Making the leap from HR Administrator to HR Generalist

It’s been a while since I’ve Chaired interviews for an HR generalist level role. However, as we continue to transform our People & Culture Team at the University of Winchester, I’ve been keen to get hands-on in the selection process for several roles. This has included a recent People Services Advisor role in the team (equivalent to a HR generalist role), for which I joined the interview panel, alongside our Senior People Services Advisor and Head of People & Culture Business Partnering.

I really enjoyed engaging with the candidates, most of whom were seeking to make the leap from an HR administrative/coordinator level role, to a more generalist remit. It’s reminded me that growing talent in HR, is one of the things that’s given me most pleasure in my career. I often say it’s a privilege to work in HR, given the scope and reach we have as a profession. It’s also a heavy responsibility.

My belief is that within the HR profession, perhaps more than others, we shape organisational culture every single day, through our actions, our conversations, and our influence.

What this recruitment process reminded me is that the leap from an HR administrator/ coordinator level role to a generalist role is a particularly important transition. It’s where you learn the importance of applying policy and process with pragmatism, and of working in the ‘grey’ space. It’s where you become more comfortable operating across the hierarchy, of challenging views where necessary, and starting to influence core business decisions, in the content of organisational performance and organisational health. Professionally, you learn the value of a strong network - of building a cadre of trusted confidants who you can call on for emotional support, to sense check decisions, and at times, to hold the mirror up to your own bias, blindspots and behaviours.

It’s a big leap. But it is a critical transition that many of us have made successfully on our career journeys within HR.

I’m lucky to have diverse following here on LinkedIn, so I thought it might be helpful to share publicly the advice I gave to the candidates I spoke to, with the hope that this may be helpful for others.?

Love learning

There are many opportunities out there to pick up free and paid-for learning in the realm of HR. Much of this learning is perfect for the transition towards a more generalist remit. My advice to those making this transition is to absorb as much of this as possible - and don’t wait for your employer to come to you with a plan; craft your own plan instead. The CIPD provide a wealth of resources (membership is well worth the annual fee), local employment solicitors will provide free training on a range of topics, ACAS run a solid public programme, and many sectors have a dedicated professional body that will be invaluable for more nuanced topics. UHR is an example in Higher Education (the sector within which I currently work).

Attending such training is also a great way of establishing a diverse professional network, which will become invaluable as you continue to progress your career.

Seize projects and opportunities as they arise

Perhaps a bit cliched, but essential for this particular transition. However scary they may seem, seize opportunities presented, particularly in areas where you have limited experience. Casework, organisational change, TUPE, and learning and development programmes are particularly valuable to build confidence and capability quickly. Rather than worry about whether you are ready - my advice would be to jump in, ensuring that you have the appropriate support from more experienced professionals to guide you on your way (on this point, I would seriously consider a mentor within HR as you make this transition).

I was very lucky that a number of Directors, across multiple organisations, did this for me in my early career. Without those experiences, I would not be where I am today. My first HR generalist role was supporting the full closure of a manufacturing site. Was I ready - no. Did I learn a huge amount about HR, people and myself - yes.

Keep an open mind as to outcomes

When you are inexperienced it can be easy to fall into the trap of assuming an outcome to a people-related matter too early in a process. The risk is higher where you are dealing with something that you may feel you have seen before. As you gain experience, you learn to expect the unexpected. The unexpected happens more often than you may think. So my advice is to suspend that natural inclination to drive a resolution as quickly as possible.

Lead with curiosity, listen broadly, challenge when you are not clear, and ultimately let the facts form your view.

One of my favourite sayings is that whilst I listen to everyone’s perspective, I form my own view, based on what I personally see and hear. You don’t always have this luxury in people-related matters - but you can remain curious in most situations.

Hold true to the role of the HR professional

I call this particular trap ‘HR over-step’. I have seen it often, and with HR professionals at most levels. It’s important to remember that the manager, not the HR professional, is the decision maker in casework. S/he will have to explain and justify their actions and conclusions to those involved. In extreme examples, this may be played out in the public domain.

Managers may welcome your guidance on decisions - this is legitimate and often helpful (particularly when weighing up different perspectives). However, it’s essential that you make clear to managers’ that the decisions they make are their own (or those of the panel, where appropriate), and ones for which they must feel confident and clear. Work hard to avoid ‘HR over-step’ - in my experience it never ends well.

Begin to understand your values

At this formative stage of the professional career, you will be building, or perhaps already have, a set of values that help centre your work. Be increasingly conscious of what these are for you, and when faced with challenging behaviours, draw on these to help shape clarity and next steps. Countless times in my career, I have drawn on my own values where I have needed to challenge behaviours or decisions that I felt personally uncomfortable with.

Values give you something that are greater than policy and procedure, and a level of emotional investment that can be channelled powerfully.

Some of my most difficult conversations with organisational leaders have come from a place of values. Important to note here is that values are not ‘right or wrong’ - but they may be very different. Several of my own career moves have been values-led - where it had become clear to me that my own values were increasingly in conflict with those of the wider leadership team, and critically, that this was unlikely to change.

Seek to learn the business

Finally, and this is essential for those seeking to make a further career transition in the future to business partner, consultant, agile team member etc. - seek to learn about the business. The best HR professionals understand what makes their organisation tick, and the appropriate levers to influence to drive organisational performance and organisational health. I would advise becoming familiar with your organisation's Annual Report and Strategy document (or equivalent) as a starting point.

You will see a powerful shift in influence and access, once you are able to talk confidently about the broader organisation, and make links between people-related matters and organisational performance and organisational health.

I would also strongly recommend regularly spending time outside of HR, on the frontline, really getting to grips with the DNA of the organisation.

One of my most memorable field visits was when I was in the animal health sector. It was quite literally a ‘field visit’ - with a sales representative to a sheep auction in Wiltshire! I learnt a lot about the organisation that day that played forward in the months that followed.

To close the loop, I am pleased to say we successfully hired for our People Services Advisor, and I look forward to supporting their growth here at the University of Winchester.

Moreover, I hope the above advice is helpful, for those seeking to make the transition from an HR administrative/coordinator level role, to a more generalist remit. It would be remiss of me to also not mention the CIPD Profession Map (an excellent resource) as worthy of an exploration for HR professionals seeking to further their careers.

In closing, these are just my thoughts - and not intended to be definitive. Therefore, I would welcome comments onto this post with further ideas and insights.

If you have personally made this transition, or supported others to do so, what would be your advice?