Path to a career in human resources management

Path to a Career in Human Resources Management The greatest asset of any organization is its employees. Therefore, effective people management is crucial to its success. It needs to have a system in place for the attraction, recruitment, selection, and training, assessment, rewarding and retaining of employees, while ensuring leadership development, cultural diversity management, and compliance with employment laws and planning the placement of right people at the right job at the right time.

Human resources management is one of the most important functions of any organization, regardless of its size, nature of business and area of operation. Therefore, organizations are keen on hiring HR professionals who not only have expertise in human planning, recruitment, selection, orientation, employee training and development, compensation and benefits, employee and labour relations and human resources management systems but also possess in-depth understanding of all of the business functions. They prefer hiring professionals who can align human resources with the strategic goals and objectives of the organization.

This means that HR professionals are expected to possess skills to: 

Design HR policies and programs that comply with employment legislation

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Manage cultural diversity

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Attract, select, develop and retain a productive workforce

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Ensure occupational health and safety

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Promote positive management and union relations

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Manage information and support decision-making

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Motivate people to achieve their personal and organizational goals

Path to a Career in Human Resources The path to a rewarding career in human resources begins from obtaining formal education and training in this discipline. Applying to a human resources college and enrolling in a business administration – human resources (co-op) is the first towards it. The postsecondary course gives you a good overview of business, specialized knowledge in human resources management, micro-computer training in popular business software, such as Excel, Access and SAP and hands-on experience through a paid co-op component.

Centennial College’s three-year program in human resources covers basic business administration subjects in first three semesters. You will study courses, including strategies for business success, fundamentals of business, and mathematics of finance, financial

accounting concepts, business operations, business communications and principles of microeconomics, human resource management, international business concepts and principles of marketing.

The next three semesters focus on specialized HR education and cover a wide range of subjects, including organizational behaviour, business analysis, managerial accounting for HRM, payroll, business ethics, recruitment and selection, employment law, human resources management systems, human resource planning, labour relations, occupational health and safety, compensation and benefits and employee training and development.

The program also includes three paid work terms, allowing you to apply your classroom learning into practice and gain relevant contacts that can be used as references in future.

Moreover, you gain an understanding of how organizations operate and what employers expect from you as an HR professional.

Eligibility Criteria In order to be eligible to apply to this program, you will need: 

Secondary school diploma certificate or equivalent, or mature student status (19 years or older)

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Required minimum score in English Grade 12 C or University, or equivalent

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Required minimum score in Math Grade 11 M or 12 C or University or equivalent