Kelly Steiner Steiner 1

Mr. Colosimo

Bus 140 07

April 4th, 2021

Career Exploration

Part 1

The career that I have chosen for my research is Human Resources Management. I will

be graduating in July with my associate degree in Human Resources Management. I chose this

path and career because of an injury I sustained at my current job. I will no longer be able to

perform the extents of physical labor in my future career as I was once able to do. I am currently

dreaming of an office job, in which I would not be on my injured foot or ankle. I chose Human

Resources management as my career focus because I love people. I enjoy helping others solve

problems, find information, support and coach them to achieve a happier life, I love numbers,

learning constantly, and strategic thinking. While looking at the personality type of someone in

this field I found that there are many, however a combination of all of them is crucial. Someone

who is sympathetic, a good decision maker, has integrity, morals, high ethical standards,

patience, leadership, authority, excellent communication skills and responsible, is the best

combination for success in this area. I know that I possess all of these skills plus many more. A

Human Resources Manager is responsible for managing the alignment of human capitol within

the company or organization with that business’s activities in order to achieve overall success.

Part 2
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Although it is completely possible to enter this field without a degree, it recommended to

have a minimum of a bachelor’s degree to be competitive in the job market. Human Resources

Management is often referred to as talent management, and plan, direct, oversee, and coordinate

many administrative functions of the organization. These can include creating and placing job

ads in many forms of media. This is to find the exact right fit for that company, and to protect its’

most value assets, its’ people. Functions such as recruiting, interviewing, hiring, consulting

management on planning and training are just the beginning to building a valuable link between

the management and the employees.

I am currently taking or have taken courses in business, social sciences, economics, and

statistics. The degrees or majors that compliment the career in Human Resources Management

are Business, Education, Organization Development, Human Services, Communications, and

Public Administration (Heathfield). According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Human

Resources Management is growing faster than average, and projected to grow by 6% from 2019

to 2029 (Human Resources Managers : Occupational Outlook Handbook).

Part 3

A normal day in the life of a Human Resources Manager would be unlike another day at

the office for most. It would consist of talent recruitment, hiring, coordination, helping with

health insurance, labor relations, safety, payroll, scheduling in some cases, training coordination

with upper management, and helping all the employees with questions and answers (Heathfield

What Is Human Resource Management?). It is definitely a backbone to the organization.

Although I have heard that this a higher stress job than most, I feel that I will thrive at it and love
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doing my job daily. I was a Retail Store Manger for 12 years, and then moved into being a

Supervisor for a bank, and currently working as a federal employee. I have learned the ins and

outs of my career choice from my experience at each previous level of work. I have also learned

through this research that there are some industries that which pay higher than others. For

example, the highest industries of pay for Human Resources Management are Scientific,

Technical Services, Management, and Manufacturing, In the Pittsburgh area alone we house

several Fortune 500 companies, such as PNC, PPG, U.S. steel Corporation, and several other

organizations. The average pay for this position in Pittsburgh, PA for a company that is not a

fortune 500 is $82,000-$130,000 per year according to Salary.com. The average starting salary,

however, is around $51,000 per year with less than 5 years experience (Human Resources

Managers : Occupational Outlook Handbook). My growth opportunities are going to be working

at a lower level over the next few years, while I complete my bachelors’ degree, and gain

experience for my resume upon completion. I am excited to now have freedom in the future, as

far as being able to decide where, and who I want to work for.

Part 4

The Human Resources Management field has always been an in-office position. Dealing

with people on a personal, and face to face level for the most part on a daily basis. However, the

past year and really changed how organizations and companies are running their businesses. I

was able to talk with a friend of mine who works for The Department of Workers’ Compensation

and he was able to give me a lot of insight as to what are the big issues right now. This position

is no longer in an actual office building, or even within the walls of the company. Instead many

people in Human Resources now work from home, remotely. There are many challenges that
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come along with that including waiting for emails, having to have access to fax machines for

instant information, as well as relying on everyone else’s communication skills good or bad, in

order to do the best job for them. He stated that “some people talk and type in riddles, not using

proper sentences, questions, and even spelling is a game to figure out. For some reason if you

call them to clarify and help them with their problems, they are irritated and annoyed because

they feel they did their part already with the message they sent, and that Human Resources are

not doing their job”. The biggest scare they are facing right now is that there are companies

advertising that they offer Human Resource resources for a monthly fee for your company, so

that the companies do not have to keep someone on the payroll 40 hours a week. My hope is that

the world soon goes back to the old normal and that we can once again conduct business in

person, and with a personal touch. People want to go to work and to socialize, they want to be

part of the big picture and not just an email address at home. I think that employment trends for

this career will rebound and with great force once the businesses are able to operate and open as

usual again.

Part 5

Although I am going to be graduating with an associate degree in Human Resources

Management in July, I have a long way to go to reach my goal. I am going to start applying to

job postings in the beginning of July, in hopes that even at a lower level position I can start

building experience in this specific field. I will be applying to the University of Pittsburgh for the

fall and hoping to complete as much of my bachelor’s degree online as possible. They offer a

bachelors’ degree program in Business and Management for Human Resources. I have also

found that Strayer University offers the major completely online, just in case I am unable to
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complete everything with The University of Pittsburgh. I will work and continue school for the

next two years and work towards my ultimate goal of working for Amazon.com. I have chosen

Amazon as my ultimate job for several reasons. First, because they are an ever growing company

with a huge base of employees all over the world. Secondly, there will be major distribution

centers, and warehouses in our area which I could gain experience in before finishing my degree.

The amazon Human Resources specialists make about $75,797 per year, and the Human

Resources Generalist make around $215,629 per year. Although these are amazing salaries and

the positions come with an immense amount of responsibility, I will work hard to make it

happen. This is where I would gain the remainder of the experience for several years before

moving on and following my dreams. My dream is be a Human Resources Manager and

someday a Director for St. Jude Children’s Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. Yes, this will

include moving however, it is by our choice. I am also prepared to take a substantial pay cut at

that time, if I decide to take a pay at all. It is something that means so much to me and such a

huge part of my heart. I want to do something in my lifetime that really means something, I want

to help people, families, children, and work to build a better future for St. Jude.
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Part 6

Work Cited

Heathfield, Susan M. “What Is Human Resource Management?” The Balance Careers,

www.thebalancecareers.com/what-is-human-resource-management-1918143.

“Human Resources Managers : Occupational Outlook Handbook.” U.S. Bureau of Labor

Statistics, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 19 Feb. 2021,
www.bls.gov/ooh/management/human-resources-managers.htm.
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Appendix