When HR Functions Are Handled by Managers

Introduction

The role of managers in companies continues to evolve. Beyond project and team management, they are increasingly on the front lines, taking over functions traditionally performed by HR departments. This gradual shift is a response to a growing need for flexibility, agility, and responsiveness in human resources management.

Whether in smaller organizations that lack the means to create a dedicated HR department or in larger companies looking to reduce the burden on their central administration, more and more managers are taking on part or even all of the HR tasks. But what are the advantages and challenges of such a model?

SMEs: When Managers Become the HR Department

In small businesses, it’s not uncommon for managers to take on HR responsibilities. In the absence of a dedicated HR team, they often handle recruitment, new talent training, and performance evaluations.

This allows them to quickly respond to the immediate needs of their teams. Being closest to employees, managers have a direct view of skills and development needs. However, this responsiveness can lead to work overload and diversion from their usual responsibilities. They find themselves juggling between managerial responsibilities and HR requirements, which can result in scattered efforts and reduced efficiency.

Despite these hurdles, this management model allows a level of flexibility often needed in environments where resources are limited.

Empowering Managers: A Growing Model

In some companies, we observe a partial delegation of the HR function to managers. They take charge of specific tasks such as skills management, training implementation, and sometimes even performance evaluations. This approach better meets team needs while reducing the workload of the central HR department.

Larger companies sometimes go further by fully empowering their managers. In this model, the HR teams define an overarching strategic framework, but most operational decisions are delegated to managers. This setup drives efficiency, as it reduces administrative bottlenecks and allows for personalized career development plans based on individual needs and the company’s objectives.

However, this model is not without its challenges. Ensuring consistency in team management, avoiding disparities in the application of HR policies, and training managers for these new responsibilities are all necessary conditions for success.

Benefits of Delegating HR to Managers

Delegating HR tasks to managers offers indisputable advantages:

Proximity and responsiveness: As front-line staff, managers can quickly respond to their teams’ needs, identify internal talent, and propose concrete actions.
Autonomy and customization: Skills and career management can be more individualized. Since managers know their teams well, they can offer tailored solutions, especially in training and development.
Flexibility: By lightening the central HR load, the company gains agility and can more easily adapt to changes in the labor market.

However, this approach may require suitable tools to ensure consistency and efficiency in HR management.

Creating the Conditions for Successful HR Leadership

For this model to work, companies must ensure that managers have the necessary tools and resources to effectively handle these new HR responsibilities. This is where technology becomes essential.

Using intelligent HR solutions enables managers to more efficiently manage their teams’ skills and delegate the most time-consuming tasks to automated tools. Integrating AI-based tools like Creates.community is thus a key lever for supporting managers in their new HR role.

How Creates.community Facilitates HR Delegation

In this context, where some or all HR functions are delegated to managers, Creates.community plays a central role by facilitating the transition. Our platform allows managers to handle their teams’ skills simply and automatically, while providing precise insights into future needs.

Automated skills management: Thanks to an automatic skills map and an intuitive chatbot, managers can track skill development within their teams in real time, identify hidden talent, and act quickly to address gaps.
Manager autonomy: With personalized tools and automated reports, managers can independently manage training needs, internal mobility, and talent development, all while remaining aligned with company objectives.
Consistency and uniformity: Creates.community ensures consistency in HR practices, even when they are decentralized. Managers are guided in implementing HR initiatives, ensuring effective and coherent team management.
Anticipating needs: With its predictive AI, the platform identifies which skills will be needed in the future, enabling managers to plan training and recruitment in advance.
Facilitated reorganization: By giving managers a comprehensive view of company-wide skills, Creates.community makes team restructuring easier. Managers can reassign employees more precisely and effectively based on their skills and the organization’s strategic needs.

By leveraging Creates.community, managers can fully embrace their HR role without sacrificing their daily project and team management responsibilities. Technology eases their administrative burden while giving them a clear, detailed overview of the skills that need to be developed and the adjustments required.

Request a demo today to discover how we can transform your HR management.