Effective Work Sample Exercises for Hiring Top HR Business Partners

The HR Business Partner role has evolved significantly over the years, transforming from a primarily administrative function to a strategic position that directly impacts business outcomes. Today's HR Business Partners must possess a unique blend of HR expertise, business acumen, consultative skills, and strategic thinking to effectively support their assigned business units. Finding candidates who truly embody these qualities requires more than traditional interviews and resume reviews.

Work samples and role plays provide invaluable insights into how candidates actually approach real-world HR challenges. While behavioral interviews help understand what candidates have done in the past, practical exercises reveal how they think, analyze, communicate, and solve problems in the present. For HR Business Partners who must regularly navigate complex people issues while balancing business objectives, these demonstrations of skill are particularly revealing.

The best HR Business Partner candidates can translate business needs into effective people strategies, influence leaders without direct authority, and design programs that drive organizational success. Traditional interviews often fail to adequately assess these abilities, as candidates may be skilled at discussing theoretical approaches without having the practical skills to execute them effectively.

By incorporating the following work samples into your hiring process, you'll gain a clearer picture of each candidate's capabilities in action. These exercises simulate the types of situations HR Business Partners face regularly and provide concrete evidence of a candidate's ability to perform the role successfully. Additionally, the feedback component of each exercise offers insight into the candidate's coachability—a critical quality for professionals who must continuously adapt to evolving business needs.

Activity #1: Strategic HR Consulting Simulation

This exercise evaluates the candidate's ability to analyze business challenges, identify HR implications, and develop strategic recommendations that align with organizational goals. HR Business Partners must regularly translate business objectives into people strategies, making this skill essential for success in the role.

Directions for the Company:

• Prepare a brief case study (1-2 pages) describing a business unit facing challenges that have HR implications. For example: a department experiencing high turnover, declining engagement scores, or preparing for significant growth or restructuring.
• Include relevant data points such as turnover rates, engagement survey results, business performance metrics, and organizational structure.
• Provide the case study to candidates 24 hours before their interview to allow for thoughtful preparation.
• Allocate 20 minutes for the candidate's presentation and 10 minutes for questions.
• Prepare 3-4 challenging questions that probe the candidate's thinking and test their ability to defend their recommendations.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Review the case study and analyze the business challenges and their HR implications.
• Prepare a structured recommendation that includes:

1. A summary of the key business and people challenges
2. 2-3 strategic HR initiatives to address these challenges
3. Implementation considerations, including potential obstacles and how to overcome them
4. Success metrics to evaluate the effectiveness of your recommendations

• Be prepared to present your recommendations in 20 minutes and answer questions about your approach.
• You may use slides or other visual aids if desired, but they are not required.

Feedback Mechanism:

• After the presentation, provide specific feedback on one aspect the candidate handled particularly well (e.g., their analysis of the root causes, the practicality of their recommendations, or their presentation style).
• Offer one specific area for improvement (e.g., considering budget constraints, addressing potential resistance from stakeholders, or providing more concrete implementation steps).
• Ask the candidate to take 5 minutes to revise or expand on the area identified for improvement, observing how they incorporate feedback and adapt their thinking.

Activity #2: Leadership Influence Role Play

This role play assesses the candidate's consultative skills and ability to influence business leaders—a critical competency for HR Business Partners who must often drive change without direct authority. The exercise reveals how candidates build credibility, handle pushback, and maintain a balance between business needs and HR considerations.

Directions for the Company:

• Select an interviewer to play the role of a skeptical business leader (e.g., a Sales Director, Engineering Manager, or Operations VP).
• Create a scenario where the HR Business Partner needs to influence the leader to adopt a new HR initiative or change (e.g., implementing a new performance management approach, addressing a concerning trend in the department, or adopting a new talent development strategy).
• Provide the candidate with a brief on the scenario, the leader's background and priorities, and the desired outcome 24 hours before the interview.
• The role play should last 15-20 minutes, with the interviewer maintaining a somewhat resistant stance initially.
• Prepare the interviewer with specific objections and concerns that would be realistic for a business leader to raise.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Review the scenario and prepare your approach for influencing the business leader.
• Consider the leader's priorities and potential concerns, and prepare data or arguments that would be compelling from their perspective.
• During the role play, demonstrate your consultative approach by:

1. Building rapport and establishing credibility
2. Asking questions to understand the leader's perspective
3. Connecting your proposal to business outcomes the leader cares about
4. Addressing concerns constructively
5. Gaining commitment to next steps

• Your goal is to make progress toward the desired outcome while maintaining a collaborative partnership.

Feedback Mechanism:

• After the role play, provide feedback on what the candidate did effectively to influence the business leader (e.g., how they built rapport, used data effectively, or addressed objections).
• Offer one specific suggestion for how they could have been more effective in their influence approach (e.g., asking more questions before presenting solutions, better addressing a specific concern, or more clearly connecting to business outcomes).
• Give the candidate 5 minutes to reflect and describe how they would adjust their approach based on the feedback, paying attention to their self-awareness and adaptability.

Activity #3: Employee Engagement Program Design

This exercise evaluates the candidate's ability to design practical HR programs that address organizational needs—a core responsibility for HR Business Partners. It reveals their creativity, understanding of engagement drivers, and ability to develop initiatives that balance employee needs with business objectives.

Directions for the Company:

• Create a scenario with employee engagement challenges based on fictional survey data. Include 5-7 data points highlighting areas of concern (e.g., low scores in career development, recognition, or manager effectiveness).
• Provide context about the business unit, including its size, function, key business objectives, and any relevant constraints (budget limitations, remote workforce, etc.).
• Give candidates the materials 24 hours before the interview to allow for thoughtful preparation.
• Allocate 15 minutes for the candidate to present their program and 10 minutes for discussion.
• Prepare questions about implementation considerations, measuring success, and potential obstacles.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Review the engagement data and business context provided.
• Design an employee engagement program that addresses the key areas of concern while supporting business objectives.
• Your program should include:

1. A prioritization of the engagement issues (which should be addressed first and why)
2. 2-3 specific initiatives with clear implementation steps
3. Resource requirements and timeline considerations
4. How you would measure success and ROI
5. How you would involve managers and leaders in the program

• Be prepared to present your program in 15 minutes and discuss your rationale and implementation approach.

Feedback Mechanism:

• Provide feedback on a strength in the candidate's program design (e.g., their prioritization approach, creativity of solutions, or implementation planning).
• Offer one specific suggestion for improvement (e.g., considering budget constraints more carefully, addressing a specific engagement driver more effectively, or strengthening the connection to business outcomes).
• Ask the candidate to take 5 minutes to enhance their program based on the feedback, observing how they incorporate the suggestion and adapt their thinking.

Activity #4: HR Policy Development and Communication

This exercise assesses the candidate's ability to develop HR policies that balance compliance requirements with organizational culture and business needs. It also evaluates their skill in communicating potentially sensitive changes to different stakeholders—a frequent responsibility for HR Business Partners.

Directions for the Company:

• Create a scenario requiring the development or revision of an HR policy (e.g., flexible work arrangements, performance improvement processes, or compensation structures).
• Provide context about why the policy needs to be created or changed (e.g., competitive pressures, compliance requirements, or employee feedback).
• Include information about the organization's culture, values, and any relevant business considerations.
• Give candidates the materials 24 hours before the interview.
• The exercise has two parts: policy development and communication planning.
• Prepare questions about potential exceptions, implementation challenges, and how the candidate would handle resistance.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Review the scenario and context provided.
• Develop a draft policy that addresses the requirements while aligning with the organization's culture and values.
• Create a communication plan for rolling out the policy that includes:

1. Key messages for different stakeholder groups (executives, managers, employees)
2. Communication channels and timing
3. How you would prepare managers to implement the policy
4. How you would address potential concerns or resistance

• Be prepared to discuss your policy and communication approach, including your rationale for key decisions.

Feedback Mechanism:

• Provide feedback on one aspect of the candidate's policy development or communication plan that was particularly effective (e.g., their balance of compliance and culture, clarity of the policy, or tailoring of messages to different audiences).
• Offer one specific suggestion for improvement (e.g., addressing a potential loophole in the policy, strengthening the manager enablement approach, or better addressing a specific stakeholder concern).
• Ask the candidate to take 5 minutes to revise either the policy or communication plan based on your feedback, noting how they incorporate the suggestion and the quality of their adjustments.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long should we allow for these work sample exercises?

Each exercise should take approximately 30-45 minutes total, including presentation, discussion, feedback, and the candidate's response to feedback. If you're incorporating multiple exercises into your interview process, consider spreading them across different interview stages or limiting to the 1-2 most relevant for your specific needs.

Should we use the same scenarios for all candidates?

Yes, using consistent scenarios allows for more objective comparison between candidates. However, you may need to create multiple versions if candidates are likely to communicate with each other during the hiring process.

How should we evaluate candidates' performance on these exercises?

Create a structured evaluation form that assesses specific competencies demonstrated in each exercise. Include ratings for both the content of their work (e.g., strategic thinking, business acumen) and their process (e.g., communication skills, receptiveness to feedback). Have all interviewers use the same form to ensure consistency.

What if a candidate has limited preparation time before the interview?

While 24 hours of preparation time is ideal, you can modify these exercises for shorter timeframes by simplifying the scenarios and expectations. For example, you might provide the scenario at the beginning of the interview and give the candidate 15-20 minutes to prepare before their presentation or role play.

How do these exercises fit into the overall interview process?

These work samples are most effective when used after initial screening and behavioral interviews have confirmed the candidate meets basic qualifications. They should complement, not replace, other assessment methods. Consider using 1-2 exercises that align most closely with the critical competencies for your specific HR Business Partner role.

Can these exercises be conducted virtually?

Yes, all of these exercises can be adapted for virtual interviews. For virtual settings, ensure candidates have clear instructions about technology requirements and provide any materials well in advance to account for potential technical issues.

The HR Business Partner role is pivotal in connecting HR strategy with business outcomes. By incorporating these practical work samples into your hiring process, you'll gain deeper insights into candidates' abilities to perform the role successfully. These exercises go beyond theoretical knowledge to reveal how candidates actually approach the complex challenges HR Business Partners face daily.

For more resources to enhance your hiring process, check out Yardstick's AI-powered job description generator, interview question generator, and comprehensive interview guide generator. You can also find more information about the HR Business Partner role in our detailed job description.

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