What Is HR? A Simple Definition That Most Organisations Make More Complicated Than It Needs To Be

Ask ten HR professionals what Human Resources is supposed to do and you are likely to get ten different answers.

Some will talk about people. Some will talk about culture. Some will talk about talent. Some will talk about engagement, organisational development, learning, succession planning, performance management, leadership development, employee experience, or workforce planning.

None of these answers are necessarily wrong.

The problem is that after a point, the explanation becomes so complicated that many organisations lose sight of a simpler question:

Why does the HR function exist in the first place?

When we look at other business functions, we generally do not struggle with this question.

If somebody asks what the sales function exists for, the answer is reasonably straightforward. The sales function exists to ensure that sales happen.

If somebody asks what the production function exists for, the answer is also relatively clear. The production function exists to ensure that production happens.

If somebody asks what the quality function exists for, the answer is again fairly simple. The quality function exists to ensure that the required quality standards are maintained.

Similarly, when we think of finance, the answer is reasonably obvious. The finance function exists to ensure that the financial transactions and financial management of the organisation are handled appropriately.

Most business functions have a relatively clear definition of why they exist.

The interesting question therefore becomes:

If every other function can explain its existence in a simple sentence, why is it often so difficult to explain the purpose of HR?

The Challenge With Defining Human Resources

One of the reasons HR is difficult to define is because there is no single universally accepted answer.

Different organisations will define the role of HR differently. Different leaders will have different expectations. Different HR professionals will have different interpretations. Even within the same organisation, people often describe HR in very different ways.

That is why there is no one singular answer that works perfectly for every situation.

However, if the objective is to find a definition that will fit the vast majority of organisations, then there is a relatively simple way to think about the HR function.

In my view, the Human Resource function primarily exists for two reasons.

The first is to ensure that the right people are assigned to the right jobs.

The second is to ensure that the people who are assigned to those jobs actually do those jobs.

That is the definition.

Everything else that HR does can be connected back to these two ideas.

The right people must be assigned to the right jobs.

And the people assigned to those jobs must actually do what they are supposed to do.

When viewed through this lens, the purpose of HR becomes much easier to understand.

It also becomes easier to explain to managers, leaders, HR teams, and business heads.

Every HR System Exists To Support This Objective

Once the definition becomes clear, a very interesting thing starts happening.

Many of the HR processes and systems that organisations run suddenly become much easier to understand.

Take talent acquisition as an example.

Why does talent acquisition exist?

Because organisations need the right people to be assigned to the right jobs.

That is its purpose.

Now move further into the employee lifecycle.

Why do organisations conduct training?

Why do they invest in capability development?

Why do they spend time identifying future leaders?

Why do they run succession planning programmes?

Why do they conduct research on people practices?

Why do they build multiple HR systems and processes?

When viewed in isolation, each of these activities may appear different.

However, when viewed through the definition of HR, they all connect to the same objective.

The organisation is either:

Ensuring that the right people are assigned to the right jobs.

Or ensuring that the people assigned to those jobs are able to do those jobs effectively.

That is what talent acquisition contributes towards.

That is what training contributes towards.

That is what succession planning contributes towards.

That is what development initiatives contribute towards.

That is what many HR systems are ultimately trying to achieve.

Once organisations understand this, HR starts becoming less of a collection of disconnected activities and more of a function operating towards a common outcome.

The various HR programmes may look different, but their purpose becomes aligned.

Why Organisations Need Their Own Clear HR Definition

One of the biggest challenges many HR functions face is that different stakeholders often expect different things from HR.

Some leaders want HR to focus on culture.

Others want HR to focus on performance.

Some want HR to focus on talent.

Others want HR to focus on employee relations.

As these expectations increase, HR can sometimes become a function that is attempting to solve everything for everyone.

The risk in that approach is loss of clarity.

A business function that cannot clearly explain why it exists often struggles to explain how it creates value.

That is why every organisation should be able to answer a simple question:

Why does our HR function exist?

Not in a twenty-slide presentation.

Not in a complicated competency framework.

Not in technical language.

But in a simple, clear, business-oriented answer.

Just as sales can explain why it exists.

Just as production can explain why it exists.

Just as quality and finance can explain why they exist.

HR should also be able to clearly explain why it exists.

If the HR Head, the HR team, and the senior leadership team all have a common understanding of why the HR function exists, decision-making often becomes easier.

Priorities become clearer.

Investments become easier to justify.

Processes become easier to evaluate.

And the organisation develops a much better understanding of what it wants from its HR function.

The Real Test of an HR Function

Many organisations spend significant amounts of time discussing what HR should be doing.

A more useful question may be:

Can the HR function explain why it exists?

Because once that answer becomes clear, much of the rest of the conversation becomes easier.

In my view, the answer for most organisations is relatively straightforward.

The Human Resource function exists to ensure that the right people are assigned to the right jobs and to ensure that the people assigned to those jobs actually do what they are supposed to do so that organisational objectives can be achieved.

Everything else—whether it is talent acquisition, training, succession planning, development initiatives, research, or any other HR process—is ultimately supporting that objective.

If organisations can define HR in this simple manner and communicate that definition consistently to the HR team, the HR Head, and top management, they are far more likely to build an HR function that delivers what the organisation expects it to deliver.

Because before deciding what HR should do, organisations must first decide why HR exists.