HR Business Partner: The toughest role in HR?

When looking to hire a new HR Business Partner, I was often tempted to advertise for a Superhero with strong sense of humour. If I was being honest about what we really needed, then, in addition to the strategic and commercial mindset and the wide experience in the full range of HR elements, I would have added that they should also be … a coach, a law enforcer, a spoon-feeder and a tear-drier. I would have told them that they must be prepared to come up with lots of new ideas, only to have them ignored, to take the blame when things go wrong, and always to have their item put last on any team meeting agenda, after finance, operations, marketing, IT and problems with the toilets.

They would also need to be relentlessly cheerful and be prepared to listen to the ravings or woes of anyone who seeks them out. They would need to be able to present the latest Group-wide HR initiative that has absolutely no relevance to their business unit, to their local MD, as if it’s the best thing since sliced bread. They should be content to spin straw into gold when it comes to presenting the latest employee reports. And above all, they should be prepared to accept that many of the line managers for whom they are responsible are not great with people – and a few should probably not be around other human beings for prolonged periods!

Balancing the demands of Group vs the local business unit. Having to sell outdated and clunky HR processes to resistant local management. High volumes of small but essential transactions.  Poor data and bad line managers. No wonder the HR Business Partner role is the toughest role in HR.

The HRBP role was supposed to be great!

It wasn’t meant to be like this was it?! When the HRBP role first emerged, it was seen as a natural evolution from the old days of Personnel Officers. We were no longer going to be concerned with the issues from our employees, instead … we were going to be strategic! We were excited as we were told that this new title would bring with it a seat at the top table, greater respect for the people agenda and a shift in our role from employee relations to a leadership position. But for many of us, having to cope with reduced numbers, a shared service model that didn’t work (and which our managers hated) and no more respect than when we were labelled the ‘tea and tissues’ brigade, the new title just meant extra work and less happy clients.

Few of us received the support to move into this new role and, let’s be honest, some of us were always going to struggle with a role that depended less on what the policy says and more on the ability to use our judgement. It was always going to be tough for some of us to move from being the order taker to someone who own and drives the people strategy in ways that are relevant for our part of the business. Some of us might not have had the motivation or the ‘smarts’ to make that kind of shift.

Coaching, facilitation and consulting – the new HRBP skills

I am lucky to meet some outstanding HR Business Partners.  Those who stand out are those who have a genuine influence on their clients and who are seen as essential to the strategic, commercial and operational aspects of the business. Their MD wouldn’t dream of making a key decision without involving their HRBP. Their MDs recognise that they have someone who can give them the insights that the rest of the management can’t, who can help increase value, agility and innovation. And they do this, not through policies or processes, but through a consultancy-based approach, through coaching and facilitation and offering tailored solutions that are relevant to their part of the business. Their work is driven by insights and data as well as personal relationships. They are comfortable moving between the strategic and operational but recognise that whilst handling the occasional grievance or sorting that hire out still matters, they can’t stay in the transactional for too long. They invest in themselves, in their understanding of the business but also, they regularly look ‘up and out’ to find news ways of doing things and to challenge the status quo.

Yes, being an HRBP is really tough. But it can also be one of the best roles in HR. Being so close to the business and to real people who value your perspective and input, is so rewarding. Taking the decision to move away from being the employee relations expert and towards a strategic partner to the business is incredibly challenging but so worth it!

If you’d like to enhance your skills and mindsets as an HR Business Partner, then why not check out the Disruptive HR Business Partner Programme starting on the 3rd October. Details here.