PHR / SPHR Certification

Purpose of HRCI Certification

The PHR and SPHR says that the holder has demonstrated mastery of the HR body of knowledge and has accepted the personal challenge to stay informed of new developments in the HR field. To be successful in their jobs, HR professionals must know how to deal effectively with strategic management and planning issues, international competition, management staffing and family and social issues that affect the workplace.

Certification is a voluntary action by a professional group to establish a system to grant recognition to professionals who have met a stated level of training and work experience. Certified individuals are usually issued a certificate attesting that they have met the standards of the credentialing organization and are entitled to make the public aware of their credentialed status, usually through the use of initials (i.e., PHR or SPHR) after their names.

The Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI) certifications are intended for HR professionals who have at least two years of exempt-level HR work experience. To be eligible to take either examination:

• At least 51 percent of your daily activities must be within the human resource function.
• Those activities must be at the exempt level.

All managers and supervisors have some human resource responsibilities as part of their jobs, but it is generally not the activity that dominates the work experience. Therefore, to qualify to take the examination, candidates must have employment experience in an exempt-level position as defined by the Fair Labor Standards Act and its amendments. In the human resource management field, exempt-level positions include:

• HR Practitioners (those whose job duties are normally found in the typical HR function);
• HR Educators (those whose principal areas of instruction are in the HR field in an accredited institution of higher learning);
• HR Researchers (those whose research activities are restricted primarily to the HR field); and
• HR Consultants (those whose consulting activities are primarily in the HR field).

Students and recent graduates are granted special eligibility for the examination.

Candidates must have at least two years of exempt-level human resource experience to take either the Professional in Human Resources (PHR) or the Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) examination. The examination for:

• Professional in Human Resources (PHR) will focus on the operational/technical level.
• Senior Professional Human Resources (SPHR) focuses on the startegic and/or policy level of human resources.

Candidates may select the level of certification they feel best represents their mastery of the HR body of knowledge. HRCI has found (based on statistical analysis) that appropriate HR work experience and educational background contributes significantly to success on the examination. With this in mind, HRCI strongly recommends the following experience:

PHR - two to four years of HR exempt-level experience. Professional in Human Resources will focus on the operational/technical level.

SPHR - six to eight years of HR exempt-level experience. Senior Professional in Human Resources focuses on the strategic and/or policy level of human resources.

Success depends on mastery of the HR body of knowledge. Candidates should carefully assess their qualifications, using the guidelines discussed above, before selecting the level of certification desired.