Without hardworking and trained workers, organisations would have a difficult time reaching their goals and achieving success – human resources (also known as HR for short) broadly refers to the management of these workers. Generally speaking, this includes hiring workers, managing their benefits and financial compensation, and overseeing disciplinary action taken against employees.

HR, as an industry, is enjoying steady growth and, consequently, the number of jobs in the field is growing every year. Like any department, HR needs to be managed in and of itself, and that’s where HR managers come in. HR managers are responsible primarily for overseeing the numerous functions of an HR department. One of the critical purposes of human resource management is to ensure that all employees stay productive and happy in the workplace.

As a qualified HR manager, you can help employees develop their skills and grow their careers. This is an important position in any organisation and, if you have the right skills and drive, you will enjoy a high earning potential.

Career options, field predictions, and salaries

Types of HR careers

Outside of management, your typical HR department consists of various subdivisions, each of which can be considered a specialised field. These include:

• Workforce planning: this is the process of analysing an organisation’s current workforce and determining its present and predicted needs.
• HR development: this refers to using training, organisation and career development programmes to improve effectiveness on an individual and organisational level.
• Employee relations: this subdivision specialises in managing workers’ relationships with one another, as well as the relationships between workers and managers.
• Risk management: HR risk managers focus on identifying risks workers might present to the organisation and helping workers mitigate that risk.
• Benefits administration and management: benefits specialists are primarily concerned with administering and managing worker benefits such as pension funds and medical aid schemes.
• Payroll specialist: although the details of payroll are dealt with primarily by the accounting department, HR payroll specialists oversee the overall administration of payroll.
• Training coordination and management: people in this subdivision are responsible for the planning and development of training plans for an organisation’s workers.
• Compensation specialist: compensation specialists specialise in administering and managing worker compensation – that is, wages and/or salaries.
• Recruitment and staffing: specialists in this field are dedicated to the process of hiring (and firing) employees based on the organisation’s needs.

Some specialists don’t fall neatly into one of these areas. For example, HR information systems specialists (HRIS) manage the computerised flow of information and reports about employees, their benefits, and programs, which involves multiple other divisions like the benefits division. Many options are available, depending on the area of HR that interests you most. And because the field of HR is changing and evolving constantly, you could find yourself changing the type of HR you do at any point in your career!