Table of Contents
What is Human Resource Management?
In the simplest terms, Human Resource Management is the practice of coordinating and communicating with the employees of a company. These employees are the sole reason for the company’s development; thus, are known as the human resource of the same. Read on to enter a wide spectrum of HR-based career opportunities and HR courses for beginners spread out just for you.
Managing them, helping them with their performances and supporting them for the company’s growth is what an HR officer does.
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Why is HRM needed?
Remember when Henry Ford created a system of mass production where his workers worked the whole day? They could not take any breaks and if they quit, replacing them was child play. But times have changed and so have perspectives. A company’s reputation relies majorly on how their employees are presented; thus their satisfaction and work-life balance are as important as making them work for the company.
What are the basics of Human Resources?
There are mainly 7 basic elements of Human Resources that make them an integral area of operation. Let us take a look at them:
1. Recruitment and selection:
This is probably the most crucial task of HR. Finding the precious pearls from the big blue sea is no joke. From analyzing their work experiences and how your company can benefit from their strengths to being present at the interviews and reading their attitude; you are helping them and your company grow.
2. Performance management:
Basically, spying on them! You are in charge of making sure they are working well. This includes meeting deadlines, improving the quality of work and more. This continuous evaluation requires you to give them feedback and support. At the end of the day, it is the survival of the fittest; the fake pearls will have to return to the sea.
3. Learning and development:
Here is a simple example to explain this. Imagine the company is a tug-of-war; the employers on one side and the employees on the other. The HR department is that ribbon tied at the center of the rope, moving right and left with the flow.
They are integral for the growth and development of the company by helping in taking decisions for the employees and different levels. Since the HR team works closely with the employees, they know their strengths and weaknesses. Since they also communicate with the higher officials, they know what changes are needed and when, how to execute them.
4. Compensations and benefits:
As I already mentioned, the motivation and satisfaction of employees are key to the growth of a company. This includes fair compensation for the work they are doing; monetary and beneficiary. Monetary pay is the salary given to them while the other benefits include insurance, pension, holidays, experience perks, etc.
Who is better at analyzing if they are getting the pay they deserve than the same people who analyze the work they do on a daily basis?
5. Human Resources data and analytics
Statistics is the most used method to represent data, and it is no different in HR. The HR team closely scrutinizes the past, present and future of the company and converts them into data numerical for different reasons; from learning about the areas of improvement to predicting future trends and scales.
While checking out HR courses for beginners, make sure to analyze your skills and strengths first and take up a course that resonates with you the most.
Is Human Resources a good career?
As humans, we are wired to find the good and bad in things so we do not regret them later on. Choosing a career is no less of a struggle and we are here to help you. Of course, the negatives of any job will solely depend upon the company; how they treat you and how you treat them back.
Anyway, here are some of the many reasons why HR is thriving and the answer for ‘is HR a good career’ is yes:
17th position in the 100 best jobs list
Human Resources has consistently ranked high on the lists of best career options; bagging the 17th position this year, in the 100 best jobs list by The U.S. News & World Report.
Importance for leadership and cooperation
If you have a leader in you, ready to voice opinions and create waves; then HR is for you. It is all about helping the company grow while supporting the employees too, as the backbone of the company.
Growth and development
HR is easily one of the best ways you can reach the ultimate top. As and when you work in the HR team, you will be responsible for a wide variety of tasks that gives you the skillset and experience of an allrounder.
Challenging
As there are various departments inside the HR department, it makes it flexible for you to not only be comfortable with what your strengths are; but also to challenge yourselves and learn new things.
What courses are required for HR
Now let’s talk business. HR courses for beginners are innumerable so here is some information that can help you find out what your ‘type’ is:
There is no absolute rule that you need a degree in Human Resources to be an HR manager. As a career option that is still in its growing stage, companies welcome prospective employees from all backgrounds, with experience and certification given great importance. Simply put, your road to becoming an HR manager ideally includes three components:
- Education
- Experience
- Certifications
With that being said, a bachelor’s degree is a must need, while a master’s degree is very much preferred. It helps even more when your area of specialization is related to the work the HR team does, such as:
- Business administration
- Humanities
- Psychology
- Finance
- Public relations
- Economics
- Entrepreneurship
- Workforce development
- Marketing
The perk here is that, even if HR does not work out for you, you still have created a cushion for yourself to fall onto.
Now let us move ahead and see your options if you have decided that HR is ‘the one’ for you.
Which is the best course for HR?
Here we will be discussing HR courses for beginners, the best ones and the easiest ones.
As a beginner, it is heavily suggested that you start your career with an associate’s degree in human resources and gain job experience; while also getting certifications from smaller, more specified courses (online or offline) that gives you in-depth knowledge about the area you want to focus on.
Associate degree
An associate’s degree in human resources will teach you everything you need to know to get started in the field. To begin, you’ll learn about human resource theories and procedures, as well as ethics and employment legislation. Employee recruiting, management, and training will all be covered in the courses. Finally, you’ll get valuable knowledge in salary, benefits, and payroll.
Popular HR courses
These courses will help you even if you are searching for HR courses for beginners because most of them do not require you to have HR experience or a bachelor’s/master’s in HR.
1. HRCI certification
HRCI certification is one of the most prestigious credentialing and educational organizations in the HR field. Their courses and exams set the bar for HR rigor and competence in the sector, as well as in training HR professionals.
The certification programs offered by HRCI includes:
- aPHR (Associate Professional in Human Resources): This is also the answer to your question ‘which HR certification is easiest?’ with a pass rate of 84% on the certification exam.
- aPHRi (Associate Professional in Human Resources—International)
- PHR (Professional in Human Resources)
- PHRca (Professional in Human Resources—California)
- PHRi (Professional in Human Resources — International)
- SPHR (Senior Professional in Human Resources)
- SPHRi (Senior Professional in Human Resources—International)
- GPHR (Global Professional in Human Resources)
Learn more here.
2. SHRM certification
SHRM stands for Society for Human Resource Management. Similar to HRCI, this course gives useful insights into the real world of HR through its course structure focusing more on public relations. Effective people management is important to bring their motivation in the right direction.
SHRM, like the HRCI, offers a variety of HR certification programs aimed at different levels of the HR professional ladder:
- SHRM-CP (SHRM Certified Professional). It requires a graduate degree, or a minimum 1 year of experience in the HR sector.
- SHRM-SCP (SHRM Senior Certified Professional). It requires between 3 and 7 years of experience in an HR role.
Learn more here, to enter the SHRM certification portal.
3. PHR certification
Professional in Human Resources, staying true to its name, offers various subjects in their course structure.
- Employee and labor relations
- Business management
- Talent planning and acquisition
- Total rewards
- Learning and development
This course has various options when it comes to requirements, too:
- Have at least one year of experience in a professional-level HR position + a Master’s degree or higher, at least two years of experience in a professional-level HR position + a Bachelor’s degree, OR
- or at least four years of experience in a professional-level HR position
Learn more about PHR certification here.
4. SPHR certification
Now we are talking big numbers; these cannot be classified as ‘HR courses for beginners.
Senior Professional in Human Resources certification requires you to have:
- at least four years of experience in a professional-level HR position + a Master’s degree or higher,
- or at least five years of experience in a professional-level HR position + a Bachelor’s degree, OR
- or at least seven years of experience in a professional-level HR position.
Even their course structure is focused more on leadership, talent planning and development.
Learn more here.
HR certification online
With life locked down, doesn’t necessarily mean your career should be too. This just might be the best opportunity waiting for you; to learn from the world’s bests, with the comfort of your home.
Here are some courses you should be researching and getting ready for:
| 1. | HR Generalist Certification |
| 2. | Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP) |
| 3. | Certified Professional (SHRM-CP) |
| 4. | Professional in Human Resources (PHR) |
| 5. | HR Management and Analytics Program by Wharton School of Business |
| 6. | Human Resources Management by eCornell |
So, what now?
Of course, the institute from which you get these certifications matter, but do keep in mind that just like how most of these certifications requires job experience; even in the real world, your experience and skill set is far more important than the HR institute you went into.
In the case of HR courses for beginners, reputed institutes provide good college placement opportunities getting you the certificates that can be helpful in the future.
Thanks to the online study system that is now normalized, you can also learn some of these courses part-time while working/studying offline too.