Le DRH, un homme de pouvoir ?

How important are the function of Human Resources Management and the role of its principal practitioner, the Director of Human Resources, in determining and implementing strategic choices? The research study attempts to explore issues surrounding a first response to this general question. More precisely the study seeks to identify the role of the Human Resources Director in a specific situation of crisis: that of the French ?plan social?, which is the human resources strategy document which, in French law, must accompany the lay-off of substantial numbers of salaried workers. In the first part of the research, a review of the literature, both general publications and publications dealing specifically with staff downsizing, would suggest a strengthening of the role of the HRD. In the second part, this perspective contrasts somewhat with the accounts of ten HRDs involved in laying off staff. The evidence that these provide would suggest a different reality, that of a Human Resources Director largely ignored in the process.