How does the HR department benefit other employees?

Human resources team members help the company in the following ways: Helping with career advancement: HR may support internal mobility and career development, while promotion decisions often involve managers and leadership. Responding to complaints: HR professionals are responsible for addressing reports of misconduct and helping all employees remain accountable for their actions. Offering continuing education: HR often helps administer continuing education programs such as tuition reimbursement and training. These professional development opportunities can lead to higher retention rates and increased job satisfaction. Keeping employees safe: HR supports workplace safety by helping enforce policies and coordinating with managers or safety teams, helping them access any professional help they might need. Explaining legal language: HR can help employees by deciphering complex legal documents.

Human Resources Duties and Skills – Reviewed by Joe Scotto

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Human resources departments may help companies grow by caring for their employees. A successful HR team is well-trained and highly skilled at fulfilling its many responsibilities.

In this article, Joe Scotto, human resources (HR) leader, reviews the responsibilities and skills of effective human resources departments and best practices to help your team manage employees and succeed.

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Common responsibilities of human resources

The human resources department typically manages many employee-related activities within an organization. It may consist of an HR manager overseeing a team of trained HR staff, depending on the size of the organization, who support hiring, firing and training. These HR professionals keep employees informed about the company’s policies and protocols, including matters related to salary, benefits and performance.

Depending on company policy, the primary duties of an HR manager may include the following:

Recruiting, interviewing and hiring new employees
Overseeing the signing, editing and termination of employee contracts
Approving paid time off (PTO) requests and sick absences
Supporting compliance with federal employment regulations
Helping uphold employee protections
Enforcing company policies
Investigating reports of misconduct in the workplace
Mediating employee disputes and administering employee discipline

“Human resources departments can be a strong adjunct to both management and employees. When staffed properly and empowered to support company goals, an HR department may become integral to a company’s success.”

—Joe Scotto, HR leader

Human resources skills

When hiring HR professionals, employers can screen for relevant skills. These include the following:

Interpersonal communication
Teamwork
Organization
Management
Technical expertise

Interpersonal communication

Effective human resources professionals are skilled at communicating with employees from various backgrounds and with a range of personalities. They have the ability to share information clearly and efficiently, even in high-pressure situations. These professionals are also tactful, polite and respectful in conversations.

Teamwork

Cooperating with others and working as a team is important for HR professionals. As hiring managers, they typically consider how new employees will fit into the company’s culture and how hiring them might benefit the team as a whole.

They also facilitate the organization’s growth and development, keeping the company’s mission, values and goals in mind as they carry out their duties.

Organization

The ability to schedule assignments, adhere to deadlines and multitask are all valuable skills for an HR professional. This means setting achievable goals, consistently meeting expectations, balancing multiple assignments and managing numerous tasks while effectively completing all required duties.

Management

Some HR professionals serve in specialist or generalist roles, whereas others are managers. HR managers are reliable, competent and capable of producing quality results. They are often responsible for overseeing important projects, such as writing employee handbooks, implementing performance reviews or conducting surveys.

Technical expertise

Part of an HR team member’s role is to be familiar with federal laws and regulations regarding employment. This includes reading, understanding and implementing laws and rules related to employee programs, such as workers’ compensation and disability benefits. They may also be required to use specialized software or computer programs to perform their daily duties.

Best practices for HR departments

Here are some tips that can help HR departments be more effective:

Uphold the company’s vision. The HR department is aligned with the company’s mission, goals, objectives and vision for growth. For example, how they treat employees, how they present the company to recruits and how they respond to feedback.
Communicate with empathy. Human resources staff often guide employees through a wide range of positive and challenging situations. An HR department that speaks to employees with empathy is likely to be more successful when handling conflict or discipline.
Continue learning. HR practices often evolve as workplace expectations, laws and business needs change. They adapt their methods if the industry discovers a more effective technique. HR staff can attend lectures and conferences to stay up to date on the latest developments in their field.

Effective human resources departments can be important for organizational success. By skillfully managing recruitment, employee relations and compliance while demonstrating strong communication, organization and empathy, HR teams may foster a positive workplace culture.

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Frequently asked questions about HR duties

Human resources team members help the company in the following ways:

Helping with career advancement: HR may support internal mobility and career development, while promotion decisions often involve managers and leadership.
Responding to complaints: HR professionals are responsible for addressing reports of misconduct and helping all employees remain accountable for their actions.
Offering continuing education: HR often helps administer continuing education programs such as tuition reimbursement and training. These professional development opportunities can lead to higher retention rates and increased job satisfaction.
Keeping employees safe: HR supports workplace safety by helping enforce policies and coordinating with managers or safety teams, helping them access any professional help they might need.
Explaining legal language: HR can help employees by deciphering complex legal documents.

The size of a company’s HR department depends on the company’s size and the scope of services it offers. Across U.S. employers, SHRM reports an average of about 1.7 HR staff per 100 employees, with a common staffing range of 1.5 to 4.5 per 100 employees.

Companies with fewer employees might hire an office manager or general supervisor who can support multiple disciplines and carry out the duties of an HR manager. Larger organizations may have layered HR roles such as directors, managers, and specialists—depending on their structure—each with an area of specialty as their daily focus.