[username223]

If your Human Resources people don't play a significant role in purchasing your human resources, something has gone wrong.

[tptacek]

Give me a break. In most companies, "human resources" exists primarily to cut people's health insurance benefits.

[socialist_coder]

I've worked for 2 large technology companies. The first was a big one down in Southern California and HR there was as you describe.

The other was a big one in San Francisco, and their HR was insanely powerful... for some reason. It was quite a shock to me but to a lot of others used to Bay Area startups they made it seem like the norm.

So I guess my point is that not all HR is alike and there is probably some truth to this HR negotiating business.

[webmaven]

Hmm. 'Cut', as in 'reduce', or as in 'distribute' (eg. 'cut a check')?

[nl]

1000 times, no.

HR is there to make sure you know where the toilets are. They can't pick a Javascript programmer, nor can they decide what to pay for one.

[judk]

But they are the ones having the actual conversation and working the rhetoric to close a deal. They aren't Deciders, but they are Negotiators ("salespeople").