What does a human factors specialist do?
A human factors specialist may also be known as an ergonomist. They work with organizations that train staff, as well as with aeronautical engineers and civil aviation regulators. They are responsible for conducting studies, carrying out evaluations and tests, and researching important information about a product or service. They must be skilled in the art of studying human behavior in different contexts and apply that skill to design objects and facilities that better human well-being and overall system performance.
Human factors specialist responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real human factors specialist resumes:
- Reformat and manage team SharePoint page on support unit portal, providing increase accessibility and distribution of team products.
- Integrate efforts on actions and programs where joint OPM functional effort are necessary to accomplish recruitment and enhance organizational effectiveness.
- Process arrears payments for employees on LOA or FMLA and other leave as applicable.
- Coordinate leaves of absence with appropriate laws such as FMLA, work comp and ADA.
- Categorize non-exempt and exempt positions according to FLSA.
- Research methods include surveys, questionnaires, laboratory experiments, usability testing, task analyses, prototyping, and human-in-the-loop simulations.
- Ensure HIPAA compliance regulations by strategically partnering with leadership to implement policies and procedures according to state and federal guidelines.
Human factors specialist skills and personality traits
We calculated that 18% of Human Factors Specialists are proficient in User Research, User Interface, and Industrial Design. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Detail oriented, and Interpersonal skills.
We break down the percentage of Human Factors Specialists that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- User Research, 18%
Developed process for user-centered design service delivery, and established importance of user research activities.
- User Interface, 15%
Designed user interface for aircraft tracking and fleet management, and wrote functional specifications for software development teams.
- Industrial Design, 12%
Project Management Experience: Incorporating Human Factors (HF) into the Industrial Design Team's internal review process.
- Human Factors Research, 9%
Generated 8 patents for various Flight Deck modifications generated using human factors research.
- I-9, 5%
Performed voluntary I-9 and other internal system audits to ensure accuracy and compliance; documenting any issues or potentially questionable data.
- Personnel Policies, 5%
Interpreted and applied personnel policies and procedures and counseled departments.
Most human factors specialists use their skills in "user research," "user interface," and "industrial design" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential human factors specialist responsibilities here:
Communication skills. One of the key soft skills for a human factors specialist to have is communication skills. You can see how this relates to what human factors specialists do because "listening and speaking skills are essential for human resources specialists." Additionally, a human factors specialist resume shows how human factors specialists use communication skills: "processed new hire paperwork including i-9 documents, employee information, policy and procedure manuals, and other communications. "
Detail oriented. Another essential skill to perform human factors specialist duties is detail oriented. Human factors specialists responsibilities require that "specialists must pay attention to detail when evaluating applicants’ qualifications, doing background checks, maintaining records of an employee grievance, and ensuring that a workplace complies with labor standards." Human factors specialists also use detail oriented in their role according to a real resume snippet: "utilize a case management system to review employee information and accurately document the details of the calls, linked with sap. "
Interpersonal skills. This is an important skill for human factors specialists to perform their duties. For an example of how human factors specialist responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "specialists continually interact with others and must be able to converse and connect with people from varied backgrounds." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a human factors specialist: "possess excellent interpersonal, analytical, and organizational skills. ".
The three companies that hire the most human factors specialists are:
- UL12 human factors specialists jobs
- Moseley Technical Services4 human factors specialists jobs
- The Salvation Army3 human factors specialists jobs
Compare different human factors specialists
Human factors specialist vs. Self-employed
A self-employed person works without the supervision of a specific employer. Self-employed entrepreneurs decide their business plans to increase profitability and get involved with the current market trends. They also attend business orientations to improve their skills and strategies on driving their business' growth. A self-employed person must display exceptional decision-making and organizational skills to implement strategies, provide the best customer service with the clients, address their needs, manage complaints, and respond to the customer's inquiries.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, human factors specialist responsibilities require skills like "user research," "user interface," "industrial design," and "human factors research." Meanwhile a typical self-employed has skills in areas such as "mowing," "customer service," "financial statements," and "payroll." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Self-employeds tend to reach lower levels of education than human factors specialists. In fact, self-employeds are 13.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Human factors specialist vs. Recruiting coordinator
A recruiting coordinator's tasks include posting job vacancies, coordinating candidate travel, setting up schedules for interviews and handling last-minute scheduling changes, preparing offer letters, and conducting background checks on aspirants. The coordinator assists in the company's recruiting and talent acquisition procedures and strategies by hiring job-seekers to fill in vacant positions and to supply the company's workforce needs and goals. To be effective, he/she should have excellent communication skills and intimate knowledge about hiring best practices to be able to attract aspirants.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that human factors specialist responsibilities requires skills like "user research," "user interface," "industrial design," and "human factors research." But a recruiting coordinator might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "customer service," "applicant tracking systems," "human resources," and "powerpoint."
Recruiting coordinators earn a lower average salary than human factors specialists. But recruiting coordinators earn the highest pay in the finance industry, with an average salary of $47,481. Additionally, human factors specialists earn the highest salaries in the technology with average pay of $98,730 annually.recruiting coordinators earn lower levels of education than human factors specialists in general. They're 8.8% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Human factors specialist vs. Recruiter
Recruiters are responsible for filling up vacancies in the organization. They put up job postings on the company website and other recruitment websites, screen applicants, prospective schedule candidates for interviews, conduct initial interviews, and, should candidates pass the initial interview, endorse them to hiring managers. They act as guides to applicants throughout the whole application process. Upon successful screening and interviewing of applicants, recruiters then guide them through the employment process, usually endorsing them to medical exams and other pre-employment requirements needed. At times, recruiters are responsible for providing job offers to applicants. Recruiters should have a good judge of character, decision-making skills, and interpersonal skills.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, human factors specialists are more likely to have skills like "user research," "user interface," "industrial design," and "human factors research." But a recruiter is more likely to have skills like "applicant tracking systems," "customer service," "human resources," and "linkedin."
Recruiters make a very good living in the technology industry with an average annual salary of $62,293. On the other hand, human factors specialists are paid the highest salary in the technology industry, with average annual pay of $98,730.Most recruiters achieve a lower degree level compared to human factors specialists. For example, they're 9.7% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.8% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Human factors specialist vs. Staffing coordinator
A staffing coordinator is responsible for assisting the staffing needs of an organization, organizing the hiring process, and monitoring the working schedule of staff to ensure smooth operations. Staffing coordinators often coordinate with recruiting agencies for staffing solutions to fill roles and process onboarding. They also manage payroll procedures and check timesheets, create staffing reports, and address the employees' inquiries and concerns. A staffing coordinator must be knowledgeable on human resources procedures, as well as have excellent organizational and communication skills to perform administrative tasks as needed and determine staffing strategies.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between human factors specialists and staffing coordinators, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a human factors specialist might have more use for skills like "user research," "user interface," "industrial design," and "human factors research." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of staffing coordinators require skills like "patients," "customer service," "home health," and "patient care. "
In general, staffing coordinators earn the most working in the finance industry, with an average salary of $43,154. The highest-paying industry for a human factors specialist is the technology industry.The average resume of staffing coordinators showed that they earn lower levels of education compared to human factors specialists. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 13.7% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 1.2%.Types of human factors specialist
Updated January 8, 2025