Three Different Roles in Human Resources

Now we know the traditional roles applied in China, I will move to the more advanced models from western countries. The role of HR professionals in these countries is more complicated and is connected with the whole organization, which is at a higher level.

The first model I will introduce is from Australia. This model has defined three different roles in HR, including generalist roles, specialist roles and external roles. Specialists tends to be more focus on single specific area, corresponding to their specific function. Contrary to specialists, generalists have broader knowledge of HR, usually be managers of the specialists, are able to turn their head to different functions. They consider tasks on a higher level, especially on tactical level or strategic level. Besides, external roles include two kinds of people, one is experts invited from outside who may give professional trainings to internal employees. The other one is outstanding employees exploring outside searching for competitive advantages for future development.

The next two models I will now introduce are all from America, as it is very aggressive in HRM. This model is raised by Ulrich. It was revolutionary when first introduced because it doesn’t build HRM around functions, but around roles. In particular, this model has defined four roles listed below as the key components of an HR department.

The HR business partner is tasked with people directly connected with an organization, including employees, shareholders, and stakeholders. This role gives feedback to them about the quality of their experience, identifies top talents within the organization, helps fill job vacancies and shares HR goals with employees to ensure they are implemented across the organization, which helps promoting overall productivity and harmony in the workplace.

When an organization is required to expand, evolve, or otherwise alter its goals or objectives, the change agent communicates those organizational changes internally. This role changes job descriptions to reflect altered roles. He also organizes training opportunities so that employees can learn the new skills necessary for changing business goals or job roles. Essentially, change agent helps adapt the organization for its next stage of growth or evolution.

This administration role within HRM has two duties. On one hand, it follows changes in different laws to help the organization stay compliant with those laws. On the other hand, it is responsible for organizing personal employee information, making sure that it is up to date. In a word, the administration expert aims at solving numerous different obstacles, helping an organization adopt modern and paperless policies for different work.