Can Engineers Transition to HR Management Without an MBA? Seeking Advice on Skills Needed

Hi,

I am a software engineer working for Perot Systems. I wanted to know if an MBA is absolutely necessary to get into the HR field or if companies recruit engineers as HR managers. What skills would you be looking for when recruiting HR managers?

Please help,
Smitha

This is my personal view:

Becoming an HR Manager is not just about having an MBA degree; it's more about how you interact with people. You need to be a good motivator, decision-maker, and they do consider your experience. Leading a group as a Team Leader or a Project Manager can definitely add value. If you do not have an MBA, you can consider taking up short-term diploma courses in HR.

Engineer or MBA for HR role.

First, review the activities, roles, and competencies.

HR Manager's Activities, Roles, Competences.

1. HR Manager's Activities.

The activities carried out by an HR Manager will vary widely according to the needs of the organization, the context within which they work, and their own capabilities.

Service

As a broad guideline, HR provides services to the organization:

- Human resource planning
- Recruitment/selection
- Employee development
- Reward systems
- Employee relations
- Health/safety management
- Staff amenities
- Salary administration
- Personnel administration
etc.

Guidance

To varying degrees, HR Managers provide guidance to the management, such as:

- Recommendations on HR strategies
- Culture change
- Approaches to improving process capability
- Performance management
- Reward management
- HR policies/procedures
etc.

Advice

HR managers provide advice to line managers and management in general:

- Recruitment advertising
- Selection shortlists
- Training needs
- Health/safety
- Handling people/problems associated
- Industrial relations
etc.

2. Roles

As we digest the activities, it leads us to the role of an HR Manager.

HR Manager plays different roles:

Business Partner Role

- Share responsibility with their line management for the success of the business and the running of the business.

Strategist Role

- Contribute to long-term/strategic organizational issues like people selection, requirement, development, organization development, quality of work life, etc.

Interventionist Role

- Proactively contribute to change management, people management, team development, new technology introduction, etc.

Internal Consultancy Role

- Acts as a management consultant on HR issues working alongside the line managers.

Monitoring Role

- Monitors the implementation of HR policies/procedures.

3. Competencies

The analysis of the activities and roles leads us to the question: What are the competencies required for a successful HR Manager?

The suggested competencies are:

- Initiative
- Personal effectiveness
- Human relations handling skills
- Leadership skills
- Professional knowledge of HR
- Adding value through people development
- Continuing learning
- Strategic thinking capability
- Influencing
- Negotiating skills
- Interpersonal skills
- Business/culture awareness
- Service delivery
- Communication (oral/written)
- Presentation
etc.

This leads to the question, do you need an MBA to be an effective HR leader?

It is not a "must," but yes, it is useful and provides a good foundation on which you can build a HR career.

In addition, you must also consider the entry point. At the point of the interview, do employers prefer MBAs?

To this, I can also add, who makes your career? It is you. Good luck.

Regards,

Leo Lingham

Wow.

That was nice, Mr. Leo. Now, whenever I need to tell some HR illiterate about HR, I'll show them your post.

And Smitha, I think Mr. Leo and Pramod are absolutely right. I second them... I actually third them... but you get the point, right? 😃

Ok, this is what I feel... Do you watch "The Apprentice"? They have this season on book smarts vs. street smarts. I have seen only 2 episodes so far, and in both, the people who did not have a degree have won. They have made it for themselves. I'm waiting to watch the remaining episodes. Well, coming to the point, I would say I think it's passion. You don't need a degree to make you smart. You need SKA - skill, knowledge, and attributes. And a little bit of passion. But there may be companies who will be stuck on degrees, so do a correspondence course or something, right? Or a diploma from wellinkars.

I wish you luck. May you be a good HR manager. 😘

HR + Engineer... that's a nice combo. I think you'll prosper in IT companies.

PS - These are my undergrad views. I may be wrong. Anyway, good luck, and let us know what you end up doing.

Smitha,

An MBA in HR would be an added advantage as you can correlate a lot of HR subjects in a better manner. This would definitely give you an edge over others.

Hi Smitha,

I don't think having an MBA is a must. However, for an engineer who necessarily must have subordinates to lead, you need a formal knowledge of basic principles in HR or personnel management. Thus, obtaining an MBA degree may then be an indication that you have really undergone formal training in the art of managing people towards achieving organizational growth.

Yemiadegbola

I think an MBA could be an added advantage. But there are no hard and fast rules. You make your own rules. It's like you can get a number 10 by 5+5, 5*2, 15-5... What I mean to say is that there is no perfect formula to do something. If you know what you want, just plunge into it. You can't keep waiting for the perfect tools (MBA) to begin something (HR). Start where you stand.

Education can give you knowledge about an area and thus can change your thinking and view. You can think more deeply if you have knowledge of a subject. However, for an effective HR Manager, more than education, your "sense" is crucial. You might have seen many managers who lack sense and logic despite having a good MBA degree. Dhirubhai Ambani was a man with great vision and sense, despite lacking formal education.

Hello Smitha:

I wanted to know if an MBA is absolutely necessary to get into the HR line or do companies recruit engineers as HR managers?

Why recruit an engineer for an HR manager position? Would we recruit an HR professional with no engineering knowledge to be an engineering manager? I hope not.

What are the skills you would be looking for when you recruit HR managers?

There is a body of knowledge that almost all engineers don't possess. Obtain the knowledge prior to the job search.

An engineer should earn an MBA if she has any desire to manage a department, a division, or a business. Earning an MBA does not mean you'll be a good manager, but it does mean you'll have the knowledge to be effective. There is a huge difference between having the knowledge and having the talent to be an effective manager. Talent doesn't come from a book.

I also recommend an MBA for engineers who want to understand the business of engineering. By the way, I am a business consultant, a professional engineer, and I possess an MBA. The MBA program was far more interesting and challenging than my undergraduate and graduate engineering studies.

A company may not like to place an engineer in the position of an HR manager. However, in today's organizations, especially those where CMMs are implemented, you will see employees participating in cross-department functions such as RMG and SDG. Therefore, a person may need to devote a higher percentage of their time to different departments based on requirements. If they are unable to be a full-time HR manager, I am certain they may not like that situation.

Umalme

Hi all,

I second Bob Gately on:

"Why recruit an engineer for an HR manager position? Would we recruit an HR professional with no engineering knowledge to be an engineering manager? I hope not."

There are lots of things an HR manager needs to undertake in his functions which require an in-depth knowledge of HR procedures. Furthermore, he should also have knowledge of Personnel Laws.

As Dr. [Col] B.D. Gupta [BTech-IIT, MTech, MBA, PhD] says about Engineers, to make them managers, first de-engineer them. His philosophy states that Engineers have a tolerance level of 0.001%, which is not very conducive for people management where the tolerance level requirement is much higher. An MBA degree can enhance their view, and the engineer can then have a broader understanding of the business and HR function to handle people more effectively.

I agree with this point by Bob Gately:

"Why recruit an engineer for an HR manager position? Would we recruit an HR professional with no engineering knowledge to be an engineering manager? I hope not."

Good point. Formal education in management can help you secure a role in management; otherwise, you may have to wait for an opportunity to be recognized for your management skills.

Hi there,

I believe that a formal education is essential for a professional. If it were the case, why do you suggest freshers in this field to read magazines and HR journals, to get associated with professional bodies? A formal education provides insight into a particular field and helps to develop your skills related to that specific area, giving you an advantage over those who do not have that degree.

Thanks,
Dips

Of course! But, as others have indicated, some further training would be in order. A capacity to think strategically and to advocate for both the employees and the organization are essential.

Hi there,

Well, I think a formal education is a must for a professional. If it were the case, why do you guys suggest freshers in this field to read magazines and HR journals, to get associated with professional bodies? A formal education gives insight into a particular field and helps to develop your skills pertaining to that particular area, making you have an upper hand over those who don't have that degree.

I think that reading magazines, journals, and being a member of professional bodies are like icing on the cake. They polish you in the subject and help you keep in touch with the latest trends in the industry. But without the basic knowledge, this won't help. It is a must to have a basic knowledge to head a functional department (e.g., HR, Finance, Accounts, Operations, R&D, etc).

Dips