Is the information technology department avoiding your phone calls? Do you have a cool idea to increase office productivity? You can't tell the difference between your IRA and 401(k) plan? It might be time to talk to someone in your human resources department.
What You'll Do Human resources (HR) is a general term meant to cover a wide range of activities. Some of the work that falls to HR professionals includes hiring and firing employees, creating organizational charts and shaping corporate culture after a merger or acquisition, managing employee communications, settling employee disputes, creating benefits programs, navigating government regulations, dealing with legal issues such as sexual harassment and occupational safety, and setting up policy and programs for measuring performance, compensating, recognizing, and training employees. In other words, HR doesnít consist of a single activity or function but a huge network of them; basically, HR refers to everything related to the employer/employee relationship. Both specialists and generalists can find a home here, with specialist tracks ranging from training to pension plan administration to legal compliance. In HR, thereís something for just about everyone.
Who Does Well Human resources acts as the mediator between an organizationís management and its workers. This requires wearing many hats: Itís an HR administratorís job to make sure that employees are working in a safe environment, that disputes are settled, and that benefits are understood and functioning properly. At the same time, HR is charged with recruiting new employees who will both fit in well and help the company achieve profitability. They also represent management when negotiating for benefits with companies administering these benefits and when implementing companywide policies that will ultimately lower costs or boost profits. The needs of HR cover a wide range of tasks and, therefore, require someone who is not only good with people, but also organized, analytical, business-minded, and able to juggle many projects at once.
