HR glossary

360-degree feedback is a review method that collects feedback on an employee from their manager, peers, direct reports and themselves.

Absenteeism rate is the share of scheduled work time lost to unplanned absences.

An applicant tracking system (ATS) is software that manages job postings, applications and candidates through the hiring process.

At-will employment means an employer or employee can end the employment relationship at any time, for any legal reason, without notice.

Attrition rate is the percentage of employees who leave and are not replaced, which shrinks the workforce over time.

Belonging is employees’ sense that they are accepted, valued and connected to the people they work with.

Burnout is a state of exhaustion, cynicism and reduced effectiveness caused by long-term, unmanaged stress at work.

Compa-ratio is an employee’s salary divided by the midpoint of their pay range, showing where they sit in that range.

Cost per hire is the average amount an organization spends to fill one position.

Employee benefits are the non-wage compensation an employer provides, like health insurance, retirement plans and paid time off.

Employee engagement is how committed and involved employees are in their work and their organization.

Employee experience (EX) is the sum of everything employees see, do and feel at work, across the whole employee lifecycle.

An employee handbook is a document that explains a company’s policies, benefits and expectations for employees.

Employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS) measures how likely employees are to recommend their company as a place to work, on a scale from −100 to +100.

Employee recognition is acknowledging employees for their work, effort and milestones.

An employee resource group (ERG) is a voluntary, employee-led group built around a shared identity, background or interest.

Employee retention rate is the percentage of employees who stay with an organization through a set period.

Employee turnover rate is the percentage of employees who leave an organization during a set period, usually a month, quarter or year.

An exempt employee is one who is not entitled to overtime pay under US wage and hour law, based on their salary and job duties.

An exit interview is a conversation or survey with a departing employee about their reasons for leaving and their experience at the company.

An HR business partner (HRBP) is an HR professional who works directly with a business unit’s leaders on people strategy.

An HR help desk is a system for receiving, routing and resolving employee questions and requests to HR.

An HR knowledge base is a searchable collection of policies, guides and answers that employees use to help themselves.

A human resources information system (HRIS) is software that stores employee records and runs core HR processes.

OKRs (objectives and key results) are a goal-setting method that pairs a qualitative objective with measurable key results.

Offboarding is the process of handling an employee’s departure, from access removal and handover to the final paycheck.

Offer acceptance rate is the percentage of job offers that candidates accept.

Onboarding is the process of welcoming new hires and helping them become productive, confident members of the organization.

An onboarding buddy is an experienced employee paired with a new hire to answer everyday questions and help them settle in.

A one-on-one meeting is a recurring private conversation between a manager and a direct report.

Open enrollment is the annual period when employees can enroll in, change or cancel their benefits.

Paid time off (PTO) is time away from work that an employee is paid for, including vacation, sick days and personal days.

Pay transparency is openness about how much people are paid and how pay decisions are made, including sharing salary ranges.

People operations is a modern term for human resources that treats employees as internal customers and uses data to improve their experience.

A performance improvement plan (PIP) is a formal document that sets specific goals and a deadline for an employee whose performance is below expectations.

A performance review is a formal evaluation of an employee’s work over a set period, usually by their manager.

Preboarding is what happens between a candidate accepting an offer and their first day of work.

Psychological safety is a shared belief within a team that it is safe to speak up, ask questions and admit mistakes.

A pulse survey is a short, frequent employee survey that tracks how people feel over time.

Quiet quitting describes employees who do the work their role requires and nothing beyond it.

A stay interview is a conversation with a current employee about what keeps them at the company and what might make them leave.

Time to fill is the number of days between opening a job and a candidate accepting the offer.

Time to hire is the number of days between a candidate entering your hiring pipeline and accepting your offer.

Total compensation is the full value of an employee’s pay and benefits, including salary, bonuses, equity and employer-paid benefits.

A work anniversary is the yearly date marking how long an employee has been with their organization.

Workforce planning is the process of forecasting the people and skills an organization will need and planning how to get them.