A personnel specialist is responsible for staffing an organization through recruiting, interviewing, and vetting potential candidates. They may also compose job advertisements and descriptions, participate in interviews, and ensure fair hiring practices. Preparation for this role may involve college courses or on-the-job training.
A personnel specialist works in the human resources (HR) field and is typically tasked with securing adequate staffing for an organization or company. A personnel specialist’s duties often include recruiting, interviewing, and vetting potential candidates. Depending on the company, people specialists may perform a variety of activities or may focus more on a single HR function. In addition, the specialist may provide staffing services in-house for a company, or hire talent for an employment agency or recruitment firm. Preparation for this field usually involves some college courses, a college degree in business, or on-the-job training in laws and procedures that govern the treatment of employees.
Common tasks of a personnel specialist usually involve some level of involvement in recruiting qualified candidates for an employer. For example, someone working in this capacity might be part of a booth at a job fair or give a presentation to a gathering of college students expected to graduate soon. When qualified candidates are in short supply, there can be intense competition between employers. In this case, the specialist can take a proactive role in recruitment. He or she can make recommendations to company management to develop more competitive and attractive compensation packages in order to successfully lure candidates away from competitors.
When the opposite situation occurs and there is an overabundance of talent compared to available jobs, the specialist may take a different approach. He or she may recommend that the qualification bar for a specific position be raised. A personnel specialist can also compose job advertisements and job descriptions. This duty often involves legal responsibilities, such as fair and accurate disclosure of assignments, working conditions or compensation packages. He or she may also post available jobs in places where potential recruits can see the postings.
Another area where a human resources specialist can work is vetting potential job candidates. This usually involves checking the candidate’s references, fact-checking, and verifying professional credentials such as degrees awarded. Often, brief interviews are conducted with those the candidate has listed as a reference.
Sometimes the human resources specialist participates in the interview with the candidate, but this is not always the case. Even if the expert does not interview the candidate, he or she may participate in the interview. This may be because the staff specialist wants to ensure that the person conducting the interview follows proper protocol and abides by laws governing fair hiring practices. Preparing to be a human resources specialist typically includes completing college-level courses, or even earning a bachelor’s degree in business administration or a similar field.
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