Human Resources
Human Resources Generalist
Overview
A Human Resources generalist is responsible for recruiting, hiring, and training employees, as well as managing employee benefits and compensation. They also handle employee relations issues and ensure compliance with labor laws and regulations.
The main responsibilities of a Human Resources generalist include recruiting and hiring new employees, developing and implementing training and development programs, managing employee relations and handling conflicts and grievances, administering employee benefit programs, developing and enforcing HR policies and procedures, and maintaining accurate HR records and reports.
Common tasks
| Task | Related trait(s) |
|---|---|
| Recruiting new employees and extending job offers | Fairness |
| Creating job postings, conducting intervies and managing onboarding and offboarding of employees | Communication skills – Expressiveness Communication skills – Understanding others Emotional intelligence Calmness Conscientiousness |
| Managing payroll compensation and benefit programs | Integrity Confidentiality |
| Providing training and development opportunities to employees | Conscientiousness |
| Maintaining employee records and ensuring confidentiality | Integrity Confidentiality |
| Advising managers and supervisors on employee relations issues, such as performance, disciplinary actions, and conflict resolution | Fairness Problem Solving Flexibility |
| Developing and implementing policies and procedures, that are communicated effectively to employees | Learning agility Teamplayer Helping Others |
| Coordinating performance review processes | Social Confidence |
| Conducting employee surveys and analyzing data to identify areas for improvement | Data literacy |
| Develop strategies to achieve employee engagement and retention | Problem Solving |
| Ensuring compliance employment laws and regulations | Written Comprehension |
Soft skills measured by TraitForward
| Trait | No of Questions | Cronbach’s alpha (α) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Written Comprehension | 4 | 0.81 | |
| Can they comprehend difficult reading material? | |||
| Fairness | 10 | 0.74 | |
| Do they have a sense of equality? | |||
| Teamplayer Respect for rules | 9 | 0.74 | |
| Do they follow rules? | |||
| Social Confidence | 6 | 0.77 | |
| Are they socially confident? | |||
| Data literacy | 8 | 0.71 | |
| Are they confident with data? Do they want to know how things work? Do they look at the facts before they make a decision? | |||
| Problem Solving | 5 | 0.73 | |
| Are they problem solvers? | |||
| Flexibility | 6 | 0.73 | |
| Are they flexible? | |||
| Integrity Confidentiality | 4 | 0.55 | |
| Are they trustworthy to deal with issues such as confidentiality? | |||
| Communication skills – Expressiveness | 11 | 0.84 | |
| Do they express themselves effectively? | |||
| Communication skills – Understanding others | 8 | 0.71 | |
| Do they understand others? | |||
| Teamplayer Positive group practices | 9 | 0.72 | |
| Do they like being included in a group? | |||
| Learning agility | 7 | 0.75 | |
| Do they feel comfortable for new learning? | |||
| Emotional intelligence | 7 | 0.83 | |
| Do they understand emotions and intentions of others? | |||
| Calmness | 5 | 0.77 | |
| Can they remain calm in difficult situations? | |||
| Conscientiousness | 7 | 0.75 | |
| Do they have a desirable work ethic? Do they pay attention to details? | |||
| Teamplayer Helping Others | 6 | 0.75 | |
| Do they like helping others? | |||
Did you Know?
Source: US Department of Labor – Bureau of Labor Statistics
Median wage:
$62,290 / per year
$30 / hour
A relatively low annual wage is $37,680 (10th percentile)
A relatively high salary of the annual wage is $108,160 (90th percentile)
Expected employment growth:
Number of professionals occupied in US in 2021: 782.8 K
Projected number of professionals occupied in US in 2031: 841.6 K
Employment percent change: 7.5%
Entry Education level:
To become a Human Resources generalist, one typically needs a bachelor’s degree in human resources, business administration, or a related field. However, some employers may accept candidates with relevant experience in HR, even if they do not have a bachelor’s degree. HR generalists must have excellent communication and interpersonal skills, as they interact with employees and management throughout their work. They must also have strong organizational and multitasking skills, as they manage a variety of tasks simultaneously. A good understanding of employment law and regulations is also essential, as HR generalists are responsible for ensuring compliance with applicable laws and regulations. Finally, HR generalists must have a strong ethical and moral compass as they handle sensitive and confidential information on a daily basis.
Find out the psychometric properties for the Human Resources Generalist Traitforward questionnaire