The phrase human resources may conjure a mundane career in the imagination. However, nothing could be further from the truth. HR departments deal with all sorts of surprising and critical situations. From hiring to ensuring regulatory compliance, HR professionals have many responsibilities. Thus, they must be flexible and multi-skilled.
What are the 5 essential skills that an HR professional should possess?
Qualifications and experience alone are not enough to make a successful HR professional. To be exceptional at their jobs, HR professionals also require some essential skills.
1. Communication skills
HR professionals need to interact with many different people daily. They must interview candidates, onboard new hires, communicate messages, and regularly check in with employees.
Therefore, successful HR professionals should be able to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing, actively listen to people, and empathize with them.
Communicating with people in a way that makes them feel heard and valued creates stronger bonds between the staff and the HR department, leading to increased employee satisfaction and retention.
2. Persuasion skills
With so many companies competing for top talent, getting the best candidates to work for your company can be very challenging. In such a highly competitive market, it is the job of HR departments to get the best people aboard.
In their quest for top talent, HR professionals must be able to come up with powerful arguments to convince candidates to say yes. Thus, persuasion skills are essential to any HR professional.
3. Problem-solving skills
Employees often reach out to the HR department with problems or complaints. To ensure that employees feel happy and safe in the workplace, HR needs to deal with these matters quickly and efficiently.
However, to find the best solution to a problem, HR professionals must be able to understand the issue and identify its root cause. Furthermore, once they have implemented a solution, they need to monitor its effectiveness. That’s why every HR professional should possess excellent problem-solving skills.
4. Negotiation skills
HR departments are no strangers to negotiations, especially salary negotiations. Thus, they need to know when to compromise and when to hold their ground.
To ensure that they reach an agreement that is fair to both parties, HR professionals must carefully listen to arguments, ask questions, and be open to trade-offs.
5. Tech skills
Business functions are becoming increasingly digital, and HR is no exception. With the help of digital technologies, HR professionals can work more efficiently and improve candidate and employee experience.
Amongst the many tools that HR professionals are expected to use in their daily work are:
- employee management systems
- enterprise communication services
- digital onboarding platforms
- cloud phone systems
- digital signing software
- recruitment systems
To utilize these tools to the fullest, people who work in HR need to be tech-savvy and curious.
Skilled HR professionals: A boon for business
Getting the right HR team in place can have many positive knock-on effects — from attracting and retaining top talent to creating a great work culture. Therefore, it’s crucial to ensure that your HR team members possess all the essential skills described above, on top of their experience and qualifications.
