[Maine Mariner]

Someone on FR needs to enlighten me on HR departments.
I work at a college and have been part of about 15 job searchers for faculty and staff.

Our HR department approves the ad for the position, the salary range, and the questions we ask the applicants. The search committee members (none from HR) review the applications. Interview by phone six to eight candidates that the search committee members believe would be a good fit
and finally bring 3-4 candidates on campus for interviews.
The chair of the search committee also checks references after an offer has been tentatively made. HR people may be a pain in the butt, but they are not involved in the decision making process to hire someone.

[Buckeye McFrog]

HR people may be a pain in the butt, but they are not involved in the decision making process to hire someone.

No, but they are the gatekeepers in the sense that they determine which applicants the decision makers do and do not see, and some of them abuse that position. Like that line from Big Fat Greek Wedding, "The father is the head of the family, but the mother is the neck, and she can make that head turn ANY WAY SHE WANTS IT TO."

[RegulatorCountry]

Yes HR is involved, the writing of the job description weeds out certain types, the interview question weeds out certain types and you’ve oddly skipped past the affirmative action mindset that favors certain types over others. That you and your committee are left to pick and choose from what comes out the nether regions of that process merely creates the illusion of making a decision, when it was in fact made for you.