also are off during the holidays and rarely work during the weekends. The schedule is flexible and you may also even work from home remotely.

Communication and organizational skills are essential for a position in human resources, along with the abilities to think quickly and rationally and to be a great listener and adviser.

It is very important to obtain a higher education in order to have a strong background. Other certificates are helpful and in some places are required.

If you are not a manager and are beginning your career in HR it is important to obtain your PHR certificate as this makes you stand out and will indicate your knowledge in HR and as a qualified professional in this area. As you continue to advance and further extend your knowledge in HR you may obtain the SPHR certificate and be identified with much more seniority and knowledge in HR. In order to obtain either certificate you need to pass a certain exam. This exam is timed and may be very costly in price. If you are a student you have an advantage to save money. I currently am a student member of SHRM and plan to look into the PHR course and exam once I graduate and obtain my B.A.

The best path for me to take in order to pursue this HR career would be to complete my education. Then go on and focus on the knowledge that is required and learn and study for the exam in order to successfully pass the test and get certified. I may also obtain a current position in HR in order to gain experience and knowledge and know what else is needed.

In some companies experience in the HR department is enough but you would not get paid as much as having a degree. The typical earnings for the entry level HR assistant to coordinators depend on the cost of living in the particular area. In the Bay Area an entry HR position with no experience is about $38,000 per year. As an HR generalist, the pay could range between 55k up to 70k a year or even more. The HR director’s salary may range from 65k up to 120k a year. Of course this also depends on the industry and how well each industry is doing. Industries change and the ones that may be in high demand may have positions making more money.

It is also essential to be a part of an HR society, and networking is highly important. In order to be successful it is great to network and learn from others in the field and establish relationships. One of the most important associations for this career in human resources is SHRM, Society for Human Resource Management. It provides so much information, including general resources, education, networking, classes and knowledge about labor, for their members.

After completing this research and looking at it in a more in depth perspective, I realized that it will keep myself challenged. I realized not to look into an industry that will pay you the most but to pursue something that I will be proud to be a part of. It’s not all about that money. How would it feel making great money but not enjoying what you do and always thinking about the clock and wondering when you are almost done with work? I actually speak on this from my own personal experience. I recall previous jobs that I had where I worked only for the money, because I would just look at the clock and could not take it anymore.

What I also learned is that you never stop learning about what you are interested in doing as a career. You need to keep yourself updated with news and current information regarding any new laws concerning employee rights. There will always be something new to learn in this field – it could be information based on the state that you live in. For example, each state has different benefits and rights and its own laws even though we all reside in the U.S. This is something that I recently learned about in this field.

I realize that I may do any function in the HR area and would like to obtain knowledge in different areas in order to find the one that most interests me. It could be HR generalist, compensation, employee relations, and HR director. Either way I will still need to learn many aspects in them in order to grow in the field. This field is very interesting and rewarding and it opens the door to many possibilities.

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