HR directors · the role
What does an HR director do?
The short answer · updated
An HR director leads a company’s human resources function and its people plan. They set HR strategy and policy, oversee recruitment, reward, training and employee relations, keep the company within employment law, and advise the chief executive and board on the people side of their decisions. In many mid-sized companies the HR director is the most senior HR leader.
What is an HR director?
An HR director, or human resources director, is the senior leader responsible for how a company hires, pays, develops and manages its people. The role owns the HR team, the policies and processes that govern employment, and the advice the leadership team gets on people decisions.
The Institute of Directors describes the HR director as having overall responsibility for the company’s personnel and training strategy, and as contributing to company strategy and policy by advising the board on the human resource implications of its decisions. That second half is what separates the role from HR management: the HR director is in the room when the business decides, not only when it carries the decision out.
What an HR director is responsible for
The IoD’s list of main responsibilities is a fair picture of the job in most companies. The mix changes with the business: in a growing company more time goes on hiring and building the basics; in a mature one more on reward, restructuring and employee relations.
- The HR function. Overall control of the HR team, its budget and its systems.
- HR strategy and policy. Personnel systems and strategies that fit the company’s mission and goals.
- Recruitment and selection. How the company finds, assesses and onboards people.
- Reward. Pay, benefits and the procedures for setting them.
- Learning and development. Planning and directing training and development programmes.
- Employee relations. Communication between managers and staff, mediating disputes, and advising line managers on applying policy.
- Compliance. Keeping the company within employment law.
- Health and safety. Making sure the procedures are adequate, alongside whoever owns operations.
- The board. Keeping the board informed on people and employee-relations policy.
Who an HR director reports to
Most HR directors report to the chief executive or managing director. In a larger company with a chief HR officer or chief people officer, an HR director may run HR for a division, a country or a specialism such as reward, and report to that executive. In some companies HR reports to the finance director or COO.
HR business partners, HR managers and the heads of recruitment, reward, learning and employee relations usually report in. The finance director is a close peer: headcount, pay reviews and restructuring all need both.
The title does not make the holder a company director. An HR director appointed to the board owes a director’s legal duties; one who is not attends for their items. HSE’s Leading health and safety at work is written for all directors and their equivalents, so it applies to the role either way.
HR director vs CHRO vs head of HR
A CHRO, or chief human resources officer, leads people strategy across the whole company from the executive team. The usual marks of the CHRO rather than the HR director are organisation design, succession for the top team and advice on executive pay. A chief people officer is usually the same seat under another title; see chief people officer jobs.
An HR director runs the HR function and its plan. In a mid-sized company that is often the top people role; in a larger one there may be several HR directors under a CHRO.
A head of HR or head of people usually runs HR operations day to day: policies, cases, payroll inputs and the HR systems. In a smaller company the head of HR is the senior HR leader and the title is a matter of choice. For the part-week version of that seat, see fractional head of people jobs.
In a listed company the board works under the FRC’s UK Corporate Governance Code, whose sections include board composition and succession, and remuneration. Board-level advice on those is usually the CHRO’s, with the HR director supporting it. Titles vary, so compare the remit, the reporting line and whether the role sits in the executive team.
Skills, qualifications and the law they work within
No qualification is required by law. The IoD says an HR director in a large company would normally have degree-level education, Fellowship of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development or equivalent, and substantial and broad HR experience, and that smaller companies may be more flexible. The CIPD’s membership levels describe Chartered Member as experienced people professionals with strategic and operational expertise, and Chartered Fellow as highly experienced professionals influencing at senior levels.
The CIPD’s Profession Map sets the profession’s standard: core knowledge, core behaviours and specialist knowledge, each written at four levels of impact. It is a useful frame for judging an HR director’s depth in reward, employee relations or organisation development.
The law moves under the role. The Acas Code of Practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures is the minimum an employer should follow, and a tribunal takes it into account. The Employment Rights Act 2025 became law on 18 December 2025, with changes arriving through 2026 and 2027. Larger employers must also report their gender pay gap each year. The HR director usually owns all three.
Fractional, interim and permanent HR directors
A permanent HR director suits a company whose people agenda needs a senior owner every day.
An interim HR director works full-time for a fixed period: a restructure, a merger or acquisition, a difficult employee-relations case, or cover while the permanent search runs. See interim HR director jobs.
A fractional HR director works a set number of days a week or month: building the policies, the reward framework and the HR team, then keeping them running. It suits a growing company that needs senior HR judgement but not five days of it. See fractional HR director jobs.
An interim or fractional HR director working through their own company may fall within the off-payroll working rules (IR35). Status turns on how the engagement runs in practice, and a medium or large client makes the determination. Our IR35 guide sets out the tests.
What an HR director earns
Pay depends on the size of the workforce, the sector, location and whether the role sits on the board. Permanent HR directors are usually paid a salary with a bonus; interim and fractional ones a day rate.
Our HR director salary page sets out pay, each figure with its source. For open roles, see HR director jobs.
How to hire an HR director
Write the brief around what the role will own and the people problem the company has now: growth hiring, a restructure, reward, culture or a run of employee-relations cases. If the remit is people strategy across the whole company from the executive team, it is a CHRO brief. Our HR director job description sets out a template.
Test the work, not the title: give candidates a real case from your business, such as a restructure plan or a reward review, and take references from leaders they advised.
We recruit fractional, interim, part-time, temporary and permanent executives, and non-executive directors. To hire an HR director, see our HR director recruitment page; every brief gets a shortlist of 3–5, each with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, after our five-stage vetting.
Questions people ask
What is the difference between an HR director and a CHRO?
Scope and seniority. A CHRO leads people strategy across the company from the executive team, including organisation design, succession and executive pay; an HR director runs the HR function and its plan, and may report to the CHRO. See what does a CHRO do.
Is an HR director more senior than a head of HR?
Usually. The HR director typically holds the budget and advises the board; a head of HR runs HR operations day to day and may report to the HR director. In a smaller company the two titles can describe the same job.
Is an HR director a board-level role?
Sometimes. The IoD describes the role as advising the board on the people implications of its decisions. Many HR directors sit on the leadership team without a board seat; one appointed to the board carries a director’s legal duties.
What qualifications does an HR director need?
None is required by law. The IoD points to degree-level education and CIPD Fellowship or equivalent in a large company. Chartered membership of the CIPD is the usual professional signal.
How much does it cost to hire an HR director?
A permanent HR director is paid a salary, usually with a bonus; an interim or fractional one a day rate. Our HR director salary page sets out pay with sources, and on every shortlist we set out each candidate’s pay or day rate.
How do I hire an HR director?
Scope what the role will own, choose permanent, interim, part-time or fractional, and test every candidate on a real people problem. See our HR director recruitment page; we send a shortlist of 3–5, each with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.
