Top 16 technical skills for HR professionals

1. Spreadsheet and word processing applications

Regardless of the technological advances in HR systems, spreadsheets and word processing applications continue to be everyday tools in many organizations. The ability to use advanced functionality in these applications will save you time and effort.

In word processing applications, this might include using themes, mail merge and tables. In spreadsheets, the ability to use advanced functions will save countless hours and greatly improve the spreadsheets you develop and share with others.

2. Macros

Macros can be a powerful tool in your toolkit, though they might not be essential for everyone.

Understanding how macros work in Microsoft Office and Google applications and being able to develop them provide opportunities to automate many manual tasks. For example, you might use them to format a report you produce on a regular basis, merge data from multiple sources or develop individualized letters for each employee.

3. Familiarity with common technology lingo

As an HR professional, you will likely come across many of these acronyms and terms: Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP), cloud, SaaS (software as a service), interface, Structured Query Language (SQL), database, human resource information system (HRIS), Active Directory (AD) and so on.

It's important to understand what people mean when they use these terms so that you can ask relevant questions and provide input to the conversation.

4. Social media

Understanding how the various social media platforms function is important for many in HR, especially your recruitment team.

This includes knowledge specific to each platform, including when you should post to reach your target audience, a basic understanding of search engine optimization -- commonly referred to as SEO -- so that your posts are noticed, and how to format images so that they appear correctly when viewed on any device.

5. Video conferencing software

Many meetings today take place using video conferencing software, and while a company might standardize by using one vendor, you will likely have to use other vendors' software when interacting with third parties. The ability to go from one conferencing application to the next, connect with others, and get your mic and speakers working is critical.

You might also want to explore additional features, such as sharing your screen, making other participants presenters, using whiteboards, changing your background and recording the meetings.

6. Reporting

Editing existing reports and creating new ones as necessary is helpful regardless of the application you use for reporting.

If you are using your HR system's reporting feature or a reporting application, consider taking a training course to learn how advanced features work so that you can go beyond the basics. If you are using Microsoft Excel, use information on the internet and courses to improve your skills. A wealth of information is available online. The key is to try the functions and features you learn about through your research until you identify the ones that meet your needs.

7. HR systems

It is worth developing the skill to use the features of your HR system and associated modules to their fullest extent.

This includes features associated with recruiting, talent management and onboarding. Using the systems to capture data is one thing, but being able to make configuration changes to capture the new data you need, create workflows, modify forms and perform other "techie" tasks will enable you to get the best ROI from your HR software. That skill also makes you more valuable to the organization.

An HR professional should also possess a general understanding of the differences between on-premises and cloud-based applications.

8. Testing

Another critical skill is the ability to develop test cases and adequately verify that a feature is functioning correctly.

This includes being able to identify the areas most affected by a change, determining how you will validate that the change was successful and ensuring that existing functionality was not negatively affected by the change.

Testing is especially important when making changes to security approvals since an error can lead to an employee being granted access to confidential data.

9. Integration of your HR system with other systems

Knowing if your systems are integrated and what information flows from one system to the next is important. With this knowledge, you can consider the impact changes will have on other systems, include it in your testing plan and provide an opportunity to use all your HR systems to automate new processes.

HR systems frequently integrate with a payroll system, and finance, IT or communications systems might also benefit from access to an HRIS' employee data.

10. AI

AI is part of many contemporary HR systems in addition to standalone applications. HR professionals should learn how AI can help them become more efficient as well as some of the pitfalls of using AI.

Talent acquisition professionals should particularly invest time in learning about AI, since many talent acquisition systems rely on AI to rank and rate candidates, and some candidates are now using AI to write resumes that better match job descriptions.

11. Requirements gathering

Requirements gathering is not solely a tech skill but is very important for HR professionals to be well-versed in if their company implements new HR software.

Before searching for new systems or adding features to an application, HR professionals need to take time to understand what employees and managers require from a new system and how vendors can meet these requirements while also considering the needs of the HR team.

12. Documenting processes

HR employees should be able to document processes during an HR software implementation. A team makes many decisions during an implementation, and documenting those decisions will help people understand in the future why certain decisions were made.

Documentation can also help save HR staff time when they are carrying out certain tasks that only take place once or twice a year. For example, performance reviews and compensation planning are often annual, and documenting how to use the company technology for these processes can simplify operations.

13. Importing data

The ability to import data into an HR system can save HR employees hours if they need to carry out a lot of changes.

To successfully carry out an import, an HR professional must understand the HR system's functionality, the file types it supports and the required data format. For example, systems often require CSV files instead of the XLSX files provided by Microsoft Excel.

The HR professional must also understand the risks associated with importing data, such as importing data to the wrong employee, since easy "undo" options if an HR employee makes a mistake are not usually available.

14. Troubleshooting

Various problems can occur when HR staff are using software, and an HR professional should be able to troubleshoot the problem to find the root cause.

For example, an employee's manager might not be receiving a notification to approve the employee's work, or an employee might not be able to access the information they need in a system despite the employee possessing the correct permissions.

16. Gamification techniques

Many vendors have introduced gamification features, such as leaderboards, to encourage employees to use software like learning management systems.

HR staff should understand the features themselves and the thinking behind them.

Eric St-Jean is an independent consultant with a particular focus on HR technology, project management and Microsoft Excel training and automation. He writes about numerous business and technology areas.