Getting your first human resources job can be a real challenge. Often, companies want a person with HR experience. But then how do you get HR experience if no one will give you a job? Huge Catch-22. That’s the dilemma from this reader:
I currently work in a dead end job where’s there is no place for me to move. I have no real human resources experience and it seems like I’ll never get hired into an HR role. I’ve been sending out my resume but not getting any responses. I applied for a position as the assistant to HR Director role but he kinda brushed me off. I have no idea what part of HR I want to get into. There are so many options – I’m getting overwhelmed. Any suggestions on what I can do? How did you start?
Taking an entry-level role is a common way to gain experience. Not only in HR but other professions as well. Here are a few posts I’ve written in the past about human resources careers. I hope you find them helpful.
Getting a Start in Human Resources
Handling the Pressures of Work
Going From Specialist to Generalist
What advice do you have for someone trying to get an HR job right now? Leave your thoughts in the comments. Thanks!
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Katerina says
Similar situation is with foreigners here in Slovenia. Although I have HR experience it is unbelievably hard to find something! European crisis, I guess! But, on the other hand, this is my best professional test: to get a job for myself and prove that I am a great specialist. And I like big challenges! 🙂
Mary Appleton says
The role of HR as a function has certainly changed in recent years (some might argue we’re still a long way off HR being a proper ‘strategic’ business function!) but I think the first thing to do is glean an understanding of what HR actually is, and what HR does. In my experience, this varies massively between organisations. For some, HR has moved from being a support/administration function to being much more strategic and aligned with business objectives, yet for others HR is still struggling to influence at board level and have any input into the wider business strategy.
Broadly speaking, if you are looking to make a move into HR, as with any other role, you’ll need to ensure you stand out from your competition. This is especially tough if you’ve had relatively little or no HR exposure in the past.
However, you can demonstrate a real commitment to HR as a profession by attending industry seminars and other networking or sector events can help. You could also try to do some voluntary work experience as this will demonstrate dedication, give you some experience of the HR working environment and may even lead to a permanent position.
Use social networks such as LinkedIn to network with other HR professionals and get up to speed on trends, news etc through HR specific groups. You can also leverage contacts to find yourself a mentor who may help you break into the profession through coaching you.
In terms of general skills required, HR professionals need first class communication and interpersonal skills as HR is usually mainly people orientated. You will deal with people at all levels within an organisation so must be able to show your adaptability. Organisational skills and flexibility is also a must in order to deal with a busy and unpredictable workload.
A career progression survey on HR professionals undertaken by Hays Human Resources in the UK in 2009, revealed over one third (36%) of respondents entered HR from an administration background, which shows there’s great opportunity to make a transition.
The challenge in switching to a career in HR is to maintain your salary level. You will be in competition with candidates with substantial HR experience which makes this a difficult prospect. As Sharlyn says, you may have to take an entry level role which could involve taking a pay cut in order to move forward, so you’ll need to be prepared to be flexible.
Sharlyn Lauby says
Thanks for sharing your experience!
Jennifer Olsen says
The next time your company is hiring, volunteer to sift through the resumes based on the hiring manager’s criteria. Resume reviews are generally not high on a hiring manager’s list of fun activities. He/she may gladly hand over the responsibility to you. If you impress the hiring manager with your selections, you can add resume reviews to your resume. You could then make the same offer with quick phone screens and/or reference checks and then add those to your resume as well. These are just quick suggestions to get you some basic experience with an HR responsibility that you can talk about on your resume and in an interview. Make sure in doing this, that you are up on the legal do’s and don’ts of phone screen/reference questions. Very important.
We offer some tips for writing your resume and cover letter on our blog. Please visit: http://springboard.resourcefulhr.com/?p=1819 to learn more.
Sharlyn Lauby says
Nice idea for anyone who wants to learn about recruiting. Thanks for sharing Jennifer!
Sean says
This seems to be a growing trend in fields with large amounts of tacit knowledge, one must have experience to get a job, but needs a job to get experience. One way you could get experience is to look for an internship.