How To Write A Human Resources Resume (With Examples)

Every business and organisation has a requirement of HR to manage their employees and all the employees' related matter. If you are finding a job in HR, you may require writing a quality resume that shows your skills and experiences in the arena. Understanding how to write an HR resume can help you write a well-formatted and customised resume that can impress your hiring manager. In this article, we discuss how to write a human resources resume, understand its different components, explore tips for formatting an HR resume and share an example to create a perfect document.

Related: What's The Difference Between A Resume And A CV?

How To Write An HR Resume?

Usually, a human resources resume opens with an attention-grabbing title or summary statement. You can emphasise your excellent soft skills and interpersonal abilities from the start. You can also mention any of your accomplishments, such as HR certifications and training. You may follow the steps below to write an HR resume:

1. Choose the suitable resume format

A resume format refers to the style and structure of your resume's content. There are three common resume formats: chronological, functional and combination. A chronological resume format begins with your professional background section and is a suitable option if you have a significant professional career with no employment gaps. A functional resume format focuses on the skills section and is an ideal format if you are changing professions or there are any gaps in your employment history. A combination resume format may suit you if you have experience working in an organisation where skills and experience are equally important.

2. Include your personal details

Make sure your resume starts with your name and contact details, including your email address and phone number. Contact details make communication easy for the hiring manager about any further notice. You can include your name prominently at the top of your resume in a bold or bigger font than the rest of the content to make it easily noticeable.

3. Add an objective statement

An objective statement summarises your career goals and is a good choice for people with limited work experience, such as recent college graduates. Ensure that your statement is a maximum of one or two sentences long. While writing your objective statement, you can explain in short why you aspire to do this job to make it impressive enough for the hiring manager to read your full resume.

Related: How To Write An Objective For An HR Generalist Resume

4. Mention your soft and hard skills

Analyse which abilities make you a good fit for the position. Review the job description for the HR role you are applying to and understand the relevant skills. Consider all the essential hard and soft skills you possess and include them in the skills section of your resume.

Related: Steps And Tips For Developing Your Soft Skills

5. List your professional experience

You can write your professional experience section in either chronological or reverse-chronological order. It is better to start with your most recent work and briefly describe each. The description may include the company name, job title, length of employment and significant achievements during your time at the organisation. You might also highlight important learnings or growth opportunities that you had while working there.

Related: How To Write Experience In A Resume (With Examples)

6. Write your educational details

An education section is more important in case of limited work experience or if you are going to start your career or enter the HR department from a different industry. You can include details such as:

• Relevant education

• Marks obtained

• Participation in co-curricular activities

• Leadership roles and activities

• Participation in management activities

• Awards, recognitions or certifications

When writing your education section, you can include the names of the institutions, principal studies, study duration and accomplishment. If you are applying to mid or senior positions and have rich work experience, you might remove all and mention institution name, qualifications awarded and dates.

Related: How To List Certifications On A Resume (With Examples)

7. Proofread your resume

Review your resume thoroughly and check all the spelling, grammar and punctuation mistakes. Reading your resume backward may help you in identifying errors. You can also ask your friends and family members to review your resume. Third-party opinions can help identify any crucial missing information.

What Is A Human Resources Resume?

An HR resume is a document that outlines the skills, experience and education a candidate requires to get the desired HR position. Your resume helps the hiring manager decide if you are a good fit for the role, depending on your skills and past work. While writing an HR resume, you may include details about your experience in workforce management, all soft and interpersonal skills you may have obtained over time and your education and career accomplishments.

Related: Writing An HR Coordinator Resume (With Template And Example)

Components Of An HR Resume

Here are the different components of an HR resume:

• Personal details: This section includes your full name, phone number, email address and residential address. These details help your hiring manager to recognise and communicate with you easily.

• Summary: Include this beneath personal details. Use your experience summary or career goals to show your interest in the HR department and passion for career progression.

• Skills: Most hiring managers give importance to this section to know if you possess the relevant skills for the HR role. Skills are one of the deciding factors for hiring a candidate.

• Qualifications: Include your educational qualifications in this section, starting from your senior secondary education to the most recent degree. Sometimes, your education decides your eligibility.

• Experience: Add your work experience in this section. Outline your experience in such a way that it attracts your potential employer and shows that you can meet their expectations.

• Certification: Under this section, you can list your certifications. Including a relevant certificate can show your motivation and interest to grow professionally.

• Accomplishments: Normally, candidates mention their achievements in the skills section, but in the case of an HR resume, consider creating a separate section for your accomplishments. It shows your activeness, which is important for HR roles.

Related: Words To Avoid And Include On A Resume

HR Resume Template

Here is a template of a resume for an HR role:

[Your full name]
[Your phone number]
[Your email address]
[Your residential address]

Job objective

[Brief explanation of your career goals]

Work experience

[Job title]
[Company name], [Start date-end date]

• [Description of your roles and responsibilities]

• [Your key learnings and achievements]

[Job title]
[Company name], [Start date-end date]

• [Description of your roles and responsibilities]

• [Your key learnings and achievements]

[Job title]
[Company name], [Start date-end date]

• [Description of your roles and responsibilities]

• [Your key learnings and achievements]

Skills

• [Relevant skill or competency]

• [Relevant skill or competency]

• [Relevant skill or competency]

• [Relevant skill or competency]

• [Relevant skill or competency]

• [Relevant skill or competency]

Education
[Degree name]
[Institution's name]
[Year of the degree]

Certifications
[Name of certification]
[Name of certifying institution]
[Date of Certification]

HR Resume Example

Here is an example of an HR resume following the combination resume format:

Rahul Sharma Kolkata, West Bengal
+91 9876543210
rahul.sharma@mypersonalwebsite.com

Summary A diligent and innovative HR recruiter with three years of in-house talent acquisition experience. Competent in placing sales and marketing employees and the use of various recruitment tools.

Skills

• Interviewing techniques

• Recruitment strategies

• Team building

• Decision-making

• Communication

• Hardworking

Work Experience

Trainee Manager
The Leela Ambience and Convention Hotel, Jun 2018-May 2019

• Hiring new interns and trainees

• Conducting induction session

• Resolving employee conflicts

Assistant Human Resource Manager
Taj Diplomatic Enclave Hotel, Jul 2019-Aug 2020

• Talent management for sales team

• Payroll management

• Salary negotiation

• Planning employee engagement activities

Human Resource Analyst
The Oberoi Group, Aug 2020-Oct 2021

• Analysing employee performance data

• Conducting surveys

• Setting up salary and incentives guideline

• Planning and optimising leave policy

Education

Bachelor of Business Administration in HR
Central University, Kolkata
July 2013-May 2016

Master of Business Administration in HR
Central University, New Delhi
July 2016-May 2018

Certification

Global Professional in Human Resources
HR Certification Institute, July 2021

Tips For Formatting A Resume

Here are some additional tips to consider when formatting your HR resume:

• Restrict your resume to one page. Employers typically get many resumes and may lack time to read a long document. Keep your resume short and effective.

• Prefer Unicode fonts. Use Unicode fonts for your resume to provide the best compatibility with all browsers and word processing apps.

• Add headings for the sections. Properly formatted resumes look elegant and catch the attention of hiring managers. The use of headings for the sections makes your resume organised and professional.

• Keep the structure simple. Avoid using fancy structures and tables or graphics for your HR resume. This is mostly suitable for creative or art roles.

• Use all available space. Avoid using borders and fix the page margins to moderate or narrow to make the most use of the white space in the document.

Related: How To Feature Recruitment Skills On A Resume (With Example)