A staff manager is a somewhat vague job, the duties of which are usually defined by the business that employs the manager. In general, this position is similar to a job in the human resources or personnel department, where one will oversee the staff members of an organization, and provide assistance in areas such as benefits selection or compensation, for example. A staff manager may also be responsible for recruiting and interviewing new employees.
In general, this position will exist in a company that does not have a human resources or personnel department. Instead, the person in charge of the staff will perform these duties. Generally, though a staff manager is technically in a managerial role, he or she does not have many managerial duties; for instance, a manager in this capacity generally does not have the authority to fire employees, or even to make hiring decisions. The manager will report to other supervisors or general managers in the business.
A staff manager may work with other managers or business owners in order to create business and company policies, such as vacation time or dress codes, for instance. In addition, a person in this position will generally need to know the labor laws regarding things such as safe business practices and time spent working. A person in this position may also be called in to mediate and help resolve conflicts between employees; this type of manager may receive additional training in human resources and employee relations for this reason.
Primarily, a staff manager is there to serve as a liaison between the staff of a business and the heads of the business. Employees can come to this manager with questions or requests for assistance at work. In addition, it is the responsibility of this manager to thoroughly understand benefits packages that are offered to employees, and to be able to answer any questions an employee may have about his or her benefits. The staff manager should also be able to help make changes to benefits if necessary.
There are no specific educational requirements for this job, though many people attend school for human resources management or business management in order to become more marketable. Often, simple experience is the best way to get into this position, as many companies prefer to promote from within. Being promoted from within an existing job can be beneficial as well, because then the new manager will already know the other employees at the company, as well as the way the company operates.