What skills should a Human Resources Manager put on a resume?

O*NET rates Active Listening, Management of Personnel Resources, Speaking, Judgment and Decision Making, and Reading Comprehension among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.

What software should a Human Resources Manager list?

Software recorded for this occupation includes AASoftTech Web Organization Chart, AccountantsWorld Payroll Relief, ADP Enterprise HR, ADP ezLaborManager, and ADP HR/Benefits Solution. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.

What other job titles cover Human Resources Manager work?

O*NET records 37 titles for this occupation, including Employee Relations Manager, HR Administration Director, Human Resources Administration Director, and Human Resources Director. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

What qualifications does a Human Resources Manager need?

In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 74% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

Will this resume pass an ATS for a Human Resources Manager role?

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Human Resources Manager resume example

A resume for a Human Resources Manager needs to show the work itself: plan, direct, or coordinate human resources activities and staff of an organization. Day to day that means work like this: serve as a link between management and employees by handling questions, interpreting and administering contracts and helping resolve work-related problems; advise managers on organizational policy matters, such as equal employment opportunity and sexual harassment, and recommend needed changes. Recruiters and applicant tracking systems both read for the tasks and tools this role actually involves, so the strongest resume names them in your own experience rather than describing the job in the abstract. Below are the tasks O*NET records for this occupation, the software and tools it uses, the titles it is advertised under, and the skills worth naming if they are genuinely yours.

Also advertised as

The same job is posted under many titles. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

Employee Relations Manager
HR Administration Director
Human Resources Administration Director
Human Resources Director
HR Director
HR Manager
Human Resources Operations Manager
HR Department Supervisor
HR Administrator
HR Coordinator
Diversity Manager
Efficiency Manager
Employee Welfare Manager
Employment Manager
Human Resources Department Supervisor
Human Resources Administrator
Human Resources Coordinator
Human Services Manager

O*NET records 37 titles for this occupation in total.

What people in this job call themselves

Titles reported by people actually doing this work, which is often not the title on the job posting.

HR Administration Director (Human Resources Administration Director)
Human Resources Director (HR Director)
Human Resources Manager (HR Manager)

What this work actually involves

Tasks recorded for this occupation, in O*NET's words. If your experience covers one of these, it belongs on your resume in your own words.

Serve as a link between management and employees by handling questions, interpreting and administering contracts and helping resolve work-related problems.
Advise managers on organizational policy matters, such as equal employment opportunity and sexual harassment, and recommend needed changes.
Analyze and modify compensation and benefits policies to establish competitive programs and ensure compliance with legal requirements.
Perform difficult staffing duties, including dealing with understaffing, refereeing disputes, firing employees, and administering disciplinary procedures.
Represent organization at personnel-related hearings and investigations.
Negotiate bargaining agreements and help interpret labor contracts.
Identify staff vacancies and recruit, interview, and select applicants.
Plan, direct, supervise, and coordinate work activities of subordinates and staff relating to employment, compensation, labor relations, and employee relations.
Prepare personnel forecast to project employment needs.
Provide current and prospective employees with information about policies, job duties, working conditions, wages, opportunities for promotion, and employee benefits.
Investigate and report on industrial accidents for insurance carriers.
Administer compensation, benefits, and performance management systems, and safety and recreation programs.

26 tasks are recorded in total; these are the most central.

Example bullets for this role

Built from this occupation's own tasks. The brackets stay empty on purpose: we will not invent a number for you, and a fabricated metric is the fastest way to lose an interview you had already won.

Serve as a link between management and employees by handling questions, interpreting and administering contracts and helping resolve work-related problems, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Advise managers on organizational policy matters, such as equal employment opportunity and sexual harassment, and recommend needed changes, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Analyze and modify compensation and benefits policies to establish competitive programs and ensure compliance with legal requirements, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Perform difficult staffing duties, including dealing with understaffing, refereeing disputes, firing employees, and administering disciplinary procedures, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].

Software used in this role

Recorded for this occupation by O*NET. An applicant tracking system matches the exact product name, so write the tool the way the posting writes it.

AASoftTech Web Organization Chart
AccountantsWorld Payroll Relief
ADP Enterprise HR
ADP ezLaborManager
ADP HR/Benefits Solution
ADP HR/Profile
ADP Pay eXpert
ADP Workforce Now
AllNetic Working Time Tracker
Applicant tracking software
Arrow Electronics N/Compass
Atlas Business Solutions Staff Files
Authoria Adviser
Automation Centre Personnel Tracker

102 software entries are recorded in total.

Tools and equipment

The physical equipment this occupation is recorded as using. Worth naming when a posting asks for it by name.

Audio recording equipment
Desktop computers
Notebook computers
Personal computers
Scanners

Skills an ATS reads for

Worth naming only if they are genuinely yours. Keyword overlap is one input to a resume's score, not a verdict.

talent acquisition
employee relations
HRIS
performance management
compensation
compliance
Oracle HRIS
hire personnel

What this job rates as most important

O*NET rates every skill for importance to this occupation. These are the highest rated, in order.

01Active Listening
02Management of Personnel Resources
03Speaking
04Judgment and Decision Making
05Reading Comprehension
06Complex Problem Solving
07Coordination
08Negotiation
09Social Perceptiveness
10Writing

Knowledge areas

The subject knowledge this occupation draws on, rated by importance.

Personnel and Human Resources
Administration and Management
English Language
Law and Government
Education and Training
Customer and Personal Service
Psychology

What qualifications people in this job have

From O*NET's survey of people doing this work. This is what postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

74%Bachelor's Degree
9%Post-Baccalaureate Certificate, awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.
9%Master's Degree

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Considerable Preparation Needed”. Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.

Common questions

What does a Human Resources Manager do?: Plan, direct, or coordinate human resources activities and staff of an organization. Day to day that includes work like serve as a link between management and employees by handling questions, interpreting and administering contracts and helping resolve work-related problems and Advise managers on organizational policy matters, such as equal employment opportunity and sexual harassment, and recommend needed changes.
What skills should a Human Resources Manager put on a resume?: O*NET rates Active Listening, Management of Personnel Resources, Speaking, Judgment and Decision Making, and Reading Comprehension among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.
What software should a Human Resources Manager list?: Software recorded for this occupation includes AASoftTech Web Organization Chart, AccountantsWorld Payroll Relief, ADP Enterprise HR, ADP ezLaborManager, and ADP HR/Benefits Solution. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.
What other job titles cover Human Resources Manager work?: O*NET records 37 titles for this occupation, including Employee Relations Manager, HR Administration Director, Human Resources Administration Director, and Human Resources Director. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Human Resources Manager need?: In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 74% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Human Resources Manager role?: No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Related roles

Occupations O*NET records as closest to this one, and worth looking at if this search is not moving.

What this page cannot tell you

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer’s ATS is configured, including ours.
This page makes no claim about pay, demand or how many people hold this job. O*NET does not publish that here and we will not estimate it.
Keyword overlap is one input to a resume’s score, not a verdict on you. A resume that names skills you do not have is worse than one that names fewer.

If this is the job you are aiming at, the guide to tailoring a resume covers how to aim one posting properly, and building and exporting a resume here is free.

Occupation data from the O*NET 29.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. SpartanResume is not endorsed by USDOL/ETA.