HR execs take the heat for hiring, firing and compensation issues. They also are on the hook for solving disputes among employees and for encouraging too much, or not enough, diversity in the office.
Lean-and-mean start-ups often try to make it without an HR professional on staff, helped by an explosion in HR software in recent years. Funny thing, though: in an era of persistent cost-cutting and organizations trying to "flatten" themselves out, many firms are finding it hard to survive without HR pros.