The HR function is becoming "deeply undervalued" in many small organisations, a new report has warned, as the role gets delegated to other employees in businesses without dedicated HR teams.

Findings from FrankCrum, which surveyed 1,000 small business owners and employees who handle HR at their companies, revealed that 39% of firms have no dedicated HR department or employee.

Instead, responsibilities of HR leaders are handled by the owner (15%), shared informally (14%), or absorbed by an office manager (10%).

The report further found that just 13% of those with a role in HR decisions hold an HR-specific title, while 29% are administrative assistants, coordinators, or specialists, with no management title.

"More and more companies are relying on whoever is available to do the work, rather than finding the best person possible for the job," the report read.

"In this way, HR is becoming deeply undervalued, and the art of effective human resource management is going unlearned."

Becoming 'accidental' HR managers

According to the findings, HR responsibilities that trickle down to other employees start as a quick favour or a temporary fix that eventually turn into permanent positions.

Some 18% of the respondents said HR responsibilities entered their role "informally" and without any role change, while 14% said the tasks just developed gradually over time.

The report labelled them as the "accidental" HR managers, described as employees who never really chose the HR role but handle its responsibilities.

Nearly half of employees (43%) handling HR work said they spend 10 or more hours a week on it, with most of them saying it comes on top of the job they were hired to do.

But time spent on HR tasks has been expanding, with 59% saying it has increased in the past two years, including 20% who called the increase significant.

"This increase could easily lead to burnout among employees, as they continue to take on new tasks without a reduction in their former workloads," the report warned.

"Burnout becomes even more likely when they're handling high-stakes HR situations with little to no training."

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