Falling Into HR as a Career

When I go to networking events or conferences, I often get asked when meeting someone new, “how did you get into Human Resources (or talent acquisition)” or “did you always know that you wanted to be in Human Resources”. I would answer, "No, I didn’t." - and that's the honest truth.

I really didn’t know what Human Resources was all about when I was going to college. Let me take a step back and explain. When I was a student at Loyola Marymount University, I was pursuing a bachelor's degree in Political Science with the idea of pursuing a career in local or state politics. When I graduated in 1991, the US was experiencing an economic recession recovery and a high unemployment rate during the Persian Gulf War so it was a challenge to find full-time political analyst roles that were paid positions versus volunteer work. At the time, I was told that it was the worst time to graduate from college so many of my friends continued with their graduate studies or entered law school rather than trying to enter a weak job market.

For me, pursing higher education was not an option so I did what people call a career “pivot”. I found a job advertisement in a huge 3-ring binder at a Santa Clara University’s Career Center for a “sourcer”. I didn’t have any idea what a “sourcer” did or what the job entailed, but I remember saying to myself, “let me try this for a while and then I’ll get back to politics”. Well, this career pivot exposed me to the tech world in Silicon Valley and transitioned me into a new world of Human Resources - and here I am today, many years later! 

Those who pursue degrees to become professionals such as “doctors”, “lawyers”, “accountant” or “teachers”- all had an idea of what they wanted to be when they were growing up. But for most, a Human Resources profession wasn’t on that list of potential careers. For those who have made Human Resources, Recruiting or Compensation as their chosen profession, there seems to be a common trend: most would say that Human Resources was something they sort of “fell” into by “accident” and they stayed with it for the long haul because they soon discovered that it is an ever evolving and constantly changing field to be in.

If you examine some of the top Human Resources Executives from today’s high-tech companies, you will noticed that what they studied in college is not necessarily what they ended up doing as a career at this present time:

Beth Galetti, Senior Vice President of Human Resources at Amazon. Her background consists of a variety of senior leadership positions across four continents, with a blend of engineering, operations management and information technology. She earned her B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering from Lehigh University and her Master’s degree in Business Administration from Colorado Technical University.

Lori Goler, Head of Human Resources at Facebook. She started her career at The Walt Disney Company focused on strategy and business planning for the consumer products businesses. Prior to transitioning into Human Resources, she worked in the management of consumer and retail businesses such as eBay and eStyle. She earned her B.A. degree from Yale University, a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Harvard Business School and her Master’s degree in Public Policy from the Kennedy School of Government.

Christina Hall, Head of Global Talent at LinkedIn. She is an attorney who began her career practicing law in the areas of executive compensation and employee benefits at Latham & Watkins. She transitioned to the high-tech industry, when she began to work at Intuit where she held several senior positions in Legal and HR, culminating in leading the total rewards organization. She earned her B.A. degree in History and Political Science from Stanford University and her J.D. degree from the University of California, Hastings College of Law.

Eileen Naughton, Vice President of People Operations at Google. She started her career as an media executive for several of the magazine industry's leading online brands such as TIME.com, SI.com and People.com. She worked her way up the ranks to president of Time Magazine before coming to Google in 2006. She earned her B.A degree in International Relations and an M.B.A. in Finance from the University of Pennsylvania.

Nicole Singer, Senior Vice President of Human Resources at Synaptics. She worked at various technology sales and customer implementation roles at management consulting and software companies such as Accenture, Deloitte Consulting and PeopleSoft. She earned her B.A. degree in Sociology, with a minor in Psychology and Business, from George Washington University and her Master’s degree in Business Administration plus another Master's degree in Management Information Systems (MIS) from Boston University.

All of these impressive Human Resources Executives mentioned-above have great backgrounds and diverse experiences, which allows them to be successful in their roles. What they all have in common is that they are in roles that they didn’t know they wanted or perhaps assigned to because nobody else wanted it. Though each have different paths to becoming the top HR Executive, there is a common thread to their stories: it all comes down to the passion they have for their company and its people. 

Today, I would say that you need a degree of some kind to break into Human Resources as a career, but if you do not have a four-year degree in Human Resources specifically, do not panic. A multitude of degrees in related fields - such as in business, psychology or sociology. These areas of study can be applied to Human Resources. People professionals are known for having diverse educational backgrounds. If you have education that is pertinent to communication skills (such as an English degree) and/or working with people, you can probably apply that to getting into the Human Resources field.  

In the last 8 years or so, I’ve been volunteering as a frequent mentor for the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) Program at San Jose State University. This is a great program. As a mentor, you work directly with undergraduate students who have career aspirations and want to learn more about the Human Resources field. With over 130 active (students) members, SHRM's mission is to be the bridge between the academic and the professional world of HR by providing networking, jobs/internships and leadership opportunities to these students who share a passion for Human Resources.

What makes the SHRM program unique is that it links undergraduate students who have an interest in various areas of Human Resources such as employer relations, training development, compensation and/or staffing with HR Practitioners from various sectors who can offer coaching and mentoring. Through a 6-week mentoring relationship, many students are able to explore the world of work through their interactions with these assigned mentors. They are able to gain a perspective on applying text-book concepts to real-life situations. 

These assigned mentors volunteer and come from a variety of different companies and business sectors such as Palo Alto Networks, Apple, Tesla, NETSCOUT, Cisco, Sage Intacct, Enterprise, NetApp, drive.ai, Proofpoint, Goertek Electronics and, of course, Synaptics.

“Of all the programs we offer to students in the SHRM Club, the mentorship one is the most popular.” says Rick Partridge, a Faculty Advisor at San Jose State University. “Students are able to gain valuable insights and career advice from working HR professionals who have real-life experiences. For the students who work full-time in order to pay for college and cannot pursue an HR internship while in school, this is by far the next best thing for them. We are so grateful to the many HR professionals who give their time to make this program a success.” 

The SHRM program produces culturally astute, empathetic problem solvers who are ready to meet today's workforce challenges. Some of the course topics covered within the program are training, workforce development, recruiting, compensation, analytics and benefits. Upon completion, students are ready to roll-up their sleeves and prepared to apply their new skills to thrive in roles as HR specialists, HR generalists, HR managers, or beyond, whether working in a Fortune 500 or a small startup company.

A career path in Human Resources is critical to any organization – big or small. It used to be that Human Resources was just the place you went to get hired or fired, but those days are long gone. Today, Human Resources professionals are responsible for a wide range of employee activities, most of which center around enabling, engaging, and empowering employees. Human Resources professionals play significant roles in creating employee experience, which works with an organization's culture and growth and ensures that employees feel valued and supported along every step of their workplace journey.

The days when people more or less “fell into” Human Resources will soon be over. With programs such as SHRM at San Jose State University, there will be a significant amount of professionals who deliberately chose Human Resource early as a rewarding career path that could bring meaning and fulfillment. 

How did you get your start in Human Resources? I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments, please share below.

Edward Avila is the Head of Global Talent Acquisition at Synaptics, the pioneer and leader of the human interface revolution. To learn more about our global job opportunities like nowhere else, please click here www.synaptics.com/careers.