What does an HR manager do?

An HR manager leads an organisation’s HR function. The government’s human resource manager profile lists overseeing HR strategies, policies and plans, managing recruitment and retention, setting up performance management systems, and working with employers and unions. HR managers look after workplace relations and staff wellbeing. The profile names formal qualifications in human resources and/or relevant experience as the common requirements.

Our advice: treat HR manager as a role you build toward one rung at a time. Get good at the HR work in front of you, add the qualification that fits the rung you’re on, and, if you aim for the manager step, expect it to take years of experience.

Hader Institute of Education (RTO 45162) delivers two nationally recognised HR qualifications online. BSB40420 and BSB50320 are both listed as current on the national register, training.gov.au.

What is an HR manager?

An HR manager is the person who leads an organisation’s HR function. The government’s profile says HR managers “ensure staff suitability and staff wellbeing” through the employee programs and strategies they create and manage, and that they’re responsible for guiding the organisation’s culture.

HR managers work in an office or at the organisation’s headquarters.

What does an HR manager do day to day?

The human resource manager profile on yourcareer.gov.au, Australia’s government careers site, lists eight day-to-day duties. In plain terms, an HR manager:

• oversees and evaluates the organisation’s HR strategies, policies and plans
• manages or advises on recruitment and retention
• advises on, and helps create, induction, training and development programs
• sets up performance management systems for reviewing individual and team performance
• works with employers and unions over employment issues
• organises support and counselling for staff
• develops programs for work health and safety (the profile says occupational health and safety), equal employment opportunity, and other mandatory government compliance
• manages redundancies and retrenchments.

Grouped by function, those duties fall into seven areas:

• HR strategy, policies and plans
• recruitment and retention
• performance management
• learning and development, through induction, training and development programs
• employee and industrial relations, including work with unions and redundancies
• work health and safety, equal employment opportunity, and other compliance
• staff support and wellbeing.

For example, when a business closes a department, the HR manager might plan how staff and their union are consulted, manage the redundancies, and arrange counselling support for the people affected. The same manager might then review the recruitment plan for the teams that remain.

HR managers work across many industries. The profile lists nine, including education and training, health care and social assistance, manufacturing, mining, and public administration and safety.

How the role changes with the size of the organisation

In a small organisation, the HR manager may be the whole HR team: hiring, inductions, staff questions, and sometimes payroll as well. In a larger one, the work may split into specialist teams for recruitment, learning and development, employee relations, or pay. There the manager leads those teams and sets the policies they apply.

Either way, the job runs on software. Staff records usually sit in a human resources information system (HRIS), and pay and rosters run through payroll and rostering systems. Each employer chooses its own, so check the job ad for the systems it names.

How much do HR managers earn in Australia?

The government’s human resource manager profile shows AU$2,946 weekly earnings, all industries combined (viewed October 2026). It counts about 92,200 people in the role. Of those, 89% work full time, and full-time HR managers work 45 hours a week on average. Pay varies with industry, experience, location, and employer, and a qualification can’t guarantee a particular job or salary.

Is HR highly paid?

On the government’s figures, HR pay rises with responsibility. Here are three HR profiles on the same basis, weekly earnings, all industries combined (viewed October 2026):

The manager figure is about twice the clerk figure. These figures describe people already working in each role. They aren’t what a course leads to.

How do you become an HR manager?

The government profile names “formal qualifications in human resources and/or relevant experience in the field” as the common requirements. On the same profile’s figures, most HR managers hold a bachelor degree or higher, in any field.

It shows the highest qualification held by people working as HR managers (viewed October 2026):

• 34.0% hold a bachelor degree
• 24.8% hold a postgraduate qualification, including graduate diplomas and graduate certificates
• 18.2% hold an Advanced Diploma or Diploma
• 9.2% hold a Certificate I to IV
• 11.3% list Year 12 or below as their highest qualification.

These figures count a qualification in any field, so they don’t show how many HR managers studied HR itself.

Australia’s occupation classification, the Occupation Standard Classification for Australia (OSCA), places human resources managers at Skill Level 1: a bachelor degree or higher qualification, or at least five years of relevant experience.

The ladder. One path to the manager role runs through four rungs:

1. An entry role, such as HR clerk or HR administrator. These are the lowest positions in HR, and our guide on how HR careers start covers them.
2. HR officer or HR coordinator.
3. HR advisor or HR business partner.
4. HR manager.

Our guide to how HR careers progress sets out each rung and what changes between them.

Where study fits. A qualification can help you prepare for the rung you’re aiming at:

• The BSB40420 Certificate IV in Human Resource Management is designed for HR officers and coordinators. Its core includes all four units the Diploma asks for at entry.
• The BSB50320 Diploma of Human Resource Management is designed for HR advisors, consultants, and business partners, and for experienced HR officers. With experience, it can lead toward HR manager roles. On its own, it doesn’t qualify you as an HR manager.

The Diploma has an entry rule, set out below, and you can check if you qualify for the Diploma before you enquire. If you’re weighing university study, our guide to choosing an HR degree or diploma sets a degree beside the Certificate IV and Diploma. Our HR courses page compares both courses side by side.

What skills do HR managers need?

The human resource manager profile lists six skills:

• communication
• organisational skills
• building relationships
• human resource management
• business management
• employee relations monitoring.

The overview describes the role as “Suitable for organised people who are good at planning and communicating with different kinds of people”. It adds that strong leadership skills and an ability to connect with others are helpful.

The Australian HR Institute (AHRI) describes itself as the peak membership body for HR professionals. AHRI membership is open to university students, to people who graduated from university in the last two years, and to people with at least two years of HR experience.

Is an HR manager role the right next step for you?

The manager role carries pressure, and the government’s profile says so: it lists “stressful” among its considerations. Full-time HR managers work 45 hours a week on average, against 44 across all jobs. Two of the harder duties are managing redundancies and working through employment issues with employers and unions.

Ask yourself four questions:

• Do you want to own the policies that other people apply? The manager oversees HR strategies, policies and plans for the whole organisation.
• Can you lead a redundancy with care? Telling people their jobs are ending, and arranging support for them, is part of the role.
• Can you work with employers and unions when they want different outcomes? The profile lists working with both over employment issues.
• Do 45-hour weeks suit your life right now? Weigh that against the study, caring, or other commitments you already carry.

For the wider question of stress and burnout across HR roles, see our guide on how to get into HR.

Studying HR with Hader

Both courses are designed to take 12 months: 48 weeks of classes plus a 4-week break. You study online from anywhere in Australia, with a 3-hour live trainer-led class each week plus self-paced study and assessment, about 26 hours a week in total. You set the pace outside the live class, and if you need more time, you can apply for an extension with no additional fees. No work placement is required; career support comes through our Job-Ready Program.

The Certificate IV costs AU$4,995 total · AU$4,495.50 upfront · or from AU$48/week over 105 weeks, interest-free. The Diploma costs AU$7,995 total · AU$7,195.50 upfront · or from AU$77/week over 104 weeks, interest-free. Payment plans keep running after the course ends until the full price is paid.

Both courses are fee-for-service at Hader: the full course fee is payable, upfront or by payment plan. A Certificate IV isn’t eligible for a VET Student Loan at any provider. The Diploma is an approved course for VET Student Loans at an approved provider, subject to student eligibility and a loan cap. Hader isn’t an approved VET Student Loans provider, so a loan isn’t available for either course here.

Entry requirements. To enrol in either course, you must be 18 or over; be an Australian citizen, a permanent resident, or hold a visa with full work and study rights; have the language, literacy and numeracy skills to read learning materials, read and write workplace reports and documents, interpret policies and procedures, and report hazards; be assessed at or above the course’s entry profile (the Diploma’s is higher) in a language, literacy, numeracy and digital skills (LLND) assessment before you enrol, with each skill assessed separately; have intermediate Word skills; have a computer and reliable internet access; and complete a Pre-Training Review interview. If you’re assessed below the entry profile, we’ll advise you before you enrol, and we’ll enrol you only where the support you need is agreed. For the Diploma, you must also have completed BSBHRM411, BSBHRM412, BSBHRM415 and BSBHRM417 (or equivalent competencies), or have two years’ equivalent full-time relevant work experience.

Refunds. You get a full refund if you cancel within 3 calendar days of being accepted into the course. After that, the full course fee is payable, except in the circumstances our refund policy sets out. Your rights under Australian Consumer Law also apply.

Our learner support page explains the learning and wellbeing support you can reach while you study.

Your next step

BSB50320 Diploma of Human Resource Management

A nationally recognised qualification, studied online over 12 months with a live trainer-led class each week, about 26 hours a week in total. No work placement is required; career support comes through our Job-Ready Program.

Designed for HR advisors, consultants, and business partners. With experience, it can lead toward HR manager roles; on its own it doesn’t qualify you as one.

Entry: you must have completed BSBHRM411, BSBHRM412, BSBHRM415 and BSBHRM417 (or equivalent competencies), or have two years’ equivalent full-time relevant work experience. You must also meet the entry steps above. We confirm this at your Pre-Training Review.

AU$7,995 total · AU$7,195.50 upfront · or from AU$77/week over 104 weeks, interest-free

Explore the Diploma of Human Resource Management

Not sure you meet the entry rule? Check if you qualify for the Diploma.

If you don’t meet it yet, start with the BSB40420 Certificate IV in Human Resource Management: nationally recognised, studied online over 12 months with a live trainer-led class each week, no work placement, and no prerequisite beyond the entry steps above. AU$4,995 total · AU$4,495.50 upfront · or from AU$48/week over 105 weeks, interest-free. Explore the Certificate IV in Human Resource Management

Talk to a course advisor: (03) 8362 3113