Human resources departments often get a bad reputation. People tend to imagine HR employees huddled in a basement office, intent on issuing disciplinary actions and filing paperwork all day. However, strategic HR teams are essential for any company to truly thrive.
A business with happy employees is one with a strong foundation that is far more stable than simply a high net profit. Workers are the heart and soul of any business; if they suffer, so does the business. HR exists to improve the daily life of all employees, resulting in happier, more efficient, and more productive workers.
HR teams do handle complaints, but they also recruit, hire, and train new employees, answer employee questions, and suggest new policies and practices to improve company culture. They are problem solvers, talent seekers, and researchers. An article by Harvard Business Review stated HR’s importance this way: “[HR] directives affect every person in the organization, right up to the top, every single day.”
Excellent human resources professionals work with management to oversee employee performance and spot any issues in the workforce. Whether it’s helping someone navigate maternity leave, ensuring people get paid overtime for the weekend, or resolving conflict between two parties, high-performing HR professionals face problems head-on and advocate for employees.
Hiring an exceptional HR professional can be difficult, but BeamJobs makes the process easier. This guide will walk you through the entire writing process with examples, suggestions, and added research, so you can find the best person for the job.
Job details: Blue Light Aquarium is all about its employees and its animals. When you’re here, you’re part of our fin-tastic family! We have high standards for our aquarium and our team members, so if you’re dedicated to excellence and passionate about the environment, this is the perfect place for you.
The new human resources hire will assist the vice president of human resources in all areas of HR to support our employees. From helping with payroll to hiring new team members, they’ll be involved in every stage of the employee lifecycle. They will be the go-to person for all employee concerns and will assist the VP with management, including updating onboarding processes and communicating high-level issues.
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About the company: The Blue Light Aquarium is the place to be for all things under the sea! Our award-winning aquarium houses over 400 species of fish, birds, mammals, cephalopods, and other invertebrates. Every year, we educate over 300,000 visitors about sea life and the preservation of our beautiful oceans. Our preservation efforts extend beyond our location in Seaside, Oregon—we’ve teamed up with Conservation International and Defenders of Wildlife to write legislation protecting natural spaces and help with projects in 15 countries. Blue Light Aquarium is a proud member of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums and is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
Job details: The White Wolf Books team is passionate about a lot of things, like books, the library of Alexandria, and the health benefits of tea versus coffee. We’re also passionate about serving each other well.
White Wolf is a haven for our patrons, and so it should be for our employees. We require a human resources manager to oversee our team of HR professionals, bolster company culture, and ensure compliance with all regulations, laws, and company policies to uphold the White Wolf Books brand.
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About the company: At White Wolf Books, we believe knowledge and stories are precious treasures to be shared with everyone. Located in Alexandria, VA, we are a community bookstore that’s committed to their community. Moreover, we believe bookstores should always be a safe space for reading, reflection, research, and fun. Take a seat in our recently refurbished reading center at any time from dawn or dusk, and grab a snack or drink from our Night Howl Café, open 24/7. You might even encounter Jeeves, our store’s affectionate Husky, who loves to greet patrons.
Our bookstore has hundreds of books, new and used, across over a dozen genres, including but not limited to sci-fi, religious, self-help, mystery, and academic textbooks. Our range of events is as varied as our shelves, including author meet-and-greets, writing seminars, literature classes, and craft discussions for readers from ages 1 to 101. When it’s finally time to go home, purchase one of our teacups, mugs, or book totes to take the memory of White Wolf Books with you wherever you go.
Job details: Cedar Garland is a lodge-style resort in Mount Vernon, WA, where the mountains are close, and our family is closer. We strive to hire talented folks from near and far to bring new ideas so we’re never outdated.
We need a new HR director to support employment and drive change in the hiring process. The HR director will be in charge of all hiring processes and oversee all HR activities, also working closely with department heads and management to troubleshoot any issues.
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About the company: Cedar Garland is a picturesque resort set in beautiful Mount Vernon, Washington. The Garland family established the resort in 1994 and have been the owners of the lodge ever since. Our cozy resort has a distinct log cabin style with modern flair, making it a favorite vacation spot for long-distance travelers and explorers. Join us on Thursday nights for our Swing Dance class with the local Prohuska band or have a delicious meal at our Orca Point restaurant.
For those who love the outdoors, Cedar Garland is only an hour away from Snoqualmie Ski Resort and the Cascades, making it a perfect spot for skiers and hikers to find solace away from crowds while being near the action. Those who’d like to stick closer to home can explore our backyard gardens, which span 10 acres and feature organic produce for our restaurant, voted Most Organic and Sustainable by the International Restaurant and Hotel Awards board in 2018.
Too many job descriptions are either generic, excessive, or vague. Believe it or not, we actually ran across a two-line job description! These two fragments read, “urgently requirement for snappy Auto insurance company work for home...dm me only United States people.” What’s even more amazing than those incredible lines of text is the fact that four people applied for this if LinkedIn is to be believed.
This isn’t the only bad job description we’ve run across. We’ve seen job descriptions with formatting errors so bad they’re unreadable, bad jokes that don’t relate to the job, and company bios that require you to continuously scroll. One of the worst included a story about the compliments someone would receive on their company t-shirt.
Job descriptions are the first interaction between a company and its future employee. Some applicants may apply no matter what, like the four who applied for the job listed above, but your ideal candidate will not be one of them. First impressions matter, so it’s important your job description stands above the competition.
HR professionals especially understand the importance of job descriptions. Excellent job descriptions can be used throughout an employee’s career and can protect a company from employment claims. In an article for the Society for Human Resources Management, the Director of HR Operations at Insperity, Janet Flewelling, said, “If you have an up-to-date job description, you can use it for recruiting, performance management and compensation.”
A stellar human resources job description should not only be updated frequently, but it should give applicants everything they need to know about the company: who works there, what problems they solve, and what the company values. Great job descriptions should be as personal as a great cover letter—they should be a true reflection of what hiring managers expect and what the job looks like.
But how to start writing such an amazing job description? No problem! Follow the outline this guide provides, then go section by section, adding details as you go. Make sure to hit why you're hiring and what your company values in addition to its goals.
Then, it's time to revise. Get rid of filler, shorten sentences, and pay attention to your tone. Be specific with word choice, and remember, although you’re talking to HR professionals, you don’t need to come off as stale. You can add some personality, but do keep it professional.
After your first round of revision, have someone else (preferably multiple someones) read it and give constructive criticism. This is a great place to discuss why you included what you did and what works well for the audience. Then, make the necessary edits based on their feedback.
The last step is to hit “submit” and pat yourself on the back for a job (description) well done!
This process might sound lengthy, but job applicants read lots of job descriptions. Spending time crafting an intriguing job ad will help you rise above the competition. Overall, when writing a human resources job description, keep it focused and brief but personal. With a well-crafted job description, you’ll be well on your way to receiving high-quality applications and HR resumes, thus, one step closer to hiring your ideal applicant.
When the blank page becomes overwhelming, use this outline to organize your job description to perfection.
Job details: Introduce your company and what you’re looking for in an HR professional. Start with what your company does and what they value, and avoid using complicated terminology. After a sentence or two about your company, sum up the HR professional’s role in an umbrella statement. You can add some personality, but remember to not go crazy.
What you’ll be doing/Roles/Responsibilities/Requirements: Title it whatever you want, but make sure this section is clear. Be direct about the HR employee’s tasks, using active verbs and specific nouns, but keep it concise.
Qualifications: Next to Requirements, this is the most important section. Applicants won’t bother to apply unless they feel they meet the qualifications, so you need to be upfront about what you expect. Are there any special certifications, technology requirements, or education requirements needed to do the job? Whatever you do, don’t list all the qualities of your “dream” candidate, as it can turn away applicants who feel they’ll never live up to your expectations.
Benefits: This section can be moved nearly anywhere in the job description, but it should be included at least somewhere in the document. Part of selling your company to the applicant is explaining how your company will make this job worth their while. Keep this section limited to definable benefits, like insurance or paid overtime. Include special perks if you have them, like wellness programs or discounted products.
About the company: Many job descriptions place this section first, but this isn’t a wise move. OnGig advises against it because applicants don’t care about your company until they’ve decided it’s worth their time and because Google places higher importance on your first paragraph than the rest of the document. How does it sound when the first 100 words are only about you? Not appealing.
The company bio is still important, though, since it tells the applicant more about the type of company they might soon be working with. Don’t write a complicated biography. Instead, limit yourself to a short section, listing your company’s purpose, vision/mission statement, and a few achievements. Again, see the examples above to get a good feel for how to do this.
HR professionals are the glue that holds employees together. They keep the company from falling apart where it matters most. As such, they fill a lot of roles on the job.
Below are some sample functions an HR professional might experience on the job. One HR professional might not fill all these roles, but this will serve as a guide as to what you might include.
Researcher
Administrator
Culture Cultivator
Conflict Resolver
Enforcer
Visionary
Talent Seeker