What does a senior human resources specialist do?
A senior human resources specialist is responsible for monitoring the human resources operations of an organization, managing employment processes and policies, and handling staffing needs and concerns. Senior human resources specialists design training and programs to maintain staff's efficiency and maximize the employees' productivity to support business functional operations. They also coordinate with management leaders to identify their hiring needs, evaluating their specifications for recruitment. A senior human resources specialist reviews the company's policies and guidelines regularly, adjusting procedures according to state regulations and business requirements.
Senior human resources specialist responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real senior human resources specialist resumes:
- Lead annual EEO-1 reporting team.
- Manage, implement, and administer proper hiring process to reduce turnover in compliance with e-verify processes and federal law.
- Maintain and update personnel records in Peoplesoft and Kronos computer programs.
- Participate in regular system updates as well as providing data integrity and functionality in a global HRIS environment.
- Process I9's through HireRight.
- Experience in Microsoft office products and payroll/personnel systems such as Lawson and KRONOS.
- Conduct new employee orientation for new hires, responsible for in-processing all new hire paperwork to include PeopleSoft.
- Coordinate short-term disability and FMLA.
- Generate provisional and final designation letters for FMLA.
- Ensure accuracy of organizational structure by maintaining reporting relationships in PeopleSoft.
- Develop and implement HRIS compensation reports, salary structures/merit matrix, analyze and evaluate position descriptions.
- Recognize for improving the tracking system for personnel within the organization allowing oversight and knowledge of all instructors and administrative personnel.
- Schedule and conduct orientations involving e-Verify and digital EEO self identification.
- Resolve many complex employee relations issues, manage arbitration agreements and provide management with judicial guidance managing the arbitration agreement.
Senior human resources specialist skills and personality traits
We calculated that 12% of Senior Human Resources Specialists are proficient in Payroll, Customer Service, and HRIS. They’re also known for soft skills such as Detail oriented, Communication skills, and Interpersonal skills.
We break down the percentage of Senior Human Resources Specialists that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Payroll, 12%
Handled payroll inquiries, benefits resolutions including disability, leave of absence, severance agreements and coordinated outplacement services.
- Customer Service, 8%
Assisted in the development, maintenance and customer service for external company websites to include staffing/on-boarding, position classification and employee relations
- HRIS, 7%
Partnered with HR generalists on training administration and decommissioning legacy HRIS.
- PowerPoint, 6%
Developed and facilitated online and instructor based training for university staff utilizing Oracle UPK Developer, Blackboard and PowerPoint.
- Develop Recommendations, 5%
Continue to identify process improvements initiatives across the department and develop recommendations for improvements.
- Provide Technical Assistance, 5%
Provide technical assistance with enrollment processes.
Most senior human resources specialists use their skills in "payroll," "customer service," and "hris" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential senior human resources specialist responsibilities here:
Detail oriented. The most essential soft skill for a senior human resources specialist to carry out their responsibilities is detail oriented. This skill is important for the role because "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." Additionally, a senior human resources specialist resume shows how their duties depend on detail oriented: "worked with human resources and other business units to obtain detailed specifications for the design and development of hris initiatives. "
Communication skills. Another essential skill to perform senior human resources specialist duties is communication skills. Senior human resources specialists responsibilities require that "listening and speaking skills are essential for human resources specialists." Senior human resources specialists also use communication skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "exercised excellent verbal and written communication skills and customer service skills. "
Interpersonal skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of senior human resources specialists is interpersonal skills. This skill is critical to many everyday senior human resources specialist duties, as "specialists continually interact with others and must be able to converse and connect with people from varied backgrounds." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "managed staff of 4 to provide effective interpersonal communication producing high quality, timely, and confident customer service. "
The three companies that hire the most senior human resources specialists are:
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Compare different senior human resources specialists
Senior human resources specialist vs. Benefit specialist
A benefits specialist is responsible for analyzing and processing the compensation package of an organization, ensuring that the salary and benefits received by an employee adhere to the current legislation procedures. Benefits specialists develop benefits programs, adjusting pension plans and insurance options as needed, and updating the employees on recent updates and changes. A benefits specialist responds to employees' inquiries, addresses their concerns, and manages benefits issues. A benefits specialist must have a clear understanding of benefits policies and processes to educate employees about the benefits structure.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a senior human resources specialist are more likely to require skills like "payroll," "develop recommendations," "provide technical assistance," and "performance management." On the other hand, a job as a benefit specialist requires skills like "hr," "patients," "long-term disability," and "hipaa." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Benefit specialists earn the highest salaries when working in the finance industry, with an average yearly salary of $54,117. On the other hand, senior human resources specialists are paid more in the finance industry with an average salary of $77,555.The education levels that benefit specialists earn slightly differ from senior human resources specialists. In particular, benefit specialists are 7.9% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a senior human resources specialist. Additionally, they're 0.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Senior human resources specialist vs. Human resources internship
A human resources intern is responsible for assisting the human resources department in daily operations under a direct supervisor. Duties of a human resources intern include reviewing job postings and qualifications, updating employees' information in the database, scheduling candidate interviews, responding to employees' concerns, processing payroll disputes, and reiterating the company's policies and procedures. A human resources intern must be detail-oriented and a fast-learner and display excellent communication and organizational skills to be familiarized with the management operations.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real senior human resources specialist resumes. While senior human resources specialist responsibilities can utilize skills like "develop recommendations," "provide technical assistance," "employee engagement," and "shared services," human resources interns use skills like "resources intern," "internship program," "data entry," and "eeo."
Human resources interns earn a lower average salary than senior human resources specialists. But human resources interns earn the highest pay in the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $37,766. Additionally, senior human resources specialists earn the highest salaries in the finance with average pay of $77,555 annually.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Human resources interns tend to reach lower levels of education than senior human resources specialists. In fact, they're 6.1% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for senior human resources specialists in the next 3-5 years?
Denise Barton
Senior Professor of Human Resources, Wake Technical Community College
Senior human resources specialist vs. Human resources recruiter/manager
The primary duty of a human resources recruiter/manager is to source job candidates for open positions in a company. They meet the needs of their client by matching them with candidates that meet the company's organizational culture and will perfectly fit into the open job position. Some small firms will require a human resources recruiter/manager to interview potential employees.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from senior human resources specialist resumes include skills like "payroll," "customer service," "develop recommendations," and "provide technical assistance," whereas a human resources recruiter/manager is more likely to list skills in "human resources policies," "senior level management," "disciplinary procedures," and "eeo. "
Human resources recruiter/managers typically earn similar educational levels compared to senior human resources specialists. Specifically, they're 3.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.6% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Senior human resources specialist vs. Human resources manager
Human resources managers, or HR managers, are responsible for the overall conduct of the different facets of human resources in the organization. They oversee the different processes involved in recruitment, compensation and benefits, talent development, organizational development, employee relations, and employee engagement. It is important that HR managers are well-versed in the different facets of HR. They set policies and procedures, as well as guiding principles of the organization related to these facets. They must be able to balance the needs of the employees and the rules of the management team. HR managers should have strong decision-making skills, interpersonal skills, and management skills.
Types of senior human resources specialist
Updated January 8, 2025
