Why do organisations need HR Business Partners?

One of the most recruited roles this year in Romania were HR Business Partners. They have been actively sought, regardless the domain or level of seniority.

But how do we recruit the right candidate and which are the skills we should look for?

Just as asking the right question will most often lead us towards the answer, my experience shows that the failure or success of a recruitment process relies, in most cases, on determining the right candidate’s profile. One of the first steps towards this is to determine what function the position we are aiming to fill has in the context of a certain organization. Hence, we initiated a qualitative research project to better outline the profile and function an HR Business Partner should have within an organization. The study was performed using a sample of 37 participants - approx. 60% of which were HR Directors or Managers and 40% HR Business Partners in multinational companies.

Following this research, the following skills stood out:

One other aspect the study evaluated whether there were differences in skills between industries:

When asked “Do organizations need HR Business Partners?” 100% of the study’s participants responded “Yes”. Roughly 70% added that in smaller organizations the function of HR Business Partners is performed by the HR Manager.

In conclusion:

HR departments see the role of HR Business Partners as performing a strategic role, one that works to find HR solutions that helps organizations grow and achieve business goals.

Floriana Enescu, Partner
Romania