How to Hire a Human Resources Manager

Why hire a human resources manager?

The need for new staff can affect your existing team and bottom line. A great human resources manager hire can help your business by:

• Recruiting new employees to your company through networking events and recruitment websites
• Ensuring a safe and productive workplace through company codes of conduct
• Strategically organizing your labor force for maximum return on investment

What are the types of human resources managers?

Some companies have one human resources manager to run the entire HR department. Larger companies might have managers for specific areas of the HR department in addition to an overall HR manager or director. Some examples of human resources managers include:

• Training and development managers: These managers help develop and oversee all the training programs for employees. They manage the training staff and work with other department heads to develop training programs.
• Recruitment managers: Recruitment managers supervise company recruiters and manage the recruitment process, from recruiting to interviews. It’s their responsibility to ensure the HR department meets recruiting needs to fill vacant positions.
• Benefits and compensation managers: Heading the benefits department, these managers develop, evaluate and manage the overall benefits and compensation offered to employees.
• Payroll managers: This role focuses on employees getting paid properly by overseeing the payroll process and all payroll employees.
• Employee relations managers: These managers are common in large companies with unionized employees, but companies without unions might also have this type of HR manager. They focus on labor policies, labor disputes, negotiations and all interactions with the union.

Where to find human resources managers

To find the right human resources manager for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

• Promote from within. Your current human resources employees are already familiar with company policies and procedures, so it’s a natural transition to promote them to manager positions.
• Participate in human resources organizations. Have a strong presence in HR organizations to create interest in working for your company.
• Attend human resources conferences. Network at human resources conferences to meet potential hires, including people who are already managers and those with lots of HR experience who are ready for a management position.
• Ask for referrals. Talk to your HR staff to look for referrals for the management position. Managers from other departments might have contacts in their network who would be a good fit.
• Post your job online. Try posting your human resources manager job on Indeed to find and attract quality human resources manager candidates.

What are the types of human resources managers?

Some companies have one human resources manager to run the entire HR department. Larger companies might have managers for specific areas of the HR department in addition to an overall HR manager or director. Some examples of human resources managers include:

• Training and development managers: These managers help develop and oversee all the training programs for employees. They manage the training staff and work with other department heads to develop training programs.
• Recruitment managers: Recruitment managers supervise company recruiters and manage the recruitment process, from recruiting to interviews. It’s their responsibility to ensure the HR department meets recruiting needs to fill vacant positions.
• Benefits and compensation managers: Heading the benefits department, these managers develop, evaluate and manage the overall benefits and compensation offered to employees.
• Payroll managers: This role focuses on employees getting paid properly by overseeing the payroll process and all payroll employees.
• Employee relations managers: These managers are common in large companies with unionized employees, but companies without unions might also have this type of HR manager. They focus on labor policies, labor disputes, negotiations and all interactions with the union.

Writing a human resources manager job description

A thoughtful description can help find qualified human resources manager candidates. A human resources manager job description includes a compelling summary of the role, a detailed list of duties and responsibilities and the required and preferred skills for the position.

When writing your human resources manager job description, consider including some or all of the following keywords to improve the visibility of your job posting. These are the most popular search terms leading to clicks on human resources manager jobs, according to Indeed data:

• Human resources
• Human resources manager
• HR
• HR manager
• Manager
• Payroll
• Management
• Human resource
• Office manager
• Employee relations

Interviewing human resources manager candidates

Strong candidates for human resources manager positions will be confident answering questions regarding:

• Up-to-date knowledge of local and federal employment laws
• An ability to negotiate pay rate and benefits
• Teaching and training styles

Need help coming up with interview questions? See our list of human resources manager interview questions for examples (with sample answers).