Considering a Career in Human Resources?

Are you considering a career in Human Resources and wondering if it is the right job for you? As someone who works at Human Resources consulting firm and interacts with dozens of seasoned HR professionals on a daily basis, I've noticed that the most successful people in Human Resources share several key attributes.

You must be a people person

In order to succeed in your human resources career, you must love interacting with people. Depending on your job duties, you will have to deal with ever-changing scenarios. One day you might have to deal with an altercation between two employees, while the next day you might have to convince your company's CEO that increasing employee's salaries will help to retain great employees. For the employees you manage, you have to project that you are fair, trustworthy, sympathetic and businesslike. For the executives that are your superiors, you have to prove that you can be objective and business minded.

As a Human Resources Manager or Director, you are constantly trying to please two masters. Although you have to help the executives in ensuring that employees are being productive, you also have to ensure that those employees are being treated fairly.

You must be detail-oriented

While most jobs require you to be detail-oriented, a job in human resources truly requires you to pay attention to detail. In some cases, one simple little error made by a human resources professional can cause thousands of dollars in legal fees for that company. For example, when an employee is terminated or quits, a company has a certain number of days to provide them with information about their health insurance coverage (under the federal COBRA rules). This task would likely be assigned to a human resources professional, and if you were to forget to write this down on your calendar or if you miscalculate the number of days, your company would be getting a huge penalty fine from the government. It isn't difficult to imagine how upset a CEO might be at paying $30,000 because their human resource person forgot to put this on their to-do list.

You must love learning

You could have a bachelor's and a Master's Degree in Human Resources, along with countless certificates from professional training classes, but you still won't ever be close to knowing everything there is to know about your job. That's because as a human resources professional, you must constantly keep up with the changing legislation. Every year, federal and state legislatures will pass new laws. Some are minor and might involve putting up a new employment poster in your lobby. Other regulations might require that you do your job in an entirely different way than you ever have before. If you thrive on constant challenge, this will be one job where you won't get bored. One thing that you might also consider is that many large companies will pay for job-related education. So if all you have is your master's in Human Resources, the company could pay for you to get your MBA.

You must be able to be keep your personal life and work life separate

Many people spend just as much time at work as they do at home. Consequently, people develop close friendships with their co-workers. While an ideal human resources professional should be respected and approachable, there will be times when you must do unpleasant things. For example, you might be great buddies with Sue from the accounting department. But if her supervisor decides that her attendance problem is very serious, it might be up to you to tell Sue that she's lost her job. It's not always an easy task. If you keep in mind that this job requires that you remain neutral and objective, your career will go much more smoothly.

Do you think you have what it takes?

If you think you have what it takes, that's great! Confidence and a can-do attitude will take you far in the Human Resources fields. It's not the easiest job in the world, but there's a reason why CNN and Salary.com's 2006 survey of jobs found that Human Resources Manager is number four on the list of best jobs to have. Despite all the challenges, you are considering a career in which there is room for advancement and growth. On top of that, there is the satisfaction of knowing that you've chosen a career that not only helps companies be successful, but it helps employees be happy.