Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for HR Administrative Assistant

🎯 Role Definition

This role requires a highly organized and proactive HR Administrative Assistant to become an integral part of our People & Culture team. In this pivotal role, you will be the backbone of our HR operations, providing essential support across all functions, including recruitment, onboarding, employee data management, and benefits administration. You are the first point of contact for many employee inquiries, making your contribution essential to fostering a positive and efficient workplace culture. If you thrive in a fast-paced environment and are passionate about supporting the employee journey, we want to hear from you.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Administrative Assistant
Office Coordinator
Recent Graduate (Human Resources or Business)

Advancement To:

HR Coordinator
HR Generalist
Recruiting Coordinator

Lateral Moves:

Executive Assistant
Payroll Assistant

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Manage the end-to-end new hire onboarding process, including drafting offer letters, initiating background checks, and ensuring all required paperwork (I-9, tax forms) is completed accurately and on time.
Act as the primary administrator for our Human Resources Information System (HRIS), ensuring meticulous accuracy and integrity of employee data for all new hires, transfers, promotions, and terminations.
Serve as the first point of contact for employee inquiries, professionally and compassionately addressing questions related to HR policies, procedures, benefits, and payroll.
Coordinate and schedule a high volume of interviews, candidate debriefs, and meetings for the recruitment team, ensuring a seamless and positive candidate experience.
Maintain and organize confidential physical and digital employee files, ensuring compliance with data privacy regulations and company policies.
Assist the payroll department by gathering, verifying, and processing payroll-related data, such as timesheets, bonus payments, and leave of absence information.
Support the full-cycle recruitment process by posting job descriptions to various career boards and assisting with initial resume screening under the guidance of recruiters.
Facilitate benefits administration by assisting employees with enrollment, life event changes, and answering fundamental questions about their coverage plans.
Prepare and generate standard and ad-hoc HR reports on key metrics such as headcount, turnover, and recruitment activity using HRIS and Excel.
Process and respond to all employment verification requests, unemployment claims, and other external inquiries in a timely and accurate manner.
Provide comprehensive administrative support for the performance management cycle, including tracking review completion and preparing necessary documentation.
Organize and execute logistics for new hire orientation sessions, employee training programs, and company-wide engagement events.
Manage the offboarding process, including preparing separation paperwork, coordinating final paychecks, and conducting exit interviews as needed.
Uphold strict confidentiality when handling sensitive employee information, personnel issues, and strategic HR initiatives.
Assist in maintaining compliance with federal, state, and local employment laws by keeping HR documents, posters, and policies up-to-date.
Create and maintain process documentation for all administrative HR tasks to ensure consistency and efficiency within the department.

Secondary Functions

Support special HR projects and initiatives, such as open enrollment, diversity and inclusion programs, or employee survey rollouts.
Maintain and update company organizational charts and employee directories to reflect all personnel changes accurately.
Manage departmental purchasing and process invoices and expense reports for the HR team, ensuring alignment with budget.
Coordinate the ordering and inventory management of new hire welcome kits, service awards, and other HR-related supplies.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Proficiency in Human Resources Information Systems (HRIS) such as Workday, ADP, BambooHR, or similar platforms.
Advanced skills in the Microsoft Office Suite (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint), particularly with Excel for data manipulation and reporting.
Experience using Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) like Greenhouse, Lever, or Taleo for scheduling and candidate management.
Strong data entry skills with an extremely high level of accuracy and attention to detail.
Basic knowledge of federal and state employment laws and compliance requirements (e.g., I-9 verification, EEO).
Fundamental understanding of payroll processing procedures and systems.

Soft Skills

Exceptional organizational and time-management skills with the ability to prioritize multiple competing tasks in a fast-paced environment.
Impeccable verbal and written communication skills, with a professional and approachable demeanor.
Unwavering commitment to handling sensitive and confidential information with the utmost discretion and integrity.
A proactive, resourceful, and service-oriented mindset with strong problem-solving capabilities.
Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to build positive working relationships with employees at all levels.
Ability to work effectively both independently and as a collaborative member of a team.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Associate's Degree or equivalent practical experience.

Preferred Education:

Bachelor's Degree.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Human Resources
Business Administration
Communications

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

2+ years of experience in an administrative support role, preferably within a corporate environment.

Preferred:

At least 1 year of direct experience within a Human Resources department is highly preferred and will be prioritized.