This reader has asked a terrific question:
I’m thinking about moving into human resources. I was wondering if you can provide more information, for example what’s a day in the life of a person who works in HR? Thanks for all your help.
Before I answer this question, I have to tell you a funny story. For the years I worked in corporate human resources, the only part of my job that Mr. Bartender saw was the part I did at night or on the weekends. Which was usually the fun stuff – like buying decorations for an employee party or researching where I could get purple star cookies for benefits open enrollment. Then, Mr. B got a job with an HR marketing company and they put him through weeks of training about HR topics. Stuff like – ADA, FMLA, EEO, etc. One night he comes home and says, “OMG, I had no idea this is what you did all day!”
That’s why this question is so important. I really wonder how many people know how HR spends their time.
Now, I hate answering a question with “it depends” but it really depends. Let’s make a few assumptions:
We’re talking about generalists. Because if we were referring to a training specialist…well, they do training all day. Generalists deal with a little bit of everything.
The industry is not a 365/24/7 operation. If you work in a 24-hour operation then it’s anybody’s guess what you could be doing from day to day. There have been plenty of times I left the office planning to complete a project the next day. Then, someone does something stupid on the overnight shift. The next morning, that’s my new agenda item (surprise!)
It’s not a specific HR time of year. Let’s face it – there’s an open enrollment time of year, a holiday party or summer picnic time of year, maybe even a performance appraisal or seasonal recruiting time. Those are the moments when everything else goes on hold and we accomplish the major project.
If I were to ask twenty HR pros how they spend their time, I’d get twenty different answers. But let’s try to help this reader out. Here’s a poll question: On what function do you spend the majority of your time?
I haven’t seen a survey like this in a long while. The results could be very interesting. Please share with your HR friends. It will be great to see the results. Thanks!
1
RMSmithJr.SPHR says
#2 on my list is Employee Relations.
#1 on my wish list is Training & Development because the more time you can spend in Adult Education, the less time you have to spend on Comp, Benefits & Employee Relations.
Instead, HR Generalist/Solo HR Practioners (which I am) are usually fighting fires without the glory, respect & cool trucks that professional fire fighters get.
I recommed reviewing this list of SHRM HR Disciplines as an expansive overview of HR: http://www.shrm.org/hrdisciplines/Pages/default.aspx
Sharlyn Lauby says
Thanks for sharing! I agree the areas are related.
Bonita Martin says
I am a generalist and my #1 activity is “Something Other than Listed” – working with and coaching managers on just about everything listed. Employee relations are close second.
Diane says
While defeating the purpose… my heart wanted an “all of the above” option. I went with safety/security as my position just took a drastic swing in that direction.
#2 would be Employee Relations. #3 is Staffing.
Lisa says
As much as I hate to say it, paperwork could be one of the choices. We deal with so much paper if our current employer doesn’t have the infrastructure to automate a lot of processes. It’s not just new hire stuff either, it’s responding to unemployment claims, workers comp claims, etc. As an HR professional, we need to let the newbies know what they are in for when they join our illustrious ranks. 🙂
Sharlyn Lauby says
Thanks so much for the comments. I think we have so many different aspects to our roles, it can be a challenge to explain “what we do” to others.
Arlene Marie Daniels says
From what I observed before, our HR spent their time fixing appraisals, handling new applications and hires, when (payday) cut-off dates come, the fix and approve OTs, etc. And the fun stuff too during Christmas and summer where they hold employee contests and parties. Also, they even contact colleagues of ours who are not performing well, or have problems. (see this book for reference http://www.depressionatwork.com) I’ve made friends with people from the HR team, and they’re even helpful with my personal life problems. 🙂
Sharlyn Lauby says
Thanks for sharing your observations Arlene!