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High-impact HR teams have one staff person per 64 employees, spend more than the average

HR budget per employee ($4,434 on average per employee), and employ a higher percentage of

HR specialists than more compliance-driven and basic HR organizations.

High-impact HR functions are more integrated with the business and skilled at helping

managers in attracting, building, engaging, and retaining talented employees. They can adapt quickly to business needs and workforce changes, identify and promote talent from within the

company, and are continuously trying to identify what motivates employees to help them grow

and develop. Also, high-impact HR functions ensure that they are continuously building the talent and skills of HR professionals necessary to help the company meet new competitive

challenges. The greater cost-per-employee of high-impact HR functions is offset by the greater

savings resulting from reduced turnover and increased levels of employee engagement.

The HR department is solely responsible for outplacement, labor law compliance, record keeping, testing, unemployment compensation, and some aspects of benefits administration.

The HR department is most likely to collaborate with other company functions on employment

interviewing, performance management and discipline, and efforts to improve quality and productivity. Large companies are more likely than small ones to employ HR specialists, with

benefits specialists being the most prevalent. Other common specializations include

recruitment, compensation, and training and development.

Many different roles and responsibilities can be performed by the HR department, depending on the size of the company, the characteristics of the workforce, the industry, and the

value system of company management. The HR department may take full responsibility for

human resource activities in some companies, whereas in others it may share the roles and responsibilities with managers of other departments such as finance, operations, or information

technology. In some companies the HR department advises top-level management; in others the

HR department may make decisions regarding staffing, training, and compensation after top managers have decided relevant business issues.

Some companies that want managers to have more accountability for employees believe that

traditional HR departments are unnecessary because they inhibit innovation by creating

unnecessary and inefficient policies and procedures. In these companies, important payroll,

benefits, and other HR processes are automated or outsourced. Also, at smaller companies HR responsibilities are often handled by the owner. They do so for many possible reasons, including

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5/24/24, 6:25 PM What Responsibilities and Roles Do HR Departments Perform?

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