I was laid off last week after working for the company for 2 years with the title of HR Generalist but doing mostly clerical work tracking new hires and background checks and doing exit interviews. I haven’t done a true generalist job since 2019-all jobs since then have been “ HR light.” Wanting to take a ‘real’ generalist job but fear that I won’t be hired as that due to my sort of gap. Any advice on how to proceed?

3 Comments

1. AnonymousAugust 23,2024 at 9:30PM UTC

   I'm sorry for your loss but do not let fear lead you. Ensure your resume has your title and your duties. HR Generalists honestly do a lot. Spiffy up that resume, and make sure it lists the duties you have done. In fact, at the top of your resume, under your name, contact info, list a section called Specialties. Then underneath that, make a few columns, that will be centered across this section. Include all the skills you have as an HR Generalist. Then in each job, make mention of these skills. Try that and see if it gets any bites. Also, be sure to upload your resume to your LinkedIn profile. That has worked miracles for many. Keep us posted and hang in there!

2. AnonymousAugust 26,2024 at 10:21AM UTC

   See if there are any free certification programs available to add to your credentials during this time.

3. AnonymousAugust 28,2024 at 4:11AM UTC

   Since contract jobs are often easier to obtain, you may want to follow what the previous posters said, and having done that, also post your resume to the usual job boards, or perhaps ones specializing in HR positions (? This is not my area of expertise, so don't know if they exist, but you can probably Google and find out). This would allow you to "get your foot in the door" and I have found in the past that it is fairly easy to get hired into a higher level position once they see your capabilities in action.

   Wishing you well!