human resources

American  

[hyoo-muhn ree-sawr-sis, ree-zawr-siz, yoo-muhn] / ˈhyu mən ˈri sɔr sɪs, ˈri zɔr sɪz, ˈyu mən /

noun

1. (used with a plural verb) people, especially the personnel employed by a given company, institution, or the like.

2. (used with a singular verb) human resources department.

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human resources British  

plural noun

1. 1. the workforce of an organization

   2. ( as modifier )

      human-resources management

      human-resources officer

2. 1. the office or department in an organization that interviews, appoints, or keeps records of employees

   2. ( as modifier )

      a human-resources consultancy

3. the contribution to an employing organization which its workforce could provide in effort, skills, knowledge, etc

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Etymology

Origin of human resources

First recorded in 1965–70

Example Sentences

And they shouldn’t be given a specific job title, Nickle LaMoreaux, chief human resources officer at IBM said, speaking Thursday at the WSJ Leadership Institute’s Chief People Officer Summit in Menlo Park, Calif.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026

Lufthansa human resources chief Michale Niggemann earlier criticised the walkout as "completely incomprehensible," particularly at a time of "geopolitical uncertainty with the war in Iran" that had thrown global air traffic into chaos.

From Barron's • Mar. 12, 2026

Concerns followed Anthropic announcing its launch of plug-in tools to help with investment banking, engineering and human resources tasks.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 3, 2026

In December, Doe filed a complaint with Soho House human resources, and she was assured that an investigation would be opened and “immediate corrective action” taken.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 28, 2026

I did not know anyone—besides the human resources manager at my father's work—who had one car, let alone three.

From "I Will Always Write Back" by Caitlin Alifirenka and Martin Ganda