What skills are required to be a good human resources manager?

OK, I’m going to make this post really straight to the point. It’s Friday, and I’m a fan for keeping things simple especially on Fridays.

Everyone in an organization is connected to the Human Resources (HR) department. This is because HR is the heart of the organization. Jack Welch, former Chairman of GE was known to assert that immediately after the CEO, the HR Manager should be the most important in the organization, and should hold at least the same level of authority, importance and relevance as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO). This of course, is because of the central role the HR Manager plays in recruiting, fielding, evaluating, training and motivating the most important asset of the organization – it’s people.

The HR Manager functions in various capacities, which includes, but not restricted to:

1.       Recruitment and Hiring

2.      Payroll

3.      Employee Compensation and Benefits

4.      Compliance

5.      Training and Development

6.      Employee Data Management

7.      Performance Management

8.     Employee retention and many more.

A few skills are required to excel as a HR Manager, these include:

1.       Communication

2.      Problem Solving

3.      Leadership & Influence

4.      Multitasking

5.      Ability to accept and respond to change

6.      Motivation

7.      Self-confident

8.     Should be a good listener

9.      Negotiation

10.  Honesty and Integrity

11.   Spontaneous Judgment

12.  Conflict Management 

The “stock-in-trade” of the Human Resources Department is the Human being or the individuals in the organization. Therefore, to succeed in this field, it is important to consider the individuals you have to deal with and know the right time to apply the various aspects of your multifaceted knowledge as a HR Manager. It would help if one learned the right time to empathize, compromise, teach, be firm and even punish, because these activities would be the hallmarks of your leadership.