INDUSTRY STATS
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, HR Generalist positions are at a 10% growth rate, which is as fast as average. With that said, there are currently 674,800 jobs in the market right now. The total number of jobs is expected to increase by 70,200 to 745,000 in the period of 2020-30.
What’s more, the median annual wage for the HR Generalist jobs was $63,490 in May 2020. The lowest 10% earned less than $37,710, and the highest 10% more than $109,350.
Our conclusion? The HR Generalist job market is wide open for candidates.
Top HR Generalist sections that make the best resume
- Header
- Professional summary
- Experience (with numbers and results)
- Relevant skills
- Education
- Certifications
What to include in your HR generalist resume experience section
HR generalist resume experience section checklist:
- Use at least 3 and no more than 7 bullet points per position;
- Make your experience sound relevant to what you’re applying for;
- Combine responsibilities, results, and critical situations that you’ve handled well;
- Show that you’re willing to take up on challenges;
- Include numbers in any form you like.
Looking for some real experience section examples? We’ve gathered the best HR Generalist resume samples to help you. Check them out before building your own resume!
- Managed the complete recruitment life-cycle for sourcing the best talent from diverse sources after identification of manpower requirements.
- Conducted hand holding of new entrants and ensured smooth transition of new employees.
- Lead training, learning and development process for the new joinees.
- Advanced the most important "infrastructure" - the employees - through successful education and training of absence management, Family Medical Leave and benefits, Human Resources rules and policies, ergonomics, payroll and time keeping, and labor relations contracts.
- Commended for bringing customer satisfaction while cultivating organizational-wide relationships in coordination of organizational management, employee hiring, operational leadership, and technology management.
- Streamlined operations and facility logistics by familiarizing and analyzing processes to accommodate organizational policy changes, inventory management, ergonomics, and security measures.
- Implemented practical, deliberate, and calculated approaches to administrative tasks, records retention, employee on-boarding, orientation and retention, personnel administration, and organizational management with successful completion on or before deadlines.
- Communicated using different learning techniques including logical organization, superior documentation and comfortable presentation style to soundly train and educate individuals and groups, small and large.
- Skilled super user and trainer for SAP Human Capital Management (HCM) to all users of the City of Portland. Essential user for testing business functionality of Microsoft Office 365 for whole organization.
- Primary interpreter for Human Resources policy administration and union contracts for both represented and executive level employees of an office of 80 individuals.
- HR management of Plovdiv's office - recruitment, on-boarding, attestation, internal communication, events planning and performing, management consultation, exit interviews.
- Strictly organized administrative responsibilities - contracts, employees' files and database, employees intranet system, administration of working hours system, leaves, business trips.
- StangaOne1 Academy - attraction and recruitment of trainees for the corporate academy in Plovdiv, presenting the company in various academic institutions and events, administrative management of the internship, exit interviews and career guidance.
- Project Management of the employer branding process for a team of 15 experts.
- Administrating and consulting on labour law relations 650 + personnel
- Reporting attrition, sickness and tenure on weekly, monthly, quaterly and yearly basis
- Implementing SAP SuccessFactors for Bulgaria- working directly with the Global USA & UK Team and assigned as a Super User and EMEA Regional Trainer
- Participating in recruitment process activities- interviews, screenings on the phone, publishing job ads and consulting job agencies
- Maintaining social benefits- additional health insurance, meal vouchers, sport cards and stores discounts
- Developing Social Media- increased Facebook followers from 510 to 1810 likes for 18 months
- Co- Founder of People First Board- Organizing social activities and events: held 2 Charity Markets which raised €1450 for the excursions of 35 parentless children
- Collating internal employee communications e.g Town Hall Meetings every Quarter, Anniversary process every month, Focus Groups, Employee of the Quarter Program, 90 day Reunion meetings between HR, Operations and Learning each month
- Human capital management expert resource for multiple clients in various states. Streamlined and fine-turned processes and procedures for benefit enrollment, performance evaluations, and new hire processing.
- Maintain client employee-related databases; prepare and analyze reports necessary for department and company functions. Leveraged data to help my clients make better business decisions as it relates to their employee population and aligning with their strategic HR goals.
- Cultivate and manage relationships; serve as liaison between clients, employees, brokers, and insurance carriers.
- Created and documented innovative solutions for clients in areas such as personnel action forms and employee benefit enrollment programs.
- Administrating and consulting on labour relations 750 + personnel
- Reporting attrition, sickness and tenure on monthly basis
- Implementing SAP for Bulgaria- working directly with the Global USA Team and assigned as a Super User and EMEA Regional Trainer
- Developing Social Media- increased Facebook followers by 293% from 510 to 1490 likes for 1 year
- Organizing social activities and events: held 2 Charity Markets which raised €1450 for the excursions of 35 parentless children
- Collating internal employee communications e.g Town Hall Meetings every Quarter, Anniversary process, Meetings and Focus Groups
- Producing Employee of the Quarter Program, Recognition and Reward program and 90 day Reunion meeting each month
- Administration of Employee on-boarding, separation, and leaves including but not limited to: LOA/FMLA and Workers Compensation.
- Resolved Employee Relations issues
- Oversight and support Employee Performance Management and Review
- Implemented and administered electronic Compensation and Benefit best practice: electronic payroll and total rewards program.
- Implementation of Employee Handbook and HR policy and best practice procedures.
- Benefit Administration including open Enrollment, new hire enrollment and benefit termination.
- Successfully transitioned employees to new Law entity
- Implementation of electronic compensation and Benefits
- Implemented new HR processes and procedures
- Successfully started an HR Department in the company.
- Introduced a proper payroll system along with digital attendance system.
- Developed and implemented policies & sop's in the company.
- Eradicated the employee turn over issues from the company.
- Maintained oversight for allegations of misconduct, policy violations and sexual harassment across India.
- Advised investigators and liaised with legal/ compliance teams in resolving employee grievances & trained HR Generalists in investigating complaints.
- Project managed significant investigations of employee misconduct virtually posing risk to organization reputation & brand value.
- Presented significant APAC investigations to the global Corporate Ethics Committee monthly and the Annual India Workforce Relations trends to India leadership.
- Managed reduction in force/ position elimination projects for business units.
- Created policies & guided HR Generalists to draft / revise policies in mitigating risk, enhancing the employee value proposition and streamlining human resource management.
- Supported a Senior HR Business Partner to develop the HR Agenda
- Organized trainings and special projects for new hires (onboarding sessions and talent program)
- Delivered monthly and quarterly HR reports to the management
- Act as HR Business Partner - Provide day to day advice to management on all human resource issues and advise in appropriate resolution of employee relations issues
- HR Recruitment Strategy, HR policies, procedures and recruitment SLA - development and implementation
- Developing job descriptions, preparing advertisement
- Recruitment / Executive Search Projects: IT, Finance, Sales, specific banking positions
- Creating a positive Onboarding experience for new hires
- Employer Branding organize job fairs, internal HR communication
- Assessment Centers elaborate and implement. Conduct
- Exit Interviews Elaborate and implement
- Career Counselling - Training delivery
- Job Rotation - pilot project
- Internship Project – coordinate small team of young graduates
- Organizational Changes implementation – participate in notes implementation which had effect dismissals, promotions – various staff changes, new structures
- Engagement Survey Actions support (tracking, monitoring and follow-up); meeting facilitation and deliver training as needed.
- Effectively maintain confidentiality of all privileged information relating to the employees, products or management of the company.
- On boarding program for new employees.
- Responsible for Compensation and Benefits matters.
- HR advisor for all Iberia Employees.
- Involvement in ER cases counting with an external legal advice.
- Vendor Management.
- Coordinate the outsourced payroll calculation for local and expatriates employees .
- Recruitment support Retail.
- Leading Re-new project for Iberia: transfer knowledge, requirement gathered, testing...
- Implemented a recruiting strategy for the EMEA region targeting the best professionals for meridium and managed to reduce cost by 19%
- Designed the Employee recognition program for the entire EMEA region.
- Utilization of best practice models, processes and analytics.
- Worked on implementation of Workday as the sole HCM system.
- Acting as key contact/ advisor for employees and managers regarding current and anticipated organizational needs, HR queries including performance and employee grievance issues.
- Delivering people solutions which are aligned to the strategic business objectives
- Designed On-boarding and induction programs and ensured support mechanisms are in place to support new hires through their probation process.
PRO TIP
Don't make the same mistake everyone else does. What we mean is, don't list your HR Generalist job responsibilities instead of your achievements. Recruiters know what you do. They want to know what kind of difference you can bring to their company. Focus on what you've accomplished.
Action verbs for your HR generalist resume
Recommended reads:
Top HR generalist skills for your resume
HR generalist resume skills section checklist:
- Match your hard skills to the job description;
- Add keywords to pass applicant tracking systems;
- Don’t list soft skills such as ’teamwork’ – rather, mention how they’ve helped you gain success in some other sections of your HR Generalist resume;
- List only skills you actually have, keep lying out of the picture.
Top skills for your HR generalist resume
OneNote
Workday
FieldFlass
SuccessFactor
MS Office
Taleo
Organisation
Communication
confidentiality
Time management
Team work
Adaptability
PRO TIP
When describing your experience, don’t go too far from its terminology. Recruiters use ATS systems to filter resumes based on them having certain keywords, so make sure you use at least a few keywords mentioned in the job description.
Recommended reads:
HR generalist resume header: Tips, red flags, and best practices
Checklist for your HR generalist resume header
- Your name and surname in a legible and larger resume font
- The job title you’re applying for or your current job title as a subheading to your name
- Link to your portfolio or online profile, such as LinkedIn
- Address (City and State for the US; just your city for rest of the world)
- Email address
- Headshot (required or welcomed in the EU; not required and sometimes frowned upon in the US)
Stick to popular email providers such as Gmail or Outlook. And use these professional formats to create your username:
- first.last@gmail.com
- last.first@gmail.com
- firstlast@gmail.com
- f.last@gmail.com
- first.l@gmail.com
Recommended Reads:
PRO TIP
Some companies, states, and countries have non-discrimination policies about what kind of information can be included on your HR Generalist resume. This might include a photo (which is often included in a resume header and might be on personal web pages you link to). You can always email the company’s HR department to ask about their policies before you apply.
Craft a strong HR generalist resume summary
HR Generalist resume summary checklist:
- Your total years of experience
- The industry you’re coming from
- One or two most remarkable accomplishments that have helped you - turn into a great professional
- Short sentences that add value – avoid filler words and phrases
Resume summary formula:
PRO TIP
Your summary should act as an elevator speech, briefly promoting how you will benefit the employer if hired. Pitch your strengths in the summary and expand on them in your HR Generalist experience section. Give examples like how your work benefited each employer.
Recommended reads:
Highlight your education, certifications, and courses
What to include in your education and courses sections:
- Your highest education degree – this includes institution, course, and duration
- Certifications and courses that have helped you gain additional expertise
- Awards you’ve received as part of your education
- Entry-level positions only: relevant classes and projects
Top certifications for your HR generalist resume
HR as a Strategic Business Partner
Better understand your value and role as a strategic business partner
Learn HR Fundamentals for a Career in Human Resources
Human Resource Management is key to developing any business or organization. Learn core HR roles and responsibilities.
OSHA Workplace Safety (General Industry 6 Hr Class)
Learn the requirements and standards associated with OSHA and workplace safety. Safety best practices for the workplace.
Administrative Human Resources (HR) for Beginners
This course is an introduction to the role and duties of Human Resources (HR).
Diploma Course in Human Resource Management (HRM)
Become top-notch HRM Practitioner - Get Live Projects, Ready-to-use Templates, Demos, Quizzes, Articles, Case studies
Recommended reads:
PRO TIP
If you hold a certain major and a minor, your majors should be mentioned first.
Drafting a Job-winning HR Generalist Resume
When drafting your resume, you can choose between three well-known formats:
- Reverse-chronological resume format;
- Functional skills-based resume format;
- Combination (or Hybrid) resume format.
Which format you decide to go for depends on two things: your personal preference and how experienced you are.
The reverse-chronological format is ideal for both really experienced people and those who joined the workforce just a couple of years ago. It’s also great if your experience combines different industries and jobs. Here, your most recent position comes at the top of your resume.
The functional skills-based resume format, on the other hand, is ideal for recent graduates or people who have no work experience whatsoever. It’s built around your skills, interests, and expertise. Ultimately, its goal is to show recruiters your biggest strengths and practical skills.
Combination resumes (also known as hybrid resumes) are great for all types of candidates – be they graduates, experienced professionals, or brave career changers. They usually follow a double-column format – one side focuses on your experience, while the other emphasizes your education, skills, interests, and accomplishments.
Here’s our resume format and style checklist:
- Choose a traditional resume font sized 12p;
- Go for standard 1-inch resume margins;
- Match the length of your HR Generalist resume with your experience – choose a one-page template if you have less than 10 years of experience, and be careful with two-page templates;
- Send your resume in PDF – in this way, you’ll avoid formatting issues and potential editing from third parties.
And in case you want to go the extra mile, check out our guide for crafting a resume that stands out.
Recommended reads:
PRO TIP
Test your draft HR Generalist resume by sending it out to peers and mentors in your circles. Ask them to review it as if they are hiring you for a project and implement the feedback afterwards.
Other sections worth including in your HR generalist resume
Including other sections in your resume depends on the company, the position, and, ultimately, the industry. Here are some sections that will help you spice things up:
An HR generalist resume that stands out
Recruiters look at tens of resumes every day. That’s why helping them remember yours is crucial for landing an interview.
A creative resume can help you show off both your personality and your expertise at the same time.
Creative sections about passions, favorite books, quotes, and even your daily routine are a great way to make your resume feel like a breath of fresh air.
What’s more, it will also point recruiters to the fact that you’re attentive to detail and can think outside the box of Word-generated black and white resumes.
What makes a great HR generalist resume: key takeaways
- Choose a resume layout that sends the right message across and fits your current career situation;
- Create a resume header that shows your desired job title, and easy to find contact numbers;
- Be specific about your experience, accomplishments and future goals in your summary;
- Feature detailed metrics and specific examples that show the impact you made in your previous roles when describing your experience;
- List soft skills backed by examples;
- Add all of your technical skills and certifications that you have and match the job description;
- Show off a dash of personality in your resume that will demonstrate your culture fit and the right mix of hard and soft skills.
