Human Resources (HR) Generalist Resume Samples [20 Tips]

Without great people a company is nothing. Show you’ll steer the ship, build great teams, and foster a tight corporate culture. Use this sample HR generalist resume to do it right.

As seen in:

Petty office theft—check

Tuna left in the microwave—check

Complaints about a colleague’s T-shirt—check

Inappropriate elevator jokes—check

It’s true. You’ve heard it all. You are a people person, but sometimes—just sometimes—you start believing that hell is other people.

It’s not easy working in HR. But it can be rewarding in the right work environment.

You just need to ensure you work in the best one.

And that’s why you need an HR generalist resume that simply screams YOU’RE HIRED.

This guide will show you:

An HR generalist resume example better than 9 out of 10 other resumes.
How to write an HR generalist resume that will land you more interviews.
Tips and examples of how to put skills and achievements on an HR generalist resume.
How to describe your experience on a resume for an HR generalist to get any job you want.

Want to save time and have your resume ready in 5 minutes? Try our resume builder. It’s fast and easy to use. Plus, you’ll get ready-made content to add with one click. See 20+ resume templates and create your resume here.

Create your resume now

Use this resume template

Sample HR Generalist Resume—See more resume templates here.

Are you more the “HR specialist” type or something else? See our guides:

Human Resources (HR) Generalist Resume Sample

Rhonda Kelsch, HR Generalist

[email protected]

linkedin.com/in/rhondaqkelsch

616-634-4541

Professional Summary

Self-motivated HR generalist with 2+ years of experience, skilled in employee engagement and training. Seeking to invigorate the corporate culture at Arctander Group. At ABC Global, improved managerial performance 23% and implemented a program to gain 100% employee engagement for our new Scrum system.

Work Experience

HR Generalist

ABC Global

April 2017–May 2019

Improved managerial performance 23% through benchmarking and employee-feedback collection and analysis.
Tasked with raising employee engagement for a new business-wide Scrum initiative. Through better managerial coaching, achieved 100% employee participation.
Trained 7 managers in best practices for effective management, including leading by example, strategic planning, and communication.
Presided over a 28% morale boost. Worked to improve morale through increasing employee input in the managerial decision-making process.

Payroll Administrator

XYZ Ltd.

Jan 2016–March 2017

Handled all aspects of payroll system for 400-employee company. Improved payroll system efficiency by 12%.
Coached 3 HR employees in employee relations.
Streamlined interviewing process, switching from 5 interviews per candidate to 2. Cut hiring cost 40% and increased retention 18%.

Education

2011–2015 Michigan State University

Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management

Excelled in HRIS classes.
President, 180 Degrees Consulting MSU. Provided consulting services to 7 community nonprofits to improve HR management.

Skills

Hard skills: HRIS, training, payroll, project management, psychology
Soft skills: Interpersonal skills, leadership, communication, collaboration

Activities

Volunteer project manager, Habitat for Humanity.

Coach little league baseball 2x per week for 8–10 year-olds.

Here’s how to write an HR generalist resume that gets jobs:

1. Use the Best HR Generalist Resume Format

HR generalists are managers who guide the HR functions of a business. They marshal the hiring, training, staffing, and support of a company’s employee base. They may have several specialists as direct reports. An HR generalist resume should fit the one job it’s intended for.

The hiring manager is looking for any excuse not to have to read your resume.

You know that because you’re a hiring manager yourself.

Don’t give her an excuse.

Write a well-formatted HR generalist resume.

Here’s how:

You already know the best types of resumes use the reverse-chronological resume format. Don’t mess with perfection.
Make the best resume header you can. Your name on a resume should use the biggest font. List your job title and other contact info in smaller font.
The right font size for resumes is 10–12pt font. Use Cambria or Arial, but don’t crowd things.
Save your resume file as a PDF. They’re perfectly machine-readable.

Pro Tip: How long should a resume be for HR generalist jobs? If you’re very experienced, two pages is okay. Stick to one page unless you’re cutting eye-popping accomplishments.

2. Write an HR Generalist Resume Objective or Resume Summary

Think.

What makes a resume stand out to you?

It has to catch your eye fast, right?

You already know your professional resume profile has to grab them.

If you’ve been at this for more than 2 years, make it a career summary. Tell your job title, 2–3 key skills, and how you’ve used them to help in past HR-related jobs.

If you’re entry-level, a career objective in a resume works better. Talk up your skills a bit more in it.

For the best business elevator pitch, add achievements that match this HR generalist job.

Pro Tip: Many HR generalist jobs need payroll or tech skills. If you’ve worked a payroll or HR specialist job, show how you used transferable skills to get it done.

3. Fit Your Resume to the HR Generalist Job Description

Why do some resumes stand out?

They’re the perfect match.

Be that. In your resume job descriptions:

Start with title, company, and dates. But—
Include your main HR generalist accomplishments.
Match those achievements to the current HR generalist job. If they want training, say how many people you trained and to what effect.
Use numbers like “7 managers” or “28%” to show you’re no piker.
As always, keep them riveted with the right action verbs for resumes.

Pro Tip: They’ll believe you can do their job if you show you’ve done it already. You’ve got to find your biggest wins. But pick the ones that fit the HR generalist skills they need.

4. Tailor Your HR Generalist Resume Education Section

This may seem counterintuitive.

Education isn’t just about getting a degree.

On an HR generalist resume, it can show you had the skills back when.

The education section of your resume should show accomplishments that prove central HR skills.

That means adding bullet points with clubs, groups, positions, classes, sports, or projects.

Pro Tip: If your GPA will singe their eyebrows, show it. If it’s recent, show it. If not, toss it and list a more eye-catching accomplishment instead.

5. Show HR Generalist Skills in Your Resume

Use this HR generalist resume skills list:

HR Generalist Skills for Resume

Hard Skills:

Onboarding
Payroll
Training
Applicant tracking
Reporting
Employee relations
Performance management
Human Resources Information Software (HRIS)
Project management
Worker’s compensation
Psychology

Soft Skills:

But—

You know better than to kitchen-sink your HR generalist resume skills.

Focus on the ones this particular HR job wants most.

Scour the job description for them. If you have to, call the company to get them.

Then prove them like I showed above.

Make sure to add a mix of hard skills and soft skills.

Pro Tip: Are you exceptionally proficient at a skill they don’t need? You can list a few job skills like that on a resume for HR generalist jobs. But just a few.

When making a resume in our builder, drag & drop bullet points, skills, and auto-fill the boring stuff. Spell check? Check. Start building a professional resume template here for free.

Create my resume now

When you’re done, Zety’s resume builder will score your resume and tell you exactly how to make it better.

6. Add Other Sections to Your HR Generalist Resume

Show you’re more than just a job title.

Add “other” section to your human resources generalist resume.

But use them as more proof of your skills.

List:

Activities
Associations
Volunteer work
Groups
Publications
Conventions
Kudos from managers
Classes
Freelance work
List of interests
Sports

Pro Tip: Include sections that add weight to the skills in your HR Generalist resume. Save the rest for resumes for other kinds of jobs.

7. Send a Cover Letter With Your HR Generalist Resume

Do cover letters matter for Human Resources generalist resumes?

Yes.

Many employers won’t read them, but many will.

Especially if you skip the cookie-cutter approach.

Here’s how to write a good HR generalist cover letter:

Use the best cover letter format—the 3-paragraph layout.
Write a cover letter opening that reaches out and catches them. Do that with a fact about you or about the company.
Show your passion for HR work.
Write a cover letter ending with a CTA, and offer to say more about how you’ll serve their HR department.

How long is a cover letter? Not more than half a page, or they won’t read it.

Need more help to write a great cover letter? See our guide: Human Resources Generalist Cover Letter: Sample & Expert Tips

Pro Tip: Write a follow up email after a job application. When? Nudge them in three days and then a week. Keep it short, professional, and sweet.

Plus, a great cover letter that matches your resume will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:

Create my cover letter now

See more cover letter templates and start writing.

That’s it!

That’s how to write a resume for HR generalist positions.

Worried you won’t get any nibbles on your HR generalist resume? What do you hate most about applying for HR jobs online? Give us a shout in the comments. We’d love to talk!

Rate my article: hr generalist resume example

Average: 5 (13 votes)

Cookie settings

Human Resources (HR) Generalist Resume Samples [20 Tips]