What is an HR department?

HR department is short for Human Resource (Management) department, also known in the Netherlands as the P&O department (Personnel & Organisation) or personnel affairs. HRM (Human Resource Management) is the field of people who carry responsibility for the processes of organisational and workforce development. In short: the HR department is an indispensable department, responsible for everything to do with the organisation's most important capital, its people.

What does an HR department do?

Although the work it does is important, the HR department is unfortunately not the most popular department among employees. Many people wonder what it actually does. They usually know its work has something to do with the people in the organisation. They know that paying salaries, absence, and people joining, moving internally and leaving are part of it, but that is only a small part of what an HR department does. It has become clearer in recent years that people are the most important capital an organisation has. The labour market keeps getting tighter, so it matters more than ever to attract the right people and, above all, to keep them. It falls to the HR department to recognise the organisation's problems and needs and to come up with solutions. That means making sure people are happy and healthy and are in the right place, where they can perform at their best. Employees are not always waiting for that, but we have a few tips for it. Ideally, the HR manager or director is part of the organisation's management team, so they can support and advise the board and management on developing and executing the organisation's HR strategy.