Giant Lobster said:
Im going to ask a bonehead question here: What do HR people actually do all day?
besides interviewing job candidates and writing job ads.
Sorry if this sounds like I'm being condascending, but it's easy to forget that just like "distribution" manages the distribution function, and "Marketing" manages the marketing function, "HR" manages the organisation's human resources, and everything that's necessary to make them as productive as possible to "add value" to the business. The routine daily things (that aren't covered in uni) naturally include payroll and rostors, to keep the human resources of the company moving. HR people would like to say they're involved in the strategic planning of the business, and matching the
human resources to that end.
So, for example, beyond going through the appropriate recruitment & selection routines to hire the right people, might also involve designing (and if properly qualified, running) training courses, or reconciling problems between departments. Might also cover promotions/succession between positions (depending on the 'weight' that managers of the particular areas have, I suppose), and management of any industrial relations that come about... (However, looking at my current Business law unit, I'd imagine this would tend to be outsourced/heavily advised by lawyers, and the HR dept would then mainly become a figurehead)
At a higher level (ie not the actual actions, but the general intentions) would be to generally maintain the 'culture' you want in your organisation, peoples' motivation (which might be lowered/increased by the above problems/benefits), productivity, etc.
...or so University tells us, anyway
