The human resources department is the backbone of every organization. It’s responsible for hiring, onboarding, and training employees, managing payroll and benefits, and keeping all of these tasks running smoothly so that your business can operate at peak efficiency.

Some people think it’s a waste to pay an entire team just to handle administrative responsibilities like filing paperwork or maintaining employee records – but they couldn’t be more wrong!

What Is An HR department?

The HR (Human Resources) department is a department that is in charge of managing the employee life cycle (i.e., recruiting, selecting, onboarding, training, and firing personnel).

What Do Human Resources Do?

Ask any employee what an HR department does, and they’ll probably respond with anything to do with the most distressing parts of their job: HR infractions, layoffs, and termination. The fact is that human resources exist to assist employees. It’s essentially a resource for people in terms of what it means.

HR plays such a crucial role in the success (or failure) of any company because their work directly impacts:

Hiring New Employees

The number one responsibility of human resources is recruiting new talent into the company.

HR must understand the organization’s requirements and ensure that those needs are satisfied while recruiting for new posts. It’s not as simple as just placing an advertisement on Indeed: you’ll need to assess the market, talk to stakeholders, and manage funds.

Then, after the position has been advertised, more research is required to make sure that suitable individuals are being sought and presented. Recruiting is a time-consuming and costly process; the correct applicant may rejuvenate an entire business, but the incorrect one may ruin it.

Onboarding & Training Employees

Once you have hired employees, they require formal training on policies and procedures. HR performs these duties by creating a custom onboarding program based on the needs of new hires.

HR also provides ongoing training for existing staff members to ensure that their skills are up-to-date with industry standards. This includes developing online courses or seminars as well as arranging in-person training at your company’s headquarters or other locations. Employee Retention & Wellness Programs = Satisfied Employees.

Process Company Payroll

Payroll is a beast all its own. Every pay period, taxes must be calculated and hours recorded. Reimbursements and raises and bonuses need to be factored in as well. Imagine what it’s like to be an HR employee responsible for making sure their deductions are accurate every pay period if you think doing taxes just once a year is too difficult.

Update Organization Policies

Every year, because the company changes, policies must be updated (or at the very least examined). It’s HR’s role to make official modifications to regulations and propose alterations when necessary. A policy may sometimes need to be changed as a result of an event. In addition, any time changes are being considered by existing rules and regulations, HR should always be represented and consulted on them.

Conduct Disciplinary Actions

The role of HR may be the reason why it has a poor reputation. Disciplinary actions can result in the loss of a valued employee and even litigation or a poor public image when done incorrectly. However, when handled correctly, disciplinary action has the potential to help an individual succeed.

If a firm discovers that a certain worker is consistently late and, despite having received numerous warnings, continues to be late, HR might get involved to figure out the cause of the tardiness. It may be an opportunity to provide additional resources or help the employee improve his or her punctuality. Instead of spending money on terminating and then recruiting a replacement for that individual, it may be worthwhile for both parties concerned to look at this as an educational experience.

Train and Support Managers

HR support managers with a variety of training. HR can assist management in providing leadership to supervisors, ensuring that departments and staff are as healthy and effective as possible. Managers may be sent to formal courses and retreats periodically.

HR research and develop internal training, but also find external trainers who can provide specialized skills to the group. External courses may be provided for both managers and staff, on topics like diversity training or how to work with difficult customers/clients.

How Does HR Support Employees?

Human Resource plays an important role in supporting the employees and helping them to grow. Here are some examples of Human Resources responsibilities for employees:

Employee Wellness Program

When it comes down to it, people are what drive any organization’s bottom line because without human capital you don’t have anything else! Therefore, improving employee wellness benefits everyone–the healthier workers are physically and mentally, the more productive they’ll be while working at your business.

Allowing time off from work or offering flexible hours might seem like a no-brainer when trying to decrease stress levels, but what about including a company gym or creating an exercise room with cardio equipment and weights? Other companies work on improving wellness by focusing on nutrition.

Hosting potluck lunches in the breakroom, showing films related to healthy living once per month, offering discounts at local health food stores are all great ways for establishing a culture that supports not only physical well-being but mental wellness as well.

Retirement Benefits Program

Of course, having employees is important and brand loyalty plays a large role when it comes to hiring new people (but we’re talking WAY more than just free donuts here), however, this becomes even more true after years of service! That’s why many organizations make sure their older workers can retire comfortably through retirement benefits such as 401(k)s and other investment plans.

Employee Assistance

When employees have a problem, it’s important to get them the help they need as soon as possible! That could mean anything from mental health counseling for stress or addiction treatment after an accident at work—whatever your company decides is best suited to make sure employees feel comfortable asking for assistance when needed.

Company Culture

The culture of any organization begins with its founders and executives who set the tone by establishing core values that affect all aspects (from hiring practices to dress code) within the workplace. As well, creating clear social norms such as “dress appropriately” allows employees to know exactly what’s expected while discouraging individuals from wearing clothing that makes others uncomfortable (e.g., too revealing or inappropriate).

Employee Engagement

While creating a healthy company culture can help to boost employee engagement, it’s also important for HR departments to use methods like engaging employees through surveys and internal discussions to get an idea of how they feel about their job role within the organization.

Flexible Work Arrangements (FWA)

Organizations interested in increasing productivity should consider implementing FWAs that allow workers more flexibility when needed—it could be anything from telecommuting options for parents of infant children who need to care for them at home on certain days, flexible schedules or working remotely if necessary due to bad weather conditions where commuting would be hazardous, etc.

These types of arrangements are mutually beneficial for both employers and employees, as they allow companies to retain valued workers who might otherwise leave due to an inability to balance work demands with their personal lives.

Employee Retention

Companies often spend substantial amounts of time and effort recruiting new talent—but what about making sure that this talent stays around? According To the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), turnover rates are just over 16% in many industries, which can have a direct impact on company morale or financial performance if highly trained staff leaves suddenly.

Thus, it’s important for HR professionals within organizations to find ways to keep their workforce happy so they stay put. Employee retention is also beneficial for job seekers looking at companies because it means there will be less competition during hiring processes.

What do HR managers get paid?

According to Glassdoor, the National Average for a human resources manager in the United States is $80,663. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, however, the average salary is considerably higher at $102,780.

According to Payscale.com, 90 percent of HR Manager salaries fall below $88,000 while 10% make less than $41,000 according to Payscale. On Payscale, the typical pay for an HR Manager is about $61K. The overall average of all three sources is $81,481.

Top Paying Cities in the United States

• New York, NY – $111,260
• San Francisco, CA – $104,284
• Seattle, WA – $83,720
• Austin, TX – $77,426
• Atlanta, GA – $71352
• Los Angeles, CA – $66,059 (source)

What Is The Qualification Required For HR?

Here are examples of the qualifications you need to apply for an HR Manager role.

Skills You’ll Bring

• 5 to 10 years of professional experience with full-cycle recruiting in the architecture/engineering industry, preferably in the construction project management discipline.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Attention to detail.
• Excellent organizational skills.
• Ability to handle sensitive information and maintain discretion.

Tools You Should Know

• Microsoft Office Suite (WORD, Excel, OneNote, Team)
• RESUMate, or other applicant tracking systems (Bullhorn, Fountain, JazzHR, etc.)

Nice To Have These Experiences

• Experience as an HR Generalist.
• Experience with Los Angeles Unified School District and Los Angeles Community College District staffing contracts.

Education You Need

• A Bachelor’s degree from an accredited College or University in Human Resources, Sociology, Psychology, Business, or related field of study.
• Every organization’s HR education or training requirements are unique, so there is no specific education that guarantees employment. However, most companies are looking for HR professionals with a Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources or a related field of study.

Final Thoughts

We hope that this article provides you with a better understanding of what a Human Resources professional accomplishes and is responsible for.

Human Resources are without a doubt the most demanding and gratifying role at any company. It’s not easy work, and it needs someone with certain talents to do it well.

We appreciate all you do for us, HR!