The worlds of social work and HR, at a glance, may seem distant and unrelated. Where a social worker deals with drug addicts, the recently paroled, families on the brink of separation—just to name a few contexts—HR professionals concern themselves primarily with corporate policies. 

Yet these professionals do feature an overlap of skills that many people may not at first realize. It is, in fact, for this reason that many businesses are happy to hire HR professionals with an education background in social work. 

In this article, we take a look at what HR professionals can learn from social workers to improve employee engagement and create a better overall work environment. 

social workers

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Is HR a Natural Transition for Former Social workers?

Social workers looking for something new may be surprised by how many of their current skills transition into HR. For example:

  • Constant documentation
  • Patience
  • Understanding of complex or nuanced policies. 

The pressure is significantly easier to deal with in the HR setting. Social workers who have worked with drug addicts, former felons, or families on the brink of permanent separation may find that an average day in the world of HR is tame by comparison. 

That doesn’t make the job milk toast. HR professionals play an influential role in the lives of everyone they do with. Below, we take a look at several key skills that are common to both jobs. 

Advocacy 

Social workers are natural-born advocates. The people they work with have usually been dealt a bad hand. Often people on their caseload need something that the world is not prepared to give them.

It’s through advocacy that social workers are able to encourage sustainable, widespread change. 

Granted, the stakes in HR usually aren’t quite so high. Still, human resource representatives play an important role in the lives of people they work with.

Not only do they explain corporate policies, but they also are generally the first to hear when someone has an issue. Often they are much more in touch with what the workforce than needs management might be.

Is their job simply to give workers what they want? Of course not. However, if something is wrong, they are perhaps positioned to correct the problem.

Organization

HR professionals and social workers are both required to demonstrate a high degree of organization as they carry out their responsibilities. For HR this may mean managing a complex network of highly detailed policies, procedures, and employee resources. 

For social workers, it means keeping track of the various people on their caseload. What they need. What the conditions of their legal status require. 

In both cases, this may mean managing large quantities of information for many people at the same time. 

Empathy

Empathy is a required element in any job that involves working intimately with other people. Social workers who cannot empathize with people on their caseload may find themselves feeling burnt out quickly. 

Empathy is also a source of motivation for HR professionals. Their work may feel tedious sometimes. Hopeless, even. However, when they are motivated by a desire to help other people, it can go a long way toward keeping them engaged with their work. 

Communication

Admittedly, most professions rely on communication to some extent. But when are the stakes ever so high as in social work, where a person’s legal status could change based on how well they implement their social worker’s recommendations and requirements?

People sitting in front of an HR professional are generally not facing such high stakes. Still, they do require information that will either:

It’s a big responsibility to be the person who can help them navigate those issues. Good communication is about more than just passing along information. It’s about understanding how the person across from you will best process what you need to tell them. 

A talented HR or social worker will have a natural ability to work well with other people, not just passing along what they need to know, but also expressing it in the most impactful way possible. 

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (often referred to as DEI) is not exactly a talent but it is an important focus common to both professions. HR professionals often play an important role in helping company leadership develop a more diverse and fair workplace.

 They may do this by helping to improve hiring policies, taking employee feedback, enforcing company policies, and identifying special training that may benefit everyone on staff. 

Social workers, of course, are not so concerned about company policy. They do, however, spend a lot of time dealing with other aspects that are of vital importance to the world of DEI. 

For one thing, they may deal disproportionately with minorities who, statistically speaking, often have harder access to the resources that they need. 

And what do they need? In both the context of HR and social work, the answer to that question changes on an individual basis. In fact, this variety is what makes both professions engaging and impactful. 

Conclusion

If you have a degree in social work, it is important to keep in mind that there are many career options available to you aside from seeking employment as a social worker. HR is just one of many potential applications. 

Think about the skills described above. Advocacy. Communication. Empathy. Organization. There are so many jobs that require people with these talents. 

Often, finding a career you are passionate about means looking beyond the words written on your degree/ professional training certification.

It’s about looking for ways to market what you are good at. Social workers have many skills that employers want.