Essential Work Sample Exercises for Hiring Top People Partners

The People Partner role is pivotal in bridging the gap between HR functions and business objectives. A skilled People Partner doesn't just implement HR policies; they strategically align people initiatives with organizational goals to drive business success. When hiring for this critical position, traditional interviews alone often fail to reveal a candidate's true capabilities in navigating complex employee relations, analyzing workforce data, and implementing strategic HR initiatives.

Work sample exercises provide a window into how candidates actually approach real-world scenarios they'll face in the role. For People Partners, these exercises can demonstrate their strategic thinking, influencing skills, change management abilities, data analysis capabilities, and emotional intelligence—all essential competencies for success in this position.

By incorporating practical work samples into your hiring process, you can observe candidates' thought processes, problem-solving approaches, and communication styles in action. This gives you valuable insights beyond what resumes and behavioral interviews can provide, helping you identify candidates who can truly drive your people strategy forward.

The following four exercises are designed to evaluate the core competencies required for an effective People Partner. Each exercise simulates real challenges the candidate will face on the job, allowing you to assess their practical skills and potential for success in your organization.

Activity #1: Employee Relations Case Study

This exercise evaluates a candidate's ability to handle complex employee relations issues while balancing the needs of individual employees with organizational objectives. It tests their emotional intelligence, conflict resolution skills, and ability to provide guidance to managers—all critical aspects of the People Partner role.

Directions for the Company:

• Prepare a detailed written case study describing a complex employee relations issue. For example: "A high-performing team leader has been reported by multiple team members for micromanagement and creating a stressful work environment. However, this leader consistently delivers exceptional results and has strong relationships with senior leadership."
• Include relevant background information such as company policies, team dynamics, performance history, and any previous attempts to address the issue.
• Provide the case study to candidates 24 hours before the interview to allow for thoughtful preparation.
• Allocate 30 minutes for the candidate to present their approach and 15 minutes for questions and feedback.
• Prepare specific questions to probe the candidate's reasoning and test their ability to adapt their approach based on new information.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Review the case study and prepare a comprehensive approach to address the situation.
• Your response should include:

1. Your assessment of the key issues at play
2. Recommended steps for addressing the situation
3. How you would coach the manager involved
4. Potential policy or cultural implications to consider
5. How you would measure the success of your intervention

• Be prepared to present your approach in 15-20 minutes, leaving time for discussion.
• Consider multiple stakeholder perspectives and be ready to explain your reasoning.

Feedback Mechanism:

• After the presentation, provide specific feedback on one aspect the candidate handled well (e.g., "I appreciated how you considered both the team's concerns and the leader's strengths in your approach").
• Then offer one area for improvement (e.g., "I'd like to see more consideration of how this situation might impact our broader culture").
• Ask the candidate to revise their approach based on this feedback, giving them 5-10 minutes to explain how they would incorporate the improvement.
• Observe how receptively they take the feedback and how effectively they adapt their approach.

Activity #2: HR Data Analysis & Strategic Recommendations

This exercise assesses a candidate's ability to analyze workforce data, identify meaningful patterns, and translate those insights into strategic HR recommendations. It tests their data analysis skills, strategic thinking, and ability to align HR initiatives with business objectives.

Directions for the Company:

• Create a dataset with anonymized workforce metrics such as turnover rates, engagement scores, performance ratings, and demographic information across different departments or teams.
• Include some clear patterns or issues that require attention (e.g., higher turnover in specific departments, engagement disparities across demographics, etc.).
• Provide context about the company's business goals and current challenges.
• Send the dataset and context to candidates 48 hours before the interview.
• Prepare questions to probe the candidate's analytical process and reasoning behind their recommendations.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Analyze the provided workforce data to identify key patterns, trends, and potential areas of concern.
• Prepare a brief presentation (5-7 slides) that includes:

1. Summary of key findings from your analysis
2. Three strategic HR recommendations based on these findings
3. How these recommendations align with the company's business goals
4. Metrics you would track to measure the impact of your recommendations

• Your presentation should be no longer than 15 minutes, allowing time for discussion.
• Be prepared to explain your analytical approach and how you prioritized your recommendations.

Feedback Mechanism:

• After the presentation, highlight one particularly insightful analysis or recommendation the candidate made.
• Provide one piece of constructive feedback about their analytical approach or the practicality of their recommendations.
• Ask the candidate to refine one of their recommendations based on your feedback, giving them 5 minutes to explain their revised approach.
• Evaluate their ability to incorporate feedback while maintaining the strategic value of their recommendation.

Activity #3: Manager Coaching Role Play

This exercise evaluates a candidate's ability to influence and coach managers on people-related issues. It tests their communication skills, emotional intelligence, and ability to build credibility with stakeholders—essential qualities for a successful People Partner.

Directions for the Company:

• Develop a scenario where a manager needs coaching on a specific people management challenge. For example: "A manager is struggling with giving constructive feedback to a technically brilliant but difficult team member whose behavior is affecting team morale."
• Create a brief for an employee to play the role of the manager, including their perspective, concerns, and potential resistance points.
• Provide the scenario to candidates 24 hours before the interview, but don't share the manager's brief.
• Select someone familiar with people management challenges to play the role of the manager.
• Allocate 20 minutes for the role play and 10 minutes for feedback and discussion.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Review the scenario and prepare to coach the manager on addressing their people management challenge.
• Your goal is to:

1. Build rapport and understand the manager's perspective
2. Help the manager identify the core issues at play
3. Provide practical guidance and tools they can use
4. Ensure they feel supported while also encouraging appropriate action

• The role play will last approximately 20 minutes.
• Focus on demonstrating your coaching approach rather than rushing to a solution.

Feedback Mechanism:

• After the role play, the person playing the manager should provide feedback on what was helpful about the coaching approach.
• The interviewer should then offer one specific suggestion for how the candidate could improve their coaching effectiveness.
• Give the candidate 5 minutes to reflect on this feedback and explain how they would adjust their approach in a follow-up coaching session.
• Assess how well they receive the feedback and the thoughtfulness of their adjusted approach.

Activity #4: Change Management Planning Exercise

This exercise assesses a candidate's ability to plan and implement organizational change initiatives. It tests their strategic thinking, change management expertise, and ability to anticipate and address potential resistance—key skills for a People Partner supporting organizational transformation.

Directions for the Company:

• Create a scenario describing a significant organizational change, such as: "The company is transitioning from a traditional performance review process to a continuous feedback model."
• Include details about the current state, desired future state, and business rationale for the change.
• Provide information about the company culture and potential stakeholder concerns.
• Send the scenario to candidates 48 hours before the interview.
• Prepare questions to probe their change management approach and how they would handle specific challenges.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Develop a comprehensive change management plan for the described initiative.
• Your plan should include:

1. Key stakeholders and their potential concerns
2. Communication strategy for different audiences
3. Implementation timeline with major milestones
4. Training and support requirements
5. Potential resistance points and mitigation strategies
6. Success metrics and evaluation approach

• Prepare to present your plan in 15-20 minutes, allowing time for discussion.
• Be ready to explain your rationale for each element of your plan.

Feedback Mechanism:

• After the presentation, acknowledge one particularly strong aspect of their change management plan.
• Provide one specific challenge or consideration they may have overlooked.
• Ask the candidate to revise a portion of their plan to address this feedback, giving them 5-10 minutes to explain their adjustments.
• Evaluate how effectively they incorporate the feedback while maintaining the integrity of their overall approach.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much time should we allocate for these work sample exercises?

Each exercise requires approximately 30-45 minutes, including time for the activity, feedback, and discussion. We recommend conducting no more than two exercises in a single interview session to avoid candidate fatigue. The exercises that require pre-work (like the data analysis or case study) should be sent to candidates 24-48 hours in advance.

Should we use all four exercises for every People Partner candidate?

Not necessarily. Select the exercises that best align with the specific needs of your organization and the focus areas of the role. For example, if the role will heavily involve organizational change, prioritize the Change Management Planning Exercise. If you're hiring for a more data-driven organization, the HR Data Analysis exercise might be most relevant.

How should we evaluate candidates' performance on these exercises?

Create a structured evaluation rubric for each exercise that aligns with the key competencies you're assessing. Rate candidates on specific dimensions rather than giving a single overall score. For example, for the Manager Coaching Role Play, you might evaluate rapport building, questioning techniques, solution quality, and adaptability separately.

What if a candidate asks for more information during the exercise?

This is actually a positive sign that shows critical thinking. Have additional context ready to provide if requested, and note the thoughtfulness of their questions as part of your evaluation. However, if a candidate seems unable to proceed without excessive guidance, this may indicate a lack of problem-solving ability or confidence.

How do we ensure these exercises don't disadvantage candidates from diverse backgrounds?

Review your scenarios and data to ensure they don't contain cultural biases or assumptions. Provide clear instructions and equal preparation time to all candidates. Consider offering accommodations when needed. Most importantly, use a consistent evaluation rubric focused on the core competencies rather than specific approaches or styles.

Can we modify these exercises for remote interviews?

Absolutely. All of these exercises can be conducted via video conferencing. For the data analysis exercise, use screen sharing for the presentation. For role plays, ensure the participant playing the manager joins the call at the appropriate time. Document sharing tools can be used for collaborative exercises if needed.

Hiring the right People Partner is crucial for organizations looking to build strong, people-focused cultures while driving business results. By incorporating these work sample exercises into your interview process, you'll gain deeper insights into candidates' practical skills and approaches, helping you identify those who can truly excel in this strategic HR role.

Ready to elevate your entire hiring process? Yardstick offers AI-powered tools to help you create comprehensive job descriptions, generate targeted interview questions, and design effective interview guides tailored to your organization's needs. Visit our website to learn more about our AI Job Description Generator, AI Interview Question Generator, and AI Interview Guide Generator. For more information about the People Partner role, check out our detailed People Partner job description.

Ready to build a complete interview guide for this role? Sign up for a free Yardstick account today!