personnel

/ˌˈpʌrs(ə)nˌˈɛl/

/pəsəˈnɛl/

Other forms: personnels

Personnel is a noun describing a group of people who follow orders, usually at a company. If you have a job, you’re probably considered personnel to be managed.

The word personnel is also sometimes short for the "personnel department," another name for the human resources or employment office. One of the things they might have in the personnel department is your personnel, which contains your employment records.

Definitions of personnel

1. noun

   group of people willing to obey orders
   synonyms: force

   types:

   guerilla force, guerrilla force

   an irregular armed force that fights by sabotage and harassment; often rural and organized in large groups

   armed service, military service, service

   a force that is a branch of the armed forces

   armed forces, armed services, military, military machine, war machine

   the military forces of a nation

   paramilitary, paramilitary force, paramilitary organisation, paramilitary organization, paramilitary unit

   a group of civilians organized in a military fashion (especially to operate in place of or to assist regular army troops)

   constabulary, law, police, police force

   the force of police and officers

   private security force, security force

   a privately employed group hired to protect the security of a business or industry

   MP, military police

   a military corps that enforces discipline and guards prisoners

   hands, manpower, men, work force, workforce

   the force of workers available

   patrol

   a group that goes through a region at regular intervals for the purpose of security

   military personnel, soldiery, troops

   soldiers collectively

   rank, rank and file

   the ordinary members of an organization (such as the enlisted soldiers of an army)

   staff

   personnel who assist their superior in carrying out an assigned task

   line personnel

   personnel having direct job performance responsibilities

   management personnel

   personnel having overall planning and direction responsibilities

   newsroom

   the staff of a newspaper or the news department of a periodical

   army, ground forces, regular army

   a permanent organization of the military land forces of a nation or state

   naval forces, navy

   an organization of military vessels belonging to a country and available for sea warfare

   coastguard

   a military service responsible for the safety of maritime traffic in coastal waters

   Marines

   members of a body of troops trained to serve on land or at sea

   air force, airforce

   the airborne branch of a country's armed forces

   military reserve, reserve

   armed forces that are not on active duty but can be called in an emergency

   fedayeen

   (plural) Arab guerrillas who operate mainly against Israel

   Fedayeen Saddam, Saddam's Martyrs

   a feared paramilitary unit formed in 1995 by young soldiers to serve Saddam Hussein against domestic opponents

   European Law Enforcement Organisation, Europol

   police organization for the European Union; aims to improve effectiveness and cooperation among European police forces

   gendarmerie, gendarmery

   French police force; a group of gendarmes or gendarmes collectively

   Mutawa, Mutawa'een

   religious police in Saudi Arabia whose duty is to ensure strict adherence to established codes of conduct; offenders may be detained indefinitely; foreigners are not excluded

   Mounties, RCMP, Royal Canadian Mounted Police

   the federal police force of Canada

   New Scotland Yard, Scotland Yard

   the detective department of the metropolitan police force of London

   shore patrol

   the military police of the navy

   secret police

   a police force that operates in secrecy (usually against persons suspected of treason or sedition)

   SS, Schutzstaffel

   special police force in Nazi Germany founded as a personal bodyguard for Adolf Hitler in 1925; the SS administered the concentration camps

   complement, full complement

   number needed to make up a whole force

   border patrol

   a group of officers who patrol the borders of a country

   harbor patrol

   patrol of officers who police a harbor area

   office, office staff

   professional or clerical workers in an office

   research staff

   a group of associated research workers in a university or library or laboratory

   sales staff

   those in a business who are responsible for sales

   security staff

   those in an organization responsible for preventing spying or theft

   maintenance staff, service staff

   those in a business responsible for maintaining the physical plant

   friendly

   troops belonging to or allied with your own military forces

   hostile

   troops belonging to the enemy's military forces

   cavalry, horse, horse cavalry

   troops trained to fight on horseback

   garrison

   the troops who maintain and guard a fortified place

   general staff

   military officers assigned to assist a senior officer in planning military policy

   headquarters staff

   military staff stationed at headquarters

   posse, posse comitatus

   a temporary police force

   type of:

   organisation, organization

   a group of people who work together
2. noun

   the department responsible for hiring and training and placing employees and for setting policies for personnel management
   synonyms: personnel department, personnel office, staff office

   type of:

   department, section

   a specialized division of a large organization