Haughtney - you appear to think that HR is only involved in recruitment rather than a number of other tasks upon which every company relies, no because they justify their own existence, but because the need arises when the company grows any larger than one small office and a few people who all know each other. Their existence is only partially related to recruitment.
Could you care to name the flawed management policies that you refer to in your post?
If HR do not understand the industry in which they operate, those persons should not be there, since that is sheer incompetence. The function of HR relies upon their understanding of the industry, and the posts above tar all with a brush based upon isolated bad experiences.
Not every personality fits every company culture, whatever their experience.