The difference between an HRA and an HRM in an SME could be as little as "the job title". I've know SMEs with an HRA who is the sole HR professional and who directly advises the Board. "Team Leader" would suggest (1) there is a team to lead, but (2) the word "manager" is heavily status-laden in this company and HR doesn't have the clout to claim it, or (3) there is an HRM who is so tied up with advising the Board and working at the strategic level that they don't have time to also manage the team, so they need a team leader to do that as well. The problem is that "SME" is anything from 10 employees to 300 employees, so the status of the HR professionals will vary according.

In reply to Robey:

I agree with Robey. From my experience job titles in HR mean very little in relation to the actual role, especially in the SME's I've worked in. I've been a HR Administrator doing the same work as a HR Business Partner in one organisation. Where I am now, my job title is HR Officer, but I'm usually referred to as Human Resources, HR, HR Manager etc. on a daily basis (some day's i'm not entirely sure what my job title is!) and it's a standalone role so it is just me to cover all aspects of HR regardless of my job title.

Hi Becci
Lewis Caroll put it this way :
"When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean—neither more nor less."
Job titles only really have meaning in the context of the company where they are applied. At the extreme I have seen start-ups of 5 people with a Chief People Officer or an HR Director; equally in another company, HR Coordinator was the title given to a job charged with co-ordinating the worldwide HR policies of a very large multinational across the 7 subsidiaries in Latin America which made up 35.000 staff - the national HR directors all reportad into this regional job.
Practically speaking the only way to understand what is behind each of the roles is to talk to the company in question, because they will almost certainly vary from company to company.

In that case, how do I go about putting a case together to show that I should be promoted to a HR manager? ;)

I'm currently the HR Team Leader but I am the most senior HR member in the business.

In reply to Becci Lloyd:

Is this a promotion or a change in job title? If you're already the most senior HR practitioner, then it sounds like it's just a change in job title, which hardly requires a business case.

Tbh, I would just raise it in my next one-to-one: "I don't feel my job title reflects my status in the company, nor does it give me the credibility to external partners that I ought to have - I would like to have my job title changed to HR Manager. Is that OK with you?"

Assuming they don't have an issue with it (why would they?) you can then write your own letter confirming your change of job title and get the MD/CEO to squiggle at the bottom.

In reply to Robey:

The only issue I see with this is they have a pay grade/structure based on titles and roles in the company. This would require them to bump my pay up to stay in line with the grading so they may be inclined to do it for this reason.