What Does HR Manager Do? How To Become an HR Manager?

Who is an HR Manager?

An HR Manager (Human Resources Manager) is a professional who oversees all employee-related functions in a company or organization. This manager plays a key role in employee recruitment, employee training, salaries, leave records, performance evaluation, and managing workplace policies. In simple words, an HR Manager acts as a bridge between the management and the employees.

What is HR?

The full form of HR is Human Resources. It refers to the people (employees) working in a company. HR is also the name of a department that handles employee-related functions within an organization. This department includes various HR Managers who manage recruitment, training, salaries, employee relations, and other HR tasks.

Importance of an HR

An HR Manager is essential for the smooth functioning of any company. They ensure the recruitment of the right candidates, proper training of employees, and compliance with all labor laws and company policies. They also handle employee grievances, maintain employee engagement, and help in creating a productive work environment.

Just as a government ensures rights, laws, and services for its citizens, similarly, an HR Manager ensures that employees rights, benefits, and issues are addressed so that the company can be guided in the right direction.

What Does an HR Manager Do?

1. Employee Recruitment

The HR Manager is responsible for hiring new employees. This includes posting job advertisements, collecting applications, conducting interviews, and selecting the right candidates.

2. Employee Training

It is the HR Manager's job to train the newly hired employees for their roles, help them develop their skills, and organize workshops and learning programs for existing employees.

3. Employee Relations

The HR Manager maintains positive relationships with employees. They listen to employee concerns, resolve their issues, and help create a good working environment.

4. Payroll and Benefits Management

The HR Manager ensures accurate and timely management and distribution of employee salaries, bonuses, incentives, medical benefits, insurance, and other financial and non-financial benefits.

5. Performance Management

The HR Manager evaluates employees work, conducts performance reviews, and plans for promotions, salary increments, or necessary improvements.

6. Policy Compliance

The HR Manager ensures that company policies, rules, and labor laws are being followed properly.

7. Attendance & Leave Management

The HR Manager manages employee attendance systems such as biometric systems and keeps records of leaves, including paid and unpaid leave.

8. Resolving Employee Issues

If an employee has a problem related to work, their boss, or another employee, the HR Manager listens to their concern and solves the problem in a fair and neutral manner.

Why HR Manager Role is Important?

An HR Manager is considered the backbone of a company. Their role is extremely important because they manage the most valuable resource of the organization, its employees. Without an HR Manager, it becomes difficult to maintain discipline, organization, and employee satisfaction within the company.

Below is an explanation of the importance of an HR Manager's role and the possible issues a company might face in their absence:

How to Become an HR Manager

1. Pass 12th Grade

To become an HR Manager, the first step is to complete your 12th grade, preferably with the Commerce stream.

2. Complete Graduation

After 12th, you need to pursue a relevant graduation course.

Popular Graduation Courses for an HR Career:

3. Do Post-Graduation in HR

After graduation, you must pursue a post-graduate program in Human Resource Management.

Common Post-Graduate Courses in HR:

4. Do an Internship and Gain Experience

During your MBA or PGDM program, you should complete an HR internship. Internships help you understand real office work and HR practices.

5. Join an Entry-Level HR Job

After your internship, apply for an entry-level HR position in a good company.

Essential Skills for HR Manager

1. Verbal & Written Communication

Verbal and written communication holds great importance for an HR Manager, because they have to prepare various kinds of documents, write policies, and send emails daily. Along with this, the HR Manager has to conduct interviews, respond to employee queries, and conduct training sessions.

2. Interpersonal Skills

The work of an HR Manager is directly connected to employees. An HR Manager needs to be friendly, understanding, and approachable so that employees can openly share their issues. When there are conflicts or tension in the office, it is the HR's positive attitude and relationship-building approach that helps in handling the situation.

3. Time Management

In the HR department, responsibilities like hiring, documentation, meetings, training sessions, and employee support run simultaneously.

4. Planning & Scheduling

Planning and scheduling are important parts of an HR Manager's work. Whether it's interviews, employee reviews, office events, or training programs everything needs to be thoughtfully planned in advance.

5. Decision Making

HR Managers often have to make decisions such as which candidate to replace, what action to take on employee complaints, or which new policy to implement. These decisions directly affect both employees and the company.

Career Options for HR Manager

There are several specialized roles and career options in the career of an HR Manager. As experience and skills grow, an HR professional can shift into different domains based on their interests. Below are some popular and rewarding career options for HR Managers:

1. HR Assistant

An HR Assistant is an entry-level position that handles day-to-day administrative tasks like maintaining files, keeping attendance records, updating employee data, and responding to basic queries.

2. Recruitment Manager (Talent Acquisition Manager)

The Recruitment Manager's job is to find the right talented employees for the company and hire them. This manager leads every step of the hiring process including job posting, resume screening, interview scheduling, and final selection.

3. Training and Development Manager

The Training and Development Manager helps improve the skills and capabilities of employees. This manager organizes training programs, plans workshops and seminars, and ensures that the learning needs of both new and existing employees are fulfilled.

4. Payroll & Compensation Manager

The Payroll & Compensation Manager handles the company's salary system. This manager maintains records related to salary processing, tax deduction, bonuses, incentives, reimbursements, and leave calculations.

5. Employee Relations Manager

The Employee Relations Manager works to maintain a healthy relationship between the employer and employees. This manager investigates employee complaints, conflicts, or dissatisfaction in an unbiased manner and provides appropriate resolutions.

6. HR Compliance Manager

The HR Compliance Manager ensures that the company is following all labor laws, regulations, and HR policies properly.

7. HR Generalist Manager

The HR Generalist Manager is an all-rounder who is involved in almost all HR functions. Whether it's recruitment, employee grievances, payroll, or performance reviews, the generalist manager is actively involved in everything. These managers are more common in small to medium-sized companies where the HR team is small.

8. Performance Management Manager

The Performance Management Manager's role is to monitor employee performance, set performance goals, and manage the appraisal system. This manager ensures that every employee's performance is evaluated through a fair and transparent system and that promotions, rewards, or training decisions are based on this evaluation.

9. Senior HR Manager

A Senior HR Manager is an experienced professional who leads the HR team and provides strategic oversight of multiple HR functions. This manager supervises the work of junior HRs and works with company leadership to decide on policies, workforce planning, and talent strategy.

10. HR Business Partner (HRBP)

An HR Business Partner is a strategic role that aligns HR initiatives with business units. This role is not limited to traditional HR tasks but also includes planning HR strategies related to business goals, employee engagement, performance improvement, and organizational development.

11. CHRO (Chief Human Resources Officer)

The CHRO or Chief Human Resources Officer is the highest-ranking officer in an organization's HR department. This role defines company-wide HR vision and policies. The CHRO works directly with the CEO or Board and is responsible for organizational culture, leadership development, talent strategy, and employee wellbeing.

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HR Manager Career Benefits

1. Demand in Every Industry

HR professionals are needed in every sector such as IT, banking, manufacturing, healthcare, education, retail, hospitality, NGOs, and even the government sector. This means you have many career growth options and the flexibility to switch industries.

2. People-Centric Work

If you enjoy interacting with people, solving their problems, and creating a positive work culture for them, then HR is the perfect field for you.

3. Soft Skills Development

While working in the HR field, your communication, decision-making, conflict management, time management, and leadership skills automatically get developed.

Challenges in HR Career

1. Handling Employee Conflicts

Every organization has people from different backgrounds, which often leads to misunderstandings, complaints, or disputes. HR has to resolve these conflicts in an unbiased manner and maintain a positive workplace environment, which can be tough as balancing every case is not easy.

2. Talent Acquisition and Retention

Finding the right candidate and retaining them in the company is a major challenge for HR. Good candidates are limited in the market, and it's common for skilled employees to switch to other companies. HR must continuously plan competitive salaries, employee benefits, and engagement strategies.

3. Changing Labour Laws and Compliance

Government employment laws and labor regulations are updated from time to time. HR professionals need to stay informed about all these legal updates to ensure the company doesn't fall into any legal trouble.

4. Fairness in Performance Evaluation

Assessing each employee's performance and giving appraisals accordingly is not easy. HR must ensure that every employee's review is transparent, fair, and unbiased. Biased or unclear evaluations can lead to dissatisfaction and increased attrition.

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