What Are My Career Options in Organizational Management?

Find out about the types of jobs you could pursue in organizational management. Read on to learn more about career options along with the required education and salary information.

What Careers Are Available in Organizational Management?

Organizational management is a broad term referring to positions in a company or business that work directly with employees. These professionals could be managers in human resources, compensation and benefits, or training and development. A human resource manager's main task is the recruitment and interviewing of new employees. They hire and arrange training as well as collaborate with department directors on ways to improve earnings and morale within the organization. Compensation and benefits managers help employees with pay problems and any type of benefit issues, including medical coverage and retirement savings. Training and development managers work with various department heads to determine employee training needs. They are in charge of ongoing employee education as well as the training of any new employees. They constantly look to update that training as well as preparing manuals and materials.

The table below lists three careers and outlines their general requirements.

	Human Resources Managers	Compensation and Benefits Managers	Training and Development Managers
Degree Required	Bachelor's degree	Master's degree preferred	Master's degree required for some positions
Education Field of Study	Human resources, business administration, or other related fields are accepted	Business administration, business management, finance	Human resources, business administration, organizational development,
Training Required	Related work experience	Prior work experience with complex financial analysis	Prior work experience in related field
Key Responsibilities	Direct the hiring, training, disciplining and firing of employees, resolve disputes, advise company on policies	Determine company's pay structure, create compensation plans, assess employee benefits	Craft training programs, evaluate employees' needs for training, teach training processes
Licensure/Certification	Certification preferred	Certification preferred	Optional certification available
Job Growth (2020-2030)	9%*	4%*	11%*
Median Salary (2020)	$121,220*	$125,130*	$115,640*

Source: *U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

What is Organizational Management?

Organizational management is concerned with the effective functioning of a private or public business or agency. In addition to mapping and evaluating an organization's structure, function, and inter- and intra-departmental interactions, organizational management is often used to create diagnostic models to understand how an organization's parts function as a whole.

What Positions Are Available?

Positions within the human resources field include employee and labor relations managers, payroll managers and staffing managers. Larger organizations also might employ training and development managers as well as compensation and benefits managers.

Human resources managers are usually involved with a variety of personnel issues, including hiring, training, disciplining and firing employees. Other duties may include instructing and advising a company about human resource policies, administering and coordinating human resource programs, mediating and resolving disputes, and supervising specialists and support staff.

What Education Might I Need?

A bachelor's program in human resources, business administration or a similar major may qualify you for entry-level organizational management positions, while a master's program in human resources management or a related field could prepare you for a leadership position. Some master's degree programs are available online and/or allow you to attend on a part-time basis.

Master's degree curricula usually feature a systems approach that emphasizes problem solving, strategy development, team building and other personnel issues. You may take courses in negotiation, mediation, legal issues, interventions, organizational analysis, leadership styles, and systems theory and application.

What Might I Earn?

As of May 2020, human resources managers earned a median salary of $121,220 per year, based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics figures (www.bls.gov). Compensation and benefits managers earned slightly more at $125,130 the same year, while training and development managers earned $115,640.

What Are Some Related Alternative Careers?

There are a variety of alternative careers that all start with the earning of a bachelor's degree in the field. One could be an administrative services manager who organizes, promotes and directs support services for a company or business. Normally, they are in charge of the facilities and oversee the records, mail and office upkeep. Another position might be as a buyer and purchasing agent. In this job, experts are tasked with assessing material needs for a company and work with vendors to find the best deals. A final career might be as an instructional coordinator working with teachers and school curricula. They design training materials and present findings to teachers and principals to test effectiveness.