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What is your job title if you work in a standalone role and *are* the HR function?

Maria

Hi all,

I have been trying to justify a few things myself, but it would be helpful to get an idea of other people's perspectives and organisational set-ups.

If you ever worked in a standalone position (e.g. SME) - where you ARE the HR function - what was your job title?

I am currently working as HR Advisor in a standalone role, reporting to a Director who handles multiple operations (finance, etc) supporting 100+ staff in a multi site organisation. Previously there were 2 HR People (HR Business Partner and HR Administrator), the 2 were merged and here I am, an HR Advisor doing the two jobs.

When comparing with the other departments, they all normally have a Head of or a Manager who reports to a Director. I cannot think of a singe non-"manager" who reports to a Director. If you are a non-manager (e.g. Executive) you report to a Manager.

I feel that I manage the entire function, even though it is a support function (not a strategic, represented on the board, etc).

I am wondering if it is fair to have a sole HR person within the organisation, but to call them an HR Coordinator/Advisor/Officer (and pay accordingly, of course) and whether it is common practice. Just to mention as well, there is no external help, no consultancy, no office administrator etc. available as resource.

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  • Hi Maria,

    While I understand that title may be important and that we are all motivated by different things, I can only echo some of the previous comments. Your role and responsibilities are not just defined by your title. They are defined so much more by the type of conversations you have within an organisation. I recently moved from a Head of HR role, where I had people reporting into me, into a HR Manager role with nobody reporting into me. Do I feel it is a step back? Categorically no. And the reasons for that are the level of conversations I have with managers/directors across the company. We are talking strategy, planning and these conversations are making them think deeper and better and they recognize the value of these conversations.
    So in your current role you need to identify what is the unique value proposition you can offer to the business. What does make a real difference? Because, regardless of the title and the current role you have, this is going to be what will make you credible when you network within the HR Community and when you interview for other roles.
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  • Hi Maria,

    While I understand that title may be important and that we are all motivated by different things, I can only echo some of the previous comments. Your role and responsibilities are not just defined by your title. They are defined so much more by the type of conversations you have within an organisation. I recently moved from a Head of HR role, where I had people reporting into me, into a HR Manager role with nobody reporting into me. Do I feel it is a step back? Categorically no. And the reasons for that are the level of conversations I have with managers/directors across the company. We are talking strategy, planning and these conversations are making them think deeper and better and they recognize the value of these conversations.
    So in your current role you need to identify what is the unique value proposition you can offer to the business. What does make a real difference? Because, regardless of the title and the current role you have, this is going to be what will make you credible when you network within the HR Community and when you interview for other roles.
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