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Human resources business partner vs generalist

The differences between human resources business partners and generalists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a human resources business partner and a generalist. Additionally, a human resources business partner has an average salary of $86,363, which is higher than the $46,518 average annual salary of a generalist.

The top three skills for a human resources business partner include employee engagement, HRBP and succession planning. The most important skills for a generalist are sales floor, store sales, and customer loyalty.

Human resources business partner vs generalist overview

Human Resources Business PartnerGeneralist
Yearly salary$86,363$46,518
Hourly rate$41.52$22.36
Growth rate7%7%
Number of jobs103,5208,585
Job satisfaction5-
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 71%Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Average age4747
Years of experience66

What does a human resources business partner do?

Human resource (HR) business partners' primary job is to ensure that business objectives are aligned with the management and employees within an organization. They typically focus more on developing HR strategy than implementing the company policies. They often work with individual business units, and their work is related to the company's current and future success. HR business partners are also responsible for providing performance management guidance, developing contract terms for new employees, transfers, and promotions, and providing advice on business units.

What does a generalist do?

A generalist, also known as a human resource generalist, is responsible for overseeing the operations in a human resource department, focusing on employees' welfare and working conditions. They are primarily involved in the hiring and laying off processes among employees, handing training and benefits programs, and coordinating with every department in the company. Furthermore, a generalist must perform administrative tasks that mostly revolve around producing reports and processing paperwork, conducting research and analysis, and responding to correspondence.

Human resources business partner vs generalist salary

Human resources business partners and generalists have different pay scales, as shown below.

Human Resources Business PartnerGeneralist
Average salary$86,363$46,518
Salary rangeBetween $62,000 And $119,000Between $29,000 And $72,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateCaliforniaCalifornia
Best paying companyRopes & GrayMeta
Best paying industryFinanceFinance

Differences between human resources business partner and generalist education

There are a few differences between a human resources business partner and a generalist in terms of educational background:

Human Resources Business PartnerGeneralist
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 71%Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeNorthwestern UniversityNorthwestern University

Human resources business partner vs generalist demographics

Here are the differences between human resources business partners' and generalists' demographics:

Human Resources Business PartnerGeneralist
Average age4747
Gender ratioMale, 28.1% Female, 71.9%Male, 37.8% Female, 62.2%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 5.7% White, 70.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%Black or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 5.7% White, 70.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage18%18%

Differences between human resources business partner and generalist duties and responsibilities

Human resources business partner example responsibilities.

  • Manage the ACA with regard to variable hour employees to avoid fines and penalties.
  • Lead effort to build safety awareness and implement plans to improve working conditions while adhering to OSHA requirements.
  • Manage and audit payroll ensuring accurate timekeeping, processing adjustments, and investigating payroll discrepancies.
  • Manage HRIS system migration to ExponentHR technology platform with full employee/manager self-service eliminating multiple homegrown systems and one service provider.
  • Report to the SVP of human resources.
  • Revamp unemployment claims process and increase HRBP completion rate and decrease dollar loss due to incomplete and fraudulent claims.
  • Show more

Generalist example responsibilities.

  • Manage and maintain PBX and VoIP phone systems at multiple locations.
  • Manage multiple lab projects for the implementation of new lab analyzers as well as LIS functionality.
  • Plan, install and manage new locations build outs with complete VPN connectivity and VOIP utilization for the multiple locations.
  • Manage UAB and HSF faculty recruitment, staffing needs, terminations, compensation, records management, employee relations and retention.
  • Manage data process flow to ensure employee timekeeping, attendance and payroll objectives are effectively and efficiently maintain.
  • Perform chemistry, microbiology, urinalysis, hematology, and blood bank laboratory tests, equipment calibration and quality assurance reports.
  • Show more

Human resources business partner vs generalist skills

Common human resources business partner skills
  • Employee Engagement, 8%
  • HRBP, 6%
  • Succession Planning, 6%
  • Workforce Planning, 5%
  • Business Objectives, 4%
  • HRIS, 4%
Common generalist skills
  • Sales Floor, 21%
  • Store Sales, 17%
  • Customer Loyalty, 14%
  • Sales Growth, 12%
  • Customer Service, 6%
  • Processing Customer Transactions, 4%

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