There are certain behaviours, capabilities and knowledge required to be able to be a strong Human Resources professional.
Unfortunately, watching 19 seasons of Grey’s Anatomy did not prepare me to be a surgeon, and even though I can argue, I am not a lawyer. You need more than that, and it’s the same in HR.
A HR career is more than just “hiring and firing”. A good HR professional understands analysing complex problems and finding creative solutions. I always say I’m looking to know the WHY behind the WHAT.
HR has to be proactive and responsive, keeping your finger on the pulse of employment issues and trends, and how they link to the organisation.
HR are the keepers of a lot of data and information about the workforce. It’s about taking the data and connecting it to the business at an organisational level – being able to tell a story about trends, insights, potential risks, and subsequent impacts now and in the future.
To succeed, HR must partner with the business to establish an understanding of the high-demand and necessary workforce skills and capabilities, required capacity and performance and take action to influence these outcomes.
HR qualifications don’t give you all that knowledge, but it does is help you start to understand and develop critical thinking around the different aspects of the field.
For me, on the job learnings have developed me into the HR Manager I am today. Being involved in recruitment (at an agency, where I did not thrive on sales) taught me the importance of understanding what draws people in and what keeps them in an organisation. Attraction and retention is understanding talent pipelines and the importance of creating a safe and inclusive environment.
Turning data into solutions led me to workforce planning. Cultivating deep curiosity to understand both people and the organisation is equally important because we have to be a voice to both.
So if you are fascinated by what makes people tick, you can strategise with the best of them, you know how to influence people and aren’t afraid of sticky situations, turn those personal qualities into commercial awareness and develop your HR career!