Personnel administrator vs director of human resources

The differences between personnel administrators and directors of human resources can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a personnel administrator and a director of human resources. Additionally, a director of human resources has an average salary of $100,601, which is higher than the $40,005 average annual salary of a personnel administrator.

The top three skills for a personnel administrator include word processing, life insurance and office equipment. The most important skills for a director of human resources are performance management, HRIS, and employee engagement.

Personnel administrator vs director of human resources overview

	Personnel Administrator	Director Of Human Resources
Yearly salary	$40,005	$100,601
Hourly rate	$19.23	$48.37
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	51,272	46,924
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 69%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	6	6

What does a personnel administrator do?

Personnel administrators are professionals who are responsible for performing administrative duties related to maintaining personnel records and documents for an organization. These administrators are required to ensure accurate records of personnel files as well as efficient access by other staff members. They must maintain a relationship with the human resources and operations management to keep informed about the current and future hiring needs. Personnel administrators must also administer workers' compensation while establishing a safety counseling program to maintain morale among workers.

What does a director of human resources do?

A human resources director is responsible for managing the overall operations of the human resources department, ensuring smooth operations while meeting the company's goals of successful profitability and services. Human resources directors' duties include providing staff consultation, addressing staffing concerns, managing compensation and benefits plans, reviewing plans for training and development programs, and reporting future actions to the management. A human resources director must have excellent leadership, communication, and decision-making skills to help lead the business to its growth and development.

Personnel administrator vs director of human resources salary

Personnel administrators and directors of human resources have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Personnel Administrator	Director Of Human Resources
Average salary	$40,005	$100,601
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $53,000	Between $68,000 And $147,000
Highest paying City	-	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	-	California
Best paying company	-	McKinsey & Company Inc
Best paying industry	-	Technology

Differences between personnel administrator and director of human resources education

There are a few differences between a personnel administrator and a director of human resources in terms of educational background:

	Personnel Administrator	Director Of Human Resources
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 69%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Northwestern University	Northwestern University

Personnel administrator vs director of human resources demographics

Here are the differences between personnel administrators' and directors of human resources' demographics:

	Personnel Administrator	Director Of Human Resources
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 39.8% Female, 60.2%	Male, 35.0% Female, 65.0%
Race ratio	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%	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 Percentage	18%	18%

Differences between personnel administrator and director of human resources duties and responsibilities

Personnel administrator example responsibilities.

Manage corporate affirmative action plan and enforce EEO policies/programs.
Establish operating policies and procedures and attain SNF Medicare certification.
Maintain FMLA documentation and records for employees.
Used spreadsheets, PowerPoint, or text documents.
Compile wages and deductions, and enter data into a HRIS.
Investigate and propose formal HRIS solution to ease ability of compliance and reporting.

Director of human resources example responsibilities.

Recruit, negotiate new benefit contracts, manage compensation budget with department managers, process and oversee payroll.
Develop a structure interview process, implement online background investigation, integrity surveying applications, and manage the HRIS system.
Adopt mediation as a prefer means of reduce cost employee dispute resolution.
Design performance management training program and develop and deliver sexual harassment and EEO training to production show staff.
Maintain affirmative action and OSHA documentation.
Lead responsibility for all employment litigation and administrative charges.

Personnel administrator vs director of human resources skills

Common personnel administrator skills

Word Processing, 19%
Life Insurance, 19%
Office Equipment, 19%
Photocopiers, 16%
Travel Arrangements, 14%
Human Resources, 2%

Common director of human resources skills

Performance Management, 8%
HRIS, 5%
Employee Engagement, 4%
Payroll Processing, 4%
Customer Service, 4%
Succession Planning, 4%

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Personnel Administrator vs Director Of Human Resources

Updated January 8, 2025

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