HR Specialist vs. HR Generalist: What’s the Difference?
What separates an HR specialist from an HR generalist? Find out here.
An HR specialist specializes in the basics and processes and thus performs that specialized task.
An HR generalist is an all-rounder who works from recruitment to payrolling to employee benefits.
This article details the difference between an HR specialist and an HR generalist, including their responsibilities, salaries, skills, path trajectory, and certifications for each role.
To learn more via video, watch the video below. Otherwise, skip ahead.
HR Specialists vs. HR Generalists: What Do They Do?
Human resource specialists specialize in HR processes like employee satisfaction, recruitment, retention, employee relations, and workplace policies. Although their day-to-day responsibilities include handling other human resources tasks, they assist HR directors and managers with application scanning and recruitment.
On the other hand, a human resource generalist is a general role. They are responsible for managing multiple HR functions, like recruiting staff, screening and scanning applications, onboarding employees, maintaining employee records, and ensuring good people relations.
Let’s understand each role in detail.
What Does an HR Specialist Do?
An HR specialist is responsible for screening, interviewing, recruiting, and placing employees in an organization.
They specialize in HR functions and are responsible for tasks like handling employee relations, employee compensation, and benefit programs. HR specialists carry out assigned tasks like preparing progress reports with detailed statistics and analytics and thus are crucial for the HR department’s growth and success.
Organizations hire candidates who can contribute to a specific HR area through their skills and expertise.
Moreover, human resource specialists assist senior management in developing and implementing the right strategies for candidate selection and application interviewing. They advise on intricate HR matters and ensure these practices comply with legal rules and labor statistics.
Other HR specialists’ responsibilities include supervision, coordination, and collaboration with other HR workers to carry out all the tasks. After analyzing the goals, human resource specialists analyze both the long—and short-term business requirements and then work on fulfilling those needs.
What Does an HR Generalist Do?
An HR generalist assists human resources professionals in keeping the HR department functioning and going. Unlike a human resource specialist, they take part in fulfilling a broad range of HR functions instead of focusing on one task.
An HR generalist is an entry-level role. They handle a variety of HR tasks, from recruiting employees to managing their data. They also screen job applications, interview candidates, onboard employees, and assign them their workplaces.
Moreover, human resources generalists train employees, introduce them to the workplace and organization’s ethics, handle employee relations, and manage payroll.
They exhibit complete legal knowledge of labor laws and workforce rules.
HR generalists typically assist HR professionals and seniors in decision-making processes. They play a major role in the organization’s professional development and ensure that employees’ duties and work traits comply with organizational policies.
How Do HR Specialists and HR Generalists Work Together?
HR specialists and generalists are entry-level and collaborate to carry out HR tasks.
As human resources specialist focuses on a task, for example, employee satisfaction and relations, they perform it with greater efficiency with the help of a human resource generalist. An HR Generalist has sound skills to implement the instructions forwarded by the specialist for the employee-benefitting programs.
Human resource specialists draft the strategies for the task; however, the HR generalist is responsible for implementing those strategies and instructions. This is how both these roles collaborate to carry out human resources programs.
Who Earns More: HR Specialist vs. HR Generalist Salary
According to Glassdoor, the average human resource specialist earns $73,000 annually in the United States. This total salary includes a base salary of $53,000 annually and additional increments and bonuses of $20,000 annually. The general salary range starts at $58,000 and ends at $94,000 annually.
On the contrary, according to Glassdoor, a human resources generalist earns $90,000 per year in the United States. This figure includes $71,000 as a base salary and an additional $19,000 in increments and bonuses. However, a human resources generalist’s salary can fall between $70,000 and $116,000 annually in the United States.
Becoming an HR Specialist vs. HR Generalist
Let’s have a detailed look at the career paths for both these roles and the skills they need to function. Moreover, the last section of this article also provides a brief guide on certifications for both these roles.
HR Career Path
The HR career trajectory for these roles is similar: Both start from an entry-level position and advance towards senior and executive HR roles.
A human resource specialist can be promoted to senior human resource specialist or HR generalist. However, human resource generalists can be promoted to HR managers or assistant human resources managers based on their technical, practical, and leadership competencies.
Here’s provided a career path for a human resource specialist in order:
- Human resource specialist
- Senior human resource specialist
- Human resource generalist
- Human resources manager
- HR coordinator
- HR director
On the contrary, below is provided the career path for an HR generalist’s role in order:
- Human resource generalist
- Junior human resource manager
- Assistant HR manager
- HR manager
- HR director
Both these roles proceed toward the same executive roles. However, each organization’s original trajectory differs based on its policies and promotion rules.
A human resource generalist and a human resource specialist require at least a bachelor’s degree in human resources and 0-2 years of HR experience. However, you can leverage the salary benefits by specializing through certifications and obtaining higher education.
Skills
Human resource generalists and human resources specialists are proficient in digital skills, such as familiarity with human resources information systems. However, specialized knowledge of their job field is also mandatory.
Below are human resource specialist skills:
- Data analysis and performance reviewing
- HR skills
- Legal knowledge
- Employee benefitting
- Interpersonal intelligence
- Attention to detail
- Technical HR skills
- Verbal and non-verbal communication
- Cultural awareness
- Commercial awareness
- Employee experience
- Accounting and budgeting
Below are human resource generalist skills:
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills
- Time management
- Skills to work in a fast-paced environment
- Excellent HR knowledge
- Strong human resource management and employee handling skills
- Technical HR skills
- Recruiting, screening, interviewing, workforce planning, and onboarding skills
- Administrative skills
- Managing priorities
- Advising
- Analytical and data-driven skills
Explore our top-rated HR generalist certification program to upskill your knowledge to become better human resources professional. Enroll now to master human resource generalist and HR specialist skills:
Certifications
Courses and certifications can lead to a promotion or a salary increment. Also, if you’re a newbie, and looking to jump into HR, getting a certification in an HR course will not only enhance your resume but will increase your chances of selection.
However, note that certifications for human resources generalists and HR specialists are different, as these two demand different skills. Also, some small or startup organizations may hire one person to perform both roles.
Below are options for courses that you may enroll in based on your needs. Take a look at some of the best and top-rated HR courses that you can take to learn the difference between these roles and to enhance your skills:
- HR Management Certification: With this course, you can explore the HR management side of your HR career. It is a perfect choice for HR generalists and HR specialists who are looking to enhance their human resource management skills so they can progress toward the human resource manager’s role in the human resources department.
- HR Generalist Certification: This HR Generalist certification is one of the best-rated courses that allow you to master HR generalist skills. Any HR professional looking to excel in their career as an HR generalist must enroll in the course to get the benefit of its unique course learning outcomes and to master the fundamental HR generalist skills.
- Diversity and Inclusion Certification: This diversity and inclusion certification allows you to learn the diverse side of HR to build a better and healthy workspace and enhance labor relations. This course is a great choice for HR generalists as it teaches diverse HR skills that are a must-have for the role.
Conclusion
HR generalists and HR specialists are two different roles but a great career starts to step into the HR field. Most HR specialists are trained as HR generalists before they specialize in a specific HR discipline. Both of them have their own set of job duties, and the roles demand continuous upskilling and knowledge for one to excel in their HR career.
If you are new to human resources and are looking to break into an HR specialist or HR generalist position, we recommend taking our HR Generalist Certification Course, where you will learn how to build your skillset in the human resources field, build your human resources network, craft an excellent HR generalist or HR specialist resume, and create a successful job search strategy that lands you sought-after human resources specialist or human resources generalist job.
