Hiring someone for a human resources department is a tricky thing. You need to make sure they fit the part just right. This is because the human resources department is an extremely important area of the company. There are executive search consultant services that center their focus specifically on hiring for HR positions. There is a certain type of person that needs to be hired for this kind of placement. Here are a few of the attributes that you should look for when hiring for your HR department.
Honesty and Integrity
You can get a certain feeling about people so always trust your gut when interviewing. The human resources department must only have honest people working. They have access to a lot of personal information such as bank account numbers for the employees, etc. This is why an HR consulting services are a good way to go because they have already been screened and are deemed trustworthy and know what to look for in a potential hire.
Patient and Understanding
HR executive recruiters will sometimes test potential hires even at the interview. Asking hard questions and showing a little tough love is a good way to find out if someone can remain calm and patient. Human resources get the brunt of the frustration and possibly even anger from employees be it about paychecks, promotions, new hires or something else entirely. They need to have people skills, when it comes down to it. Even though it’s a desk job and they generally don’t deal with customers, HR reps are constantly having to deal with employees. They need to be able to listen carefully and communicate effectively.
Knowledgeable and Qualified
Most HR positions require having a degree. This is because the work can be quite difficult. Some places give the accounting work to the HR department to take care of. HR is so much more than just admin work. A common misconception is that human resources is really just a bunch of glorified receptionists. This is far from the truth. You need to check that the person you are hiring, knows what they are doing. Previous experience in another human resources position should be preferred but not required. This will leave you open to explore all your options. Sometimes it happens that the supposed ‘non experienced’ people are the most knowledgeable and qualified. It’s good practice to look first at those with a degree but be careful not to overlook someone without one. They could have all the other traits necessary and be teachable while an individual with a degree could be completely arrogant with none of the other characteristics.
Motivated and Independent
Most of the HR department works on their own. They don’t generally have a boss micro managing them. They are supposed to be mature and motivated enough to be able to keep working even when the boss is not hovering. Because they are in charge of the employees below them, they are the example and should be held to a standard. Part of that standard is to show everyone else how to work independently as well as in a team.
Organized and Meticulous
This is important because the HR department deals with a lot of information. Paperwork, documents, contracts and more pass through an HR consultant’s desk on a daily basis. They have to be able to keep everything separated and organized in an efficient manner. It can tend to be a high stress job so making sure that everything has a place and they know where to find everything quickly and easily is important. Many HR departments will work together to create a filing system that everyone follows to make it easier. That way you don’t have to be running to your co worker every time you need to find a document regarding a situation that they handled last.
Don’t be afraid to be picky for this one. Hiring HR employees is one of the most important jobs to have. They basically help to run the company and keep it going in a professional manner. If your human resources department lets you down, your company will likely suffer a setback from the situation.