Careers in Human Resources At the heart of every successful

Careers in Human Resources
At the heart of every successful organisation
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Also known as personnel, HR addresses all kinds of vital issues, for
example profitability, restructuring, flexible working and globalisation,
through the effective management and development of people. As an
HR professional, the solutions you find will play an important part in
organisational and commercial success.
Many people choose a career in HR because of the contact with
people, the opportunity to influence all aspects of an organisation
and the prospect of tackling a range of key business issues. The
profession offers you the opportunity to take your career in a variety
of directions, with good salaries and the opportunity to influence
strategic business decisions.
The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) is the
leading professional body representing the HR community, with over
130,000 members in the UK and Ireland. We represent the interests of
the profession and provide the training and professional qualifications
that allow people to progress and develop in their career.
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Before going any further, it’s worth thinking
about the personal qualities you need to make
a success of a career in HR. People who thrive in
the profession tend to be:
• balanced and objective
(remember, you have a responsibility to your employer as
well as fellow employees)
• trustworthy and discreet
• strong communicators
• commercially aware
(with the ability to think strategically as you progress)
• good at working as part of a team
• patient
• numerate
• flexible and adaptable.
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HR professionals contribute in
a wide variety of ways to the
success of organisations. Many
roles cover a range of skills, and in
some organisations are known as
generalist, but some practitioners
choose to specialise in areas such as:
Recruitment and
selection
One of the most fundamental areas in
determining the health and prosperity
of an organisation is recruitment
and selection. HR professionals are
involved at every stage – preparing
job descriptions and advertisements,
checking application forms or CVs,
setting up and running assessment
centres and testing and interviewing
candidates.
Learning, training and
development
This is an ongoing process and plays
an important role in revitalising an
organisation with new skills, and helping
individuals to develop and grow. HR
professionals help to analyse the training
needs within teams and get involved in
the delivery and evaluation of learning.
Employment law
Some knowledge of the fast-moving
world of employment law will be
important in most HR management
roles, as you’ll be providing other
managers with ongoing advice and
guidance. You may also have to
represent your organisation personally
at an employment tribunal or instruct a
solicitor, so it’s important that you can
analyse legal materials effectively.
Employee relations
Employee relations may involve
negotiating with unions over pay and
working conditions, and also covers
relationships with individual employees.
It encompasses grievances and
disciplinary procedures, redundancies
and important policy areas such as
job grading, equal opportunities,
harassment and bullying.
Reward
Sometimes known as compensation
and benefits, reward covers the whole
benefits package that helps to recruit
people to an organisation and then
motivate and retain them once they’ve
arrived. HR professionals can work with
line managers to evaluate appropriate
rewards.
Health and safety
All organisations need to make
appropriate efforts to protect the
well-being of staff, customers,
contractors and members of the public.
It’s a discipline that requires research,
preparation of appropriate policies
and procedures and a programme of
assessments and safety audits. You
may get involved in providing advice
to employees or promoting health and
safety training.
Other specialist roles include HR
business partner, employer branding,
international HR, change management,
organisational design and development.
The world of HR is constantly changing,
with new specialist areas touching many
parts of the business.
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Developing your experience
Although work experience is always
important when applying for a job, your
personal qualities, flexible approach and
academic qualifications will also play a
part in impressing future employers. If
you want to build practical skills that are
relevant to HR, it may be possible to find
an unpaid placement or shadow someone
who’s already working in the profession.
And if you’ve gained voluntary experience
of budgeting, financial management,
organisation and teamwork – perhaps in a
club or society – you may find it stands you
in very good stead.
If you’re a student, why not consider a
holiday job? Ideally it will be in an HR
department, but any office or administrative
role will provide useful experience. You can
observe how the organisation relates to its
employees and possibly ask for a discussion
with a representative of HR at the end of your
time there.
If you’re currently working in another
profession you may be at an advantage
if you’re able to demonstrate relevant
experience. This is particularly true if you’re
working in a senior role or specialism, such
as employee relations, as wider business
knowledge can be very valuable. Your
experience in law, accountancy, general
people management or administration may
help you to move into HR. If you’re working
as a teacher and you’re interested in moving
into training your experience may give
you a head start, but look at the specific
qualifications required for different vacancies.
Employers may want you to have a relevant
CIPD qualification.
Finding opportunities
The CIPD’s magazine, People Management,
comes out every two weeks and is free to
members. It contains a number of job adverts,
which are aimed at people looking for
management roles. You can also browse the
jobs online at www.peoplemanagement.co.uk
Other journals and magazines may have more
junior roles and you can also browse the web
or ask at your local library. You’ll find
entry-level jobs advertised on recruitment
websites, in local press and national
newspapers. The Internet can also be a good
source of leads. Watch out for online ads and
try visiting sites that specialise in graduate
recruitment, such as:
www.prospects.ac.uk
www.get.hobsons.co.uk
www.milkroundonline.com
You may choose to contact organisations
speculatively, so it’s worth consulting The
Personnel Manager’s Yearbook or The Training
Manager’s Yearbook. Your local library may
hold reference copies. It’s also worth talking to
a careers centre in your area.
Graduate training schemes
If you’re studying, you may decide to apply
for a graduate training scheme when you
leave university. You can either join a generic
graduate scheme where you’ll gain experience
of a range of different departments, along
with HR. Or you can join a programme that’s
focused specifically on HR. If you choose an
HR programme, you may have the opportunity
to study a CIPD-approved postgraduate-level
qualification. For more information on CIPD
qualifications see pages 10–11 or visit
www.cipd.co.uk/membership
For more information on graduate schemes,
you should start by looking at directories
such as Hobsons or Prospects. The hard-copy
versions are available at most university careers
departments or local libraries and careers
offices. Or visit them online (details on page 6).
Your first experience in HR
In many cases, your first step will be working
as an assistant alongside an HR or training
manager. You could be helping to maintain
records, organise interviews and provide
administrative support or, if you choose a
training role, arranging staff training, liaising
with external training providers and collating
staff feedback about courses attended.
Traditionally, your career would develop
with qualifications and experience through
promotions to officer, adviser, manager
and director – each with its own level of
responsibility. As a manager, you might be
overseeing recruitment, selection and training
or advising other managers on HR issues
including employment law. Directors tend to
be much more involved in the formulation of
strategy and help to influence wider business
policy and goals. Often they’ll sit on an
organisation’s board.
The HR world is constantly
changing
HR career paths are, however, often more
diverse, complex and exciting. Many
organisations are creating different kinds of
relationships between their HR professionals
and the wider business.
One role that you’ll increasingly encounter is that
of HR business partner. Assigned to a particular
unit or department – and working alongside
the manager – an HR business partner will
become familiar enough with the operations of
the manager to offer credible advice, improve
business systems and add real value.
What could I expect to earn?
Starting salaries are similar to those in other
trainee posts, although if you have a relevant
postgraduate qualification or experience, you
may be able to negotiate something more.
It’s worth remembering that salaries paid by
local government and small/medium-sized
enterprises tend to be lower than those
paid by larger businesses and vary between
sectors, organisations, location, and so on.
The results from the analysis of pay by the
Reward Group comparing reward, rank and
CIPD membership indicate that annual salaries
are higher for those who are qualified,
chartered members.
Head of HR/HR director
£75,000
Organisational development manager £41,038 – 50,733
HR business partner
£35,000 – 40,000
Training and education officer
£36,000
Senior training officer
£27,492 – 30,843
Corporate trainer/presenter
£22,041 –28,523
Personnel officer
£21,501 – 25,392
HR administrator
£22,000
These salaries were taken from autumn 2007 editions of
People Management magazine.
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Mohammad Karim Chartered MCIPD
Mohammad is an HR business partner at Network Rail, which owns and operates the UK’s
rail infrastructure and employs around 35,000 people. There are around 1,000 staff in the HR
team across the UK. Mohammad has been a Chartered Member of the CIPD since 2005, which
he believes has brought him professional recognition and gave him a head start over other
candidates when he applied for his current job.
Career route
Mohammad’s career started with Arcadia Group. He took on a number of roles for the leading
retailer, including administration and sales-floor management. It was also where he gained his
first experience of HR, dealing with large-scale recruitment initiatives and employee relations.
He’s worked in a generalist role as Senior HR Adviser in the BBC’s professional services
operation, where he helped to coach line managers and worked with senior colleagues on the
ideas and implementation strategy for major change projects. Before taking on his current
role, he was an HR consultant at a large international clinical research organisation.
In his own words
‘I’m currently acting as a partner for senior managers in my client area. I work with the
business in developing various strategic HR interventions for different people and business
issues. At the moment I’m the HR lead for a large restructure spanning two UK locations.
‘It’s a very fast-paced role and managers do rely on me heavily. This means I need to
keep up to date with employment law and all the changes that are going on across the
industry. You never stand still and you’re constantly developing.
‘The role and visibility of HR can vary across businesses, industries and continents. It’s a job
that can be incredibly challenging at times, but also hugely fun and rewarding. Seeing your
work put into action, especially when you’re implementing positive change, is absolutely
amazing. Never be afraid to challenge poor practices and be willing to stick your neck out!’
Read the full version of Mohammad’s profile and others at www.cipd.co.uk/careers
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Opportunities to work abroad
Although there are no guarantees that your HR career will take you overseas,
the increasingly global nature of business makes it a real possibility. You need
to check with the local HR association about the requirements that are made
of practitioners in your proposed destination. More information is available on
the website of the World Federation of Personnel Management Associations at
www.wfpma.com
A move into consultancy
Once you’ve established yourself in your career, you may choose to become
self-employed as a consultant, where you can help to solve particular problems within
an organisation. Alternatively, you may forge a career as an independent trainer
– analysing the needs of the workforce and then designing and delivering workshops
and seminars. The degree of flexibility and choice in this career is one of its big
advantages. You can always move sideways rather than simply progress upwards.
Related job areas
It may be that you’re interested in exploring other areas related to HR. Lecturing
is one possibility, although you’ll probably need relevant work experience first.
Universities and colleges of further education will often expect you to have a
teaching qualification too (see www.city-and-guilds.co.uk).
Occupational psychology is another popular choice. The British Psychological
Society (BPS) publishes a career guide called, So You Want to be a Psychologist?,
which contains a relevant section. The BPS also has a Division of Occupational
Psychology. Find out more at www.bps.org.uk/occupational
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For many employers, CIPD qualifications signify that
you’re up to date with the latest developments and
best practice in the HR profession. Below, we show
the different qualifications on offer.
Support-level qualifications
Equivalent to an NVQ level 3, our support-level qualifications can usually be
completed within six to nine months.
Certificate in Personnel Practice (CPP)
The CPP is designed to introduce you to a wide range of practical skills required by
those working in personnel.
Certificate in Training Practice (CTP)
Studying for the CTP will provide you with your first step towards a successful career
in training.
Certificate in Recruitment and Selection (CRS)
The CRS takes a skills-based approach and provides practical and authoritative
guidance on best practice in the context of today’s challenging workplace issues.
Certificate in Employment Relations, Law and Practice
(CERLAP)
The CERLAP is designed to introduce you to the key elements of employment law
and practice.
Certificate in Coaching and Mentoring (CCM)
The CCM is designed to provide you with the skills needed to be an effective coach
and mentor.
All of the above qualifications lead to Associate membership of the CIPD (see page 13).
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Certificate in Business
Awareness and Advanced
Professional Study (CBAAPS)
CBAAPS sits between our support-level qualifications and CIPD-approved
postgraduate-level qualifications. It’s an ideal stepping stone if you’re
considering further study but have a first degree that’s unrelated to HR, or you
haven’t studied for a while.
There’s no direct link between the CBAAPS and a particular grade of
membership. On completion, you may be eligible to take a CIPD-approved
postgraduate-level qualification.
CIPD-approved postgraduatelevel qualifications
To pursue a long-term career in HR management, it’s beneficial to have a
CIPD-approved postgraduate-level qualification. These are offered under a
variety of titles, such as Postgraduate Diploma in HRM or MSc/MA in HR,
or they may be referred to as the Professional Development Scheme (PDS).
The qualifications are divided into four fields. Successful completion of all
four leads to Graduate membership of the CIPD, which is your first step to
achieving chartered membership.
Completion of one, two or three of the fields may lead to Licentiate
membership. You can study full-time, part-time or on a flexible learning
programme.
Exemptions
If you already hold a relevant postgraduate-level qualification you may
be eligible for an exemption from part of our approved postgraduatelevel qualifications. Please contact us on 020 8612 6208 or at
[email protected] to find out more.
NVQs
CIPD NVQs are competence-based workplace assessments and are offered
at levels 2–5 in personnel, learning and development, management,
recruitment and team-leading. Many of these lead to a grade of
membership.
Visit www.cipd.co.uk/membership to find out more about CIPD-approved
qualifications.
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Membership of the CIPD opens
doors. From when you start
looking for your first HR role, and
as you progress further in your
career, we can offer the tools
you’ll need to succeed.
Our membership and qualifications will give you
professional recognition and credibility, showing
employers you have the knowledge and skills to add
real value to your organisation. And through our
exclusive member benefits, we’ll provide you with the
opportunities to continually progress and stay up to
date with the latest developments in the profession.
The benefits of being a CIPD member include:
• exclusive access to member-only
resources on our website, including
our online Communities, the latest
research, information and news
• free subscription to our
award-winning magazine, People
Management
• free access to over 330 full-text
journals and magazines, and 650
company reports on our website
• access to CIPD podcasts featuring
exclusive interviews with top
speakers
• immediate access to our
comprehensive library and
information services
• exclusive discounts on CIPD
conferences, publications, training
courses and a range of other
lifestyle and business products and
services
• access to a national network of
local branches and special interest
forums
• free professional and personal
telephone advice on all aspects of
UK employment law.
Grades of CIPD membership
This table gives a summary of the grades of CIPD membership.
For more information visit www.cipd.co.uk/membership
Level Grade
Designation
Chartered membership
Chartered Companion
Chartered CCIPD
Chartered Fellow Chartered FCIPD
Chartered Member
Chartered MCIPD
Other grades
Graduate
N/A
Licentiate
N/A
Associate
N/A
Affiliate N/A
(studying and non-studying)
Organisation membership
N/A
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Laurell Anne Hector Chartered FCIPD
A highly experienced HR and development consultant, Laurell has run her own business
for the past six years. She works in a variety of sectors, from small, privately owned
businesses to large, international companies. Most of her company’s recent work has
focused on leadership, management, change and employee engagement strategies.
Career route
Laurell started her career as a junior clerk working for Midland Bank (now HSBC).
During her time there she completed her CIPD Certificate in Personnel Practice before
taking on the role of a call centre representative, then working her way up to team
leader and trainer. She was later appointed as a system training manager, then global
training manager at Merrill Lynch HSBC Ltd. She has also worked as a performance
management trainer and coach at London Underground, and tutored on the CIPD’s
Certificate in Training Practice course.
In her own words
‘The best part of the job I do now is the variety. In the morning, I could be designing
a training programme and in the afternoon, asked to deliver some coaching. The role
has helped me to learn, practise, and support many different businesses, allowing me
to travel and work with multicultural clients.
‘Over time I’ve learned a lot of new skills in terms of research, writing and
approaching topics with an open mind. My advice to anyone starting out in HR is to
find a mentor or coach who’s already experienced what you want to achieve.’
Read the full version of Laurell’s profile and others at www.cipd.co.uk/careers
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Web
www.cipd.co.uk
www.peoplemanagement.co.uk
for the latest news and jobs in the
profession
Books
Personnel Practice by Malcolm Martin
and Tricia Jackson (CIPD)
Introduction to Human Resource
Management: A guide to personnel
in practice by Donald Currie (CIPD)
Training Practice by Penny Hackett
(CIPD)
Training in Practice by Steve Truelove
(CIPD)
www.cipd.co.uk/bookstore (discounts
available for members)
Careers advice
The Association of Graduate Careers
Advisory Services (AGCAS) publishes a
set of occupational profiles – including
one on HR.
www.agcas.org.uk
The Institute of Career Guidance (ICG)
can put you in touch with registered
careers advisers.
www.icg-uk.org
Research
www.cipd.co.uk/lis for our library and
information services
City Business Library is a public reference
library that is open to anyone. You can
find public information and market
research data.
www.cityoflondon.gov.uk
Business Information Focus is the
fee-based research service of the City
Business Library.
www.cityoflondon.gov.uk
The Personnel Manager’s Yearbook
and The Training Manager’s Yearbook
are both published by AP Information
Services Ltd.
www.apinfo.co.uk
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For more information visit www.cipd.co.uk/careers
Incorporated by Royal Charter Registered charity no.1079797
Issued: March 2008 Reference: 4323 © Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development 2008
Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development
151 The Broadway London SW19 1JQ
Tel: 020 8612 6200 Fax: 020 8612 6201
Email: [email protected] Website: www.cipd.co.uk