Most HR professionals are happy with their choice of career, and would not choose a different one if they had the chance to start again.
According to a survey of 1,800 HR staff, carried out by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), eight out of 10 enjoy their jobs and would still choose to work in HR if they had their time again.
The results are at odds with recent research from global recruitment company Kelly Services, which found that HR staff were the unhappiest workers of any profession in the UK.
Only 46% of HR professionals in that survey said they were happy at work, with almost as many (39%) unhappy or very unhappy.
Jessica Jarvis, CIPD learning, training and development adviser and author of its report, said the more upbeat feeling in the HR profession came at a time of increased belief in the function’s ability to become a more credible and respected business player.
“Several factors are coming together to improve the standing of HR in the business community – the rise of business partnering is making HR more integral to the business and prominent issues such as human capital reporting and corporate social responsibility are carrying HR up the corporate ladder,” she said.
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The CIPD report also says that a growing number of HR people are gaining experience outside the profession to better understand how business worked.
Only 17% of respondents had no experience of working outside the HR function.
