How to look for an HR Manager?

To make the right choice, we should start by creating a detailed profile of the perfect candidate. The description should touch upon personality, the desired professional culture and – first and foremost – the required expertise, experience and leadership skills. Employers often make the mistake of relying on ‘personal chemistry’ when hiring key managers, forgetting about the purpose of hiring new employees and the challenges they are going to face. But how does one interview someone who deals with interviews, recruitment, talent management and HR on a daily basis? The process of recruiting an HR Manager who best fits the profile and can take on the challenges ahead of the company is a tricky one.

Step one: develop a competence model

Start the recruitment process by defining a competence model listing your requirements, divided into ‘must have’ and ‘nice to have’ skills, and stick to it. When developing a competence model for an HR Manager, consider the skills listed below, because if our experience is any indicator, all candidates for the job should have these down, no matter the business sector:

• effortless communication,
• strategic thinking,
• creativity,
• innovativeness,
• coaching ability,
• diplomacy,
• emotional intelligence,
• good negotiating skills.

The candidate’s skillset should be evaluated during the interview by means of targeted questions. However, the responsibilities of HR Managers consist chiefly of working with people. This means that good communication skills are manifested not only by the ability to get one’s message across, but also through an open mind, empathy or the drive to understand another human being.

Step two: ask the right questions

Candidates should be given open questions. Remember – you mustn’t rely on spontaneity. Only carefully formulated questions can reveal whether a given candidate meets the job’s requirements. If you ask an interviewee if they perform well under stress, most will answer with a simple ‘yes’. On the other hand, if you make them feel pressured, for instance by asking what makes them better than the other candidates, you might get a more representative answer.

Step three: pick the best match for the job

Hiring the best candidate is not a good strategy. You should always hire the best person for the job, not the best from among the available candidates. If none of the interviewees meet the key requirements for the given post, we shouldn’t take our chances and assume that the candidate will somehow pull through. A hiring mistake will be much more costly than additional time spent reviewing more candidates. You might want to involve another manager of the same level in the process. A second opinion is always extremely valuable.

Corporate management is becoming increasingly open to the idea that HR departments may play a vital strategic role in their organisations. HR experts often sit on the management board or, alternatively, act as independent consultants. Frequently, heads of HR are promoted to managing directors. A couple of years ago, that was a path available only to CFOs. And if HR Managers are strategic employees, the recruitment process should reflect this. It needs to be carefully planned, systematic, and respectful towards the candidates, while following a strict timeline. According to our observations, this approach is common in large corporations, specialised tech companies and other candidate-driven environments. However, some experts still see HR through the lens of payroll and administration. Even the salaries earned by HR Managers reflect the difference in their status, ranging from ca. PLN 10,000 to PLN 30,000 per month before taxes.

Hiring a new HR Manager is not easy, which is why every company should consider involving an external contractor in the process, especially while recruiting the first head of HR in its history.

For more information about the job market or services related to recruitment of mid- and upper management HR personnel, please contact us – we will be more than happy to help.