English for HR: vocabulary and phrases for people management

Why is English becoming more important in HR?

HR work in Germany is becoming more international, and for concrete reasons. According to the Federal Employment Agency (Bundesagentur für Arbeit), there were skills shortages in 157 occupational groups in 2025. In these occupations, the share of employees with a foreign nationality has roughly doubled since 2014, from about 7 to about 14 per cent.

When companies recruit skilled workers from abroad, interviews, contracts and onboarding often take place in English. In our courses we frequently see that HR teams in particular have catching up to do in English.

English for HR is about more than specialist vocabulary. Conversations with employees are often sensitive, legally relevant and emotional, so the right tone matters especially here. In our Business English courses we therefore put together vocabulary and conversation training for HR teams based on a needs analysis.

HR vocabulary in English: the key terms

The most important HR terms in English include application, CV, employment contract, probation period, notice period, appraisal and works council. The table lists the most common terms in people management alongside their German equivalents, which you will meet in German companies and documents. Where British and American English differ, the British version comes first.

Recruiting in English: job adverts and interviews

Recruiting in English requires two kinds of phrases: for job adverts, wording such as We are looking for a … to join our team and The ideal candidate will have …; for interviews, open questions such as What attracted you to this role? Questions about age, family plans, religion or origin are off limits in English too.

Phrases for job adverts

• We are looking for a … to join our team in Munich.
• You will be responsible for …
• The ideal candidate will have …
• Experience in … would be an advantage.
• We offer flexible working and 30 days’ annual leave.
• Please send your CV and cover letter to …

Interview questions

Questions about age, family plans, religion or origin are off limits in English as well. In Germany, the General Equal Treatment Act (Allgemeines Gleichbehandlungsgesetz, AGG) applies regardless of the language of the interview. The candidate’s perspective is covered in our article on the job interview in English, and how to assess language skills fairly during selection is explained in assessing language skills in recruiting.

Interview invitations and rejections in English: templates for candidate communication

An interview invitation in English names the position, date, format and length and asks for confirmation by a certain date. A rejection thanks the candidate for applying and for their time, states the decision clearly and kindly, and offers to keep their details on file. Emails like these strengthen your employer brand, even with candidates you do not hire.

Template: interview invitation

Subject: Interview invitation: Project Engineer (ref. 2041)

Dear Mr Okafor,

Thank you for your application for the position of Project Engineer. We were impressed by your experience and would like to invite you to an interview.

The interview will take place via video call on Thursday, 14 March at 10:00 CET and will last about 45 minutes. You will meet Julia Brandt, Head of Engineering, and me.

Could you please confirm by Monday whether this time suits you? If not, we’ll be happy to suggest an alternative.

Kind regards,

Sandra Keller, HR Manager

Template: rejection after the interview

Dear Ms Novak,

Thank you for taking the time to meet us last week. We enjoyed talking to you and learning more about your experience.

After careful consideration, we have decided to offer the position to another candidate whose profile more closely matches our current requirements. This was not an easy decision.

We would be happy to keep your details on file for future vacancies, if you agree. We wish you every success in your search.

Kind regards,

Sandra Keller

Avoid phrases such as “Unfortunately you are not qualified” in rejections. They are hurtful and may be open to legal challenge.

Onboarding in English: welcoming new employees

For onboarding in English, a welcome email before the first day works well: it gives the date, time and place, the plan for the first week, a contact person and the documents to bring. On the first day, short sentences such as Let me show you around help. International hires in particular appreciate clear information in English.

Template: welcome email

Subject: Welcome to the team, Priya

Dear Priya,

We’re delighted that you’re joining us on Monday, 2 September. Your first day will start at 9:00 at our office in Nuremberg. Please ask for me at reception.

During your first week, you’ll meet your team, get set up with your IT equipment and have an introduction to our safety procedures. Your buddy, Jonas, will help you find your way around.

Please bring your passport and your tax identification number, if you already have one. If you have any questions before you start, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

We look forward to welcoming you.

Kind regards,

Sandra Keller, HR Manager

Phrases for the first day

• Let me show you around.
• This is where you’ll be sitting.
• If you need anything, just let me know.
• We’ll have a check-in at the end of your first week.

A structured plan for the first few months is set out in our article on onboarding international employees. For relaxed conversations by the coffee machine, see small talk in English.

Appraisals and feedback in English

An appraisal or performance review in English follows a clear structure: state the purpose of the meeting, give specific praise, raise one area for development (One area I’d like us to focus on is …), ask for the employee’s view (How do you see it?) and agree on goals. Specific observations convince more than general judgements.

For many German-speaking managers and HR professionals, giving feedback in English is a balancing act. What counts as constructive and factual in German can sound harsh in English. At the same time, criticism must not be wrapped up so softly that the message gets lost.

Specific observations are more convincing than general judgements. “You’re not reliable” hurts; “The last two reports arrived after the deadline” describes. For feedback in team meetings, our article on leading meetings in English offers more phrases.

Employment contracts and dismissal in English: sensitive terms

When an employee gives notice, English calls it resignation; when the employer ends the contract, it is dismissal or termination, and for operational reasons redundancy. An Abmahnung is a formal warning, and a befristeter Vertrag is a fixed-term contract. Employment in Germany is usually governed by German law, and English versions mainly aid understanding.

Precision is essential with contracts and dismissals. Many English terms come from British or American employment law and cannot be transferred one-to-one to German law. For an idea of how contracts are handled in the UK, see the Employment contracts page of Acas, the British Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service.

Important: employment relationships in Germany are usually governed by German law. English versions of contracts are often provided to make them easier to understand. The contract should state explicitly which version prevails in the event of a dispute. Please clarify this with your legal adviser.

Common mistakes and false friends in HR English

Typical mistakes in HR English include personal department instead of HR or personnel department, mobbing instead of bullying, home office instead of working from home (the Home Office is the UK interior ministry) and She became a raise instead of She got a pay rise. Explain German legal terms such as Minijob where needed.

If you work with German-speaking colleagues, these mix-ups will sound familiar. More grammar and vocabulary traps are explained in our article on typical mistakes German speakers make in English (in German).

How do you build up English for HR as specialist vocabulary?

HR vocabulary is best built up in your own working context: create a glossary of the 50 terms that really occur in your processes, learn templates such as the welcome email, interview invitation and rejection, and practise feedback and difficult conversations in role plays. Different expectations around hierarchy, feedback and working hours are part of it too.

• Create a glossary: collect the 50 terms that really occur in your processes, each with an example sentence.
• Have templates translated and learn them: welcome email, interview invitation, rejection. Once you know these texts well, you can write variations on your own.
• Simulate conversations: feedback, salary negotiations and difficult conversations can be practised safely in role plays.
• Think interculturally: expectations around hierarchy, feedback and working hours vary widely between cultures.

For written communication, we also recommend our guide to writing emails in English. In our online Business English training, we put together content on recruiting, onboarding and people development for HR teams, from level A1 upwards, one-to-one or in small groups. Companies will find all formats under language courses for companies. If you want to assess language skills across your workforce systematically, a language audit is the right place to start. To arrange an initial conversation, please use our contact page.

Sources

1. arbeitsagentur.de: 2026 32 fachkraefte bleiben knapp zuwanderung gewinnt weiter an bede…
2. ef.de: germany
3. acas.org.uk: employment contracts

Frequently asked questions