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HR Director Resume Example (Text Version)

Whether you’re a seasoned professional or want to cook professionally after binging The Bear, a well-written resume can help. These professional service crew resume samples, writing tips and a great online builder can help you tailor your application and avoid writing an over-seasoned mess.

[Your Name]

[City, State ZIP Code]

[Email Address]

[Phone Number LinkedIn]

Resume Summary

[Insert your summary here. This should be a brief statement highlighting your core qualifications and career goals.]

Summary of Qualifications

  • [Insert qualification #1]
  • [Insert qualification #2]
  • [Insert qualification #3]
  • [Insert qualification #4]

[Type of] Skills 

  • [Add relevant accomplishment or responsibility related to Skill 1]
  • [Add relevant accomplishment or responsibility related to Skill 1]
  • [Add relevant accomplishment or responsibility related to Skill 1]
  • [Add relevant accomplishment or responsibility related to Skill 1]

[Type of] Skills 

  • [Add relevant accomplishment or responsibility related to Skill 2]
  • [Add relevant accomplishment or responsibility related to Skill 2]
  • [Add relevant accomplishment or responsibility related to Skill 2]
  • [Add relevant accomplishment or responsibility related to Skill 2]

Education

[Degree Earned]

[High School Name, Location]

[Graduation Date or Estimated Graduation Date]

  • [OPTIONAL: Add relevant coursework or academic achievements]
  • [OPTIONAL: Add any honors or awards received]

Work History

[Job Title #1 | Club or Employer Name #1]

[Location, Year]

[Job Title #2 | Club or Employer Name #2]

[Location, Year]

How to Write a Director of HR Resume

Your Director of HR resume format is as important as how you write your resume. This sample resume demonstrates the best resume layout to follow: 1-inch margins, bullet points and clear resume headings for each of the following sections.

  • Professional header and contact info:

    • Add your professional name, phone number and professional email address.

  • Compelling summary statement:

    • A brief resume summary or objective highlighting two or three HR-relevant skills, experience or accomplishments.

  • Emphasize your work history:

    • List your work experience in reverse-chronological order. Include job titles, company names, dates of employment and key responsibilities and achievements for each role in a bullet list.

  • Highlight your skills:

    • Create a dedicated section to showcase hard and soft skills specific to human resources, like file management, training and mentorship, or confidentiality.

  • Supporting education section:

    • Detail your educational background, mentioning any relevant degrees, diplomas or certifications obtained.

  • Additional sections:

    • You can add resume sections for licenses, certifications, industry memberships or unions, awards, volunteer experience or spoken languages.

how-to-format-resume
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How to Write a Director of HR Resume Summary

Your resume summary is often your first and only chance to impress hiring managers since some only spare six seconds to a resume before moving to the next candidate. This introduction summarizes your essential qualifications or career achievements like strategic leadership, talent management or scouting, and ability to drive organizational growth.

Start with empowered language

Use professional action verbs like results-driven, dynamic or strategic to retain a hiring manager’s attention with active and engaging language. 

Highlight relevant experience

Add your years of experience, HR specialties or notable industry leads to your director of HR resume.

Feature significant achievements

Teasing notable accomplishments like the successful implementation of HR strategies, effective recruitment efforts that save on hiring costs, or improved employee satisfaction to encourage hiring managers to seriously consider your application beyond six seconds. 

Personalize your introduction

Your skills and accomplishments won’t impress hiring managers unless you can quickly demonstrate how your knowledge and experience fill their hiring needs.

Strong and weak HR Director summary

wrong check icon

Results-driven director of HR with over 15 years of experience in technology and healthcare sectors. Proven expertise in strategic planning, talent acquisition, and organizational development. Successfully implemented HR initiatives that increased employee retention by 20% and reduced recruitment costs by 15%. Adept at driving company culture and fostering a positive work environment.

Why it’s well-written:

 

This HR director resume example covers 15 years of relevant experience across valuable HR skills like planning, professional development training, talent acquisition and staff retention. The candidate also uses quantifiable information like “20% increase in retention and 15% reduction in hiring costs” to demonstrate their potential value and a keen eye for long-term hires. The job seeker also mentions their experience in the healthcare and technology industries to appeal to hiring managers within those fields.

wrong check icon

I have many years of experience in HR. I am good at hiring and managing people. Looking for a Director position to help a company with its HR needs.

How it’s poorly written: 

 

Although this job seeker mentions their experience, they must share a specific number. This lack of information forces the hiring manager to spend precious time calculating this experience based on their work history. This candidate must also mention any specific skills or achievements related to managing people or teams.

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Pro tip: The resume summary is best if you have over five years of direct experience in human resources. Try the resume objective if you’re changing careers, returning to the workforce, or seeking a promotion.

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How to Add Your Director of HR Work History

Your work history will be the lengthiest and most detailed portion of your HR director resume, especially if you opt for a chronological resume or hybrid resume. To highlight your directorial qualifications, emphasize your strategic leadership, ability to manage HR functions and contributions to organizational success.

Start with your recent jobs and move backward

Add your job title, employer name, and dates of employment, followed by brief details for each position. 

Use three to four detailed bullet points

Write short but descriptive bullet points that highlight relevant experience, responsibilities or accomplishments that tie into the hiring needs of the open job. 

Focus on accomplishments

Use metrics to quantify your impact, highlighting promotions or career development.

Strong and weak HR Director work history

green check icon

Director of Human Resources, Meade Technologies

New York, NY | June 2022 – present

 

  • Lead HR strategy and operations for a 1,500-employee tech company, overseeing talent acquisition, employee relations and performance management.
  • Develop and implement a comprehensive employee engagement program, resulting in a 25% increase in employee satisfaction.
  • Streamline recruitment processes, reducing time-to-hire by 30% and cutting recruitment costs by 20%.
  • Introduce a leadership development program, increasing internal promotions by 15%.

Why it’s well-written:

 

This candidate carefully lists their responsibilities in bullet points that are easy to read. They use metrics like the 25% increase in employee satisfaction to highlight their successful career development and employee retention efforts. 

green check icon

Director of Human Resources, Meade Technologies

New York, NY | June 2022 – present

 

  • Hired and dismissed employees. 
  • Managed internal HR team
  • Implemented programs to help employees unlock career potential.

How it’s poorly written: 

 

Unfortunately, this HR director resume example is too vague to help hiring managers understand your qualifications or employment value. This candidate fails to quantify any achievements related to employment programs, recruitment or employee satisfaction. They also need to share meaningful contributions to their previous workplace.

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How to Write a Director of HR Education Section

As a director of HR, add relevant degrees, certifications and training programs to highlight your foundational knowledge and commitment to improving the workplace. Here’s how to effectively present your education:

1Add degrees:

List your highest degree first, including the institution’s name, degree obtained, and graduation date.

2Feature certifications:

Include relevant certifications and training programs that enhance your HR credentials.

3Mention professional workshops:

Mention any professional development courses or workshops that are pertinent to HR management.

4Highlight honors:

Highlight honors, awards, or distinctions that showcase your academic excellence.

Example of a strong HR education section:

Master of Business Administration (MBA), Human Resource Management
University of California, Berkeley
Graduated: May 2018

Certifications and Training:

  • Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) Certification
    HR Certification Institute (HRCI), 2022
  • SHRM-SCP (Society for Human Resource Management – Senior Certified Professional)
    SHRM, 2021
  • Diversity and Inclusion Certificate
    Cornell University, 2019
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Pro tip: Tailor your education section with relevant certifications or HR training programs that help you address the workplace needs.

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15 Skills for Your Director of HR Resume

We strongly recommend you share notable skills throughout your resume summary and work history, but a dedicated skills section is your last opportunity to share six to eight additional soft skills, hard skills or technical skills necessary to leading HR teams and departments.

soft skills

Soft skills

soft skills

Hard skills

Employee relation

Organizational development

Performance management

Strategic planning

Talent acquisition

soft skills

Technical skills

ATS (applicant tracking systems)

Compliance software

Data analysis

HRIS (Human Resource Information Systems)

Payroll systems

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20 Director of HR Action Verbs

Action verbs reflect the confidence and leadership potential you’ll bring to your new role as HR director. Here’s a list of 20 power words tailored for typical HR responsibilities.

Administer

Advocate

Allocate

Analyze

Assess

Coach

Collaborate

Develop

Direct

Enhance

Facilitate

Implement

Lead

Manage

Mediate

Oversee

Plan

Recruit

Resolve

Strategize

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Additional Resume Sections

Consider adding the following sections to your director of HR resume based on your specific circumstances and to enhance your qualifications:

  • Certifications:

    Include a separate section to showcase relevant credentials, such as a Professional in HR (PHR), Senior Professional in HR (SPHR) or Global Profesional in HR (GPHR) certification from a notable institution like the Human Resource Standards Institute. 

  • Professional Development:

    To replace or supplement your education section, create a professional development section featuring workshops, seminars or HR training programs. 

  • Awards and Achievements:

    If you have received recognition or awards for your performance, productivity, or safety record, include a section to showcase these accomplishments.

  • Volunteer Experience:

    If you have less than three years of experience, replace your work history section with a volunteer section. Use this space to demonstrate relevant skills or attributes, such as effective compensation and benefits management, negotiation, employee engagement, or workforce analytics.

  • Language Proficiency:

    Your HR responsibilities could cross borders. Highlight your fluency in multiple languages, especially if they enable you to communicate with employees across various international offices.

  • Memberships:

    Let hiring managers know about your membership to industry-specific organizations or unions.

Use a Cover Letter to Express Yourself

A resume is a concise overview of your skills and experience — a cover letter expands on this foundation. Add a cover letter to share one or two examples of how you excelled in similar roles or how your skills match a company’s needs. Use this sample as a guide, or visit our helpful resources to boost your application.

Director of HR Resume FAQ

Should I add references to my HR director resume?

Don’t add references to your resume — this feature is left over from the physical delivery of paper resumes. Save that space to showcase your qualifications, but have a saved list of references on hand for future use.

How do I optimize my director of HR resume for Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS)?

Pull keywords from the job description to optimize your HR director resume for ATS. Visit our ATS-optimized resume templates to find simple, clean designs that perform well with programs and people. Use the standard resume sections mentioned above to help ensure that software accurately scans and grades your application.

How long should a director of HR resume be?

Since you’re applying for a senior-level position, aim for a detailed two-page resume unless you have less than 10 years of experience in human resources.