What's the most valuable experience that an HR professional can have on his or her resume today? - Brief Article

Workforce, Jan, 2000

An MBA is a huge drawing card, particularly for CEOs who want a strategic business partner in their HR officer. Transformational change experience is key due to the aggressive expectations of HR coming from CEOs and company leaders. Line or operational experience is attractive to CEOs--particularly if the individual can demonstrate the ability to learn on the fly.

Bonnie C. Hathcock

Senior Vice President, Human Resources

Humana Inc.

Louisville, Kentucky

I suppose it depends on one's goals. I will answer from the perspective of someone who aspires to a senior human resources position.

1. Executive exposure. Having daily, real interaction with senior leadership forces HR professionals to focus on the key business issues and "toughens" them up to learn how to push upwards when the time comes.

2. Corporatewide responsibilities. These provide one with a high-level perspective on what the business is doing, as well as giving one breadth on the variety of issues that can occur in different work groups.

3. A seat at the table. HR professionals should be, literally, sitting at the table (e.g., staff meetings and key conversations) and be viewed as an integral part of the business, working with both employees and management.

Phillip A. Weiss

Director Human Resources

Continental Airlines

Houston, Texas

I think by far the most valuable thing an HR professional can have on his or her resume is demonstrated productivity improvements within the business--not just in HR.

For example, if you improved or instituted some process that impacted overall company performance, then celebrate it on your resume. Did you effectively decrease time-to-hire? What was the bottom-line impact of that? Did you introduce a childcare program, or a distributed education initiative? If so, did it result in better retention, better service, higher quality?

Businesses want to be able to do more and better with less, and they can appreciate that quality even in their HR hires. Let your current and prospective employers know you are on the same page on improving the overall business.

Mark Koskiniemi

Vice President, Human Resources

Buckman Laboratories International Inc.

Memphis, Tennessee

The most valuable experience any of us can have on our resumes will detail how we dealt with the tough issues that confront us as HR professionals. Neither the education nor the simple employer listing does enough to catch the eye of the recruiter in need of special skills. Each search has a need for a set of tools and an understanding how to best use them; the only way to effectively showcase them is with simple examples of how they were used to address the issues that face all employers equally.

Arthur E. Nathan

Vice President, Human Resources

Bellagio Resort

Las Vegas, Nevada

Dear WORKFORCE

WORKFORCE.COM members ask questions to each other--and to experts from Minneapolis-based Personnel Decisions International in the Career Forum. Here are some recent exchanges from www.workforce.com/hrcareer.

I'm interested in entering the HR field, but I've tried [sending resumes] unsuccessfully for the past two months and haven't had one call back. I have no HR experience, yet I found a three-day class that I can take. But do you think it would get me in the door any faster? I plan to start a program in January that will last about 18 months called "HR Business Management" at a community college. Should I just wait?

Getting started in HR can be difficult. The number of HR positions in an organization is often significantly less than other functions.

In most communities, there are local HR professional organizations that could be very helpful in finding people to network with to find hidden jobs that never make the newspaper ads. These organizations often have meetings, and outside guests are usually welcome. Try to attend.

An entry point into the field today could be in the staffing area. Due to the labor shortage, many companies and employment agencies are m need of good people to help them find new workers. Many retail businesses are having an especially difficult time during the holidays.

A one- or two-day workshop could be done on any of the topics to be covered. To enter an 18-month program requires a real commitment of time, energy and resources. Make sure you're ready for that.