Is the HR business partner role done? Here’s what could replace it

“In ongoing conversations with clients, I’ve repeatedly heard, ‘we designed a strategic, business-focused HR role, yet the people in the role continue to be occupied with transactional HR work and not focused on business outcomes,'” Johnsen said. “The data confirmed what I was seeing firsthand. Gartner research shows 82% of HRBPs are rated ineffective at strategic activities, and 61% struggle to even prioritize the strategic work in front of them, not because they lack the talent, but because the role was never architected for it.”

The Gartner research Johnsen cited also found that the average HRBP spends roughly 19 hours a week on employee issues and another 16 on daily operations, leaving about nine hours for strategic work.

What’s in a name?

Johnsen’s fix starts with language: retire the “business partner” title in favor of “people business leader,” a change meant to signal ownership rather than proximity.

“Names set expectations, and ‘business partner’ quietly signals a support function, someone consulted, not someone who owns the outcome. HRBPs need to have a mindset that they are co-equal business leaders who help shape business strategy and specialize in talent, leadership, and organizational effectiveness,” Johnsen said.

That reframing is about what a leader walks in prepared to own, not just what they’re called. Johnsen described co-equal standing as an HR leader sitting in on a quarterly business review with the same footing as the head of sales or operations, presenting workforce data as an input to the discussion rather than a report delivered after decisions are locked in.