The 5 Essential Skills of Top HR Professionals

From new technology to complex reporting to ever-changing regulations – keeping pace with today’s HR functions can be overwhelming. However, a few key skills are perennially sought after, and the most effective HR practitioners use them daily. Since HR is the primary connection between a business and its employees, having HR professionals with these crucial skills goes a long way to ensuring smooth operations, happy teams, and overall business success.

Skills-Based Hiring Is (Still) on the Rise
Skills-based hiring emphasizes what candidates can do, rather than focusing on which schools they attended or which companies they worked for in the past. It can be hard to find candidates this way, so many businesses use recruiters or conduct skills evaluations in the hiring process to ensure their needs are covered. Companies find that this approach pays dividends – employees hired for their skills often have lower attrition rates than their counterparts. This saves the company time and money. A recent Gartner study found that “83% of [corporate] HR leaders say they struggle to find enough talent with the skills they need,” and this deficit affects overall business performance.

As more employers implement this model, competition for good candidates increases, so using an HR-focused recruiter who intimately knows each candidate’s skills can ensure that the best candidates make the interview list.

Indispensable Skills for HR Professionals

hrQ’s experts find that the following skills are fundamental to an HR professional’s success.

1. Emotional Intelligence

In psychologist Dan Goleman’s seminal book, Emotional Intelligence, he explained groundbreaking research dispelling the notion that just having a high IQ propels people to the top. The research found that people who are empathetic, have heightened social skills, are self-aware, can self-regulate, and are motivated are better equipped to ascend at work and help others grow, too. That’s why organizations like Google and Salesforce offer curricula that teach this skill, they know that emotionally intelligent employees make for a stronger, more successful company.

Are you equipped to screen for emotional intelligence in your recruiting process?

 

2. Agility

Being agile—flexible, responsive, and speedy—is actually a combination of skills. HR professionals who are agile easily adjust to various situations, take a solution-oriented approach, and quickly shift priorities according to business needs. They can often predict what is coming because they stay abreast of the workings of the business. They have strong business and HR acumen and understand how the HR function can uniquely solve the company’s problems and create new opportunities.

What questions do you ask to evaluate a candidate’s agility?

3. Communication

Being able to express thoughts clearly and intentionally –in person and in writing—is an essential skill for HR professionals at any level. Communication is largely considered the most crucial skill for this profession, given the constant interaction between HR, leadership, and individual employees. Integral to excellent communication is the ability to actively listen so that everyone is understood and all viewpoints are represented. A skilled HR communicator can make even the most difficult interactions respectful and collaborative and end up with productive outcomes.

4. A Strong Ethical Mindset

HR is one of the teams in any company in which a strong sense of morality and discretion are fundamental to the role, and this goes beyond the basics of just evaluating right and wrong. In our modern, hyper-aware work environment, HR professionals must be mature and exercise good judgment at all times. Employee and company data are constantly threatened by cyber and other crimes, and individual and company security at stake. Importantly, the savvy HR professional knows how to maintain a balance between privacy and empathy and help decide what is right for the business.

5. Critical and Creative Thinking

In a world run largely by technology, trying to keep up with every advance is nearly impossible, but the ability to think critically and creatively rises above the churn of the latest program or system. Being able to seek out and parse information into actionable, innovative solutions is an asset that most employers would be delighted to have in their workers. In a recent survey by the World Economic Forum, business leaders said that the need for analytical and creative thinking is growing more quickly than any other skills they are pursuing. You don’t get much time in an interview process to fully explore this. What are some indicators that a candidate has these abilities?

Don’t worry, these skills can be LEARNED

Of course, the above is not an exhaustive list. There are many skills that employers are hoping to gain as they search for new employees. The good news is that these crucial skills are not given at birth, they can be learned, and can (and should) be improved upon throughout an HR professional’s career. From university classes to networking in professional groups, to earning SHRM certificates, all manner of education is out there for the taking. Many companies have a learning and development function in-house, so gaining and honing skills might even be close to home. Some important skills persist despite emerging technology. The smart HR professional will seek to continually improve upon these basics to ensure a lifetime of success.

Need an HR professional who has the above skills and more? hrQ can find your next leader who can help transform your business. Contact us at 866-363-5496.