Human resources manager to health and safety inspector
A human resources manager already meets 44% of what the health and safety inspector role asks for. The move turns on 9 required skills not yet in the profile.
53.2/ 100
1 How much of what a health and safety inspector is expected to do is already part of a human resources manager’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the health and safety inspector role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A health and safety inspector role treats 6 of its required skills as things a human resources manager already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- employment law
- gather feedback from employees
- government policy implementation
- monitor organisation climate
- personnel management
- write inspection reports
What stands in the way is 9 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 14 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A health and safety inspector role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a human resources manager background worth leading with.
- already held monitor organisation climate information skills
- already held set inclusion policies management skills
- already held advise on organisational culture communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held personnel management business, administration and law
- already held identify policy breach management skills
- already held gather feedback from employees information skills
All 14 carried skills, including the 6 the health and safety inspector role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 15 missing skills fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn advise on government policy compliance required
- still to learn maintain relationships with government agencies required
- still to learn present reports required
- still to learn protect employee rights required
- optional, not held create solutions to problems optional
- optional, not held implement strategic planning optional
- optional, not held liaise with local authorities optional
- still to learn monitor employee's health required
- still to learn conduct workplace audits required
- still to learn inspect government policy compliance required
- still to learn health and safety in the workplace required
- optional, not held occupational health optional
- still to learn audit techniques required
- optional, not held promote inclusion optional
- optional, not held respond to enquiries optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a health and safety inspector role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 monitor employee's health practise this
- 02 advise on government policy compliance practise this
- 03 audit techniques study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 14 skills that carry over
- already held employment law knowledge
- already held gather feedback from employees skill
- already held government policy implementation knowledge
- already held monitor organisation climate skill
- already held personnel management knowledge
- already held write inspection reports skill
- already held advise on conflict management skill
- already held advise on organisational culture skill
- already held apply conflict management skill
- already held corporate law knowledge
- already held identify policy breach skill
- already held manage government policy implementation skill
- already held monitor company policy skill
- already held set inclusion policies skill
6 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held occupational health optional
- optional, not held create solutions to problems optional
- optional, not held implement strategic planning optional
- optional, not held liaise with local authorities optional
- optional, not held promote inclusion optional
- optional, not held respond to enquiries optional
70 held skills the health and safety inspector role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role adapt training to labour market skill
- not needed by the target role administer appointments skill
- not needed by the target role advertising techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role advise on personnel management skill
- not needed by the target role advise on risk management skill
- not needed by the target role advise on social security benefits skill
- not needed by the target role apply company policies skill
- not needed by the target role apply technical communication skills skill
- not needed by the target role build trust skill
- not needed by the target role company policies knowledge
- not needed by the target role comply with legal regulations skill
- not needed by the target role consultation knowledge
- not needed by the target role coordinate educational programmes skill
- not needed by the target role coordinate operational activities skill
- not needed by the target role corporate social responsibility knowledge
- not needed by the target role create a work atmosphere of continuous improvement skill
- not needed by the target role develop corporate training programmes skill
- not needed by the target role develop employee retention programs skill
- not needed by the target role develop professional network skill
- not needed by the target role develop staff skill
- not needed by the target role develop training programmes skill
- not needed by the target role discharge employees skill
- not needed by the target role ensure gender equality in the workplace skill
- not needed by the target role ensure information transparency skill
- not needed by the target role evaluate performance of organisational collaborators skill
- not needed by the target role evaluate training skill
- not needed by the target role give constructive feedback skill
- not needed by the target role government social security programmes knowledge
- not needed by the target role hire human resources skill
- not needed by the target role human resource management knowledge
- not needed by the target role human resources department processes knowledge
- not needed by the target role identify necessary human resources skill
- not needed by the target role identify with the company's goals skill
- not needed by the target role interview people skill
- not needed by the target role labour law knowledge
- not needed by the target role labour legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role leadership principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role manage budgets skill
- not needed by the target role manage corporate training programmes skill
- not needed by the target role manage human resources skill
30 further entries not listed here
3 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn audit techniques required
- still to learn health and safety in the workplace required
- optional, not held occupational health optional
Other moves recorded from human resources manager
- equality and inclusion manager 80% covered · adjacent
- pension scheme manager 68% covered · moderate
- public employment service manager 59% covered · moderate
- labour relations officer 59% covered · moderate
- human resources officer 56% covered · moderate
- corporate training manager 51% covered · substantial
- employment agent 43% covered · substantial
- pensions administrator 41% covered · substantial
Common questions about this move
Can a human resources manager become a health and safety inspector?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A human resources manager already covers 44% of what a health and safety inspector is expected to do: 14 skills carry over, 6 of which the health and safety inspector role treats as required.
What skills does a human resources manager need to become a health and safety inspector?
9 required skills are missing, plus 6 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is monitor employee's health.
How hard is the move from human resources manager to health and safety inspector?
Its learning distance is 53.2 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.