Open Access

This paper discusses the roles and responsibilities in managing online business networks for human resource marketing and then applies these concepts to the case of the German company IMS Gear SE & Co. KGaA. It is important for companies to consider which departments and employees are responsible for social media, as this is the first step to ensure the success of a possible social media strategy. For the practical part of this paper, a benchmark analysis with four companies and interviews with the employees of IMS Gear were conducted. The findings were used to develop a feasible recommendation for IMS Gear. The literature review shows that it is not advisable for companies to only have roles and responsibilities regarding business networks and human resource marketing, but that they need a comprehensive strategy for all social media channels and a cross-departmental approach for managing social media. At the end of the paper, a possible team structure for IMS Gear is developed. However, the employees would not have the time to add the necessary roles to their daily working routine. Various ideas have been collected to suggest how the company could still build up an active social media presence and ensure the accomplishment of the tasks connected to social media.