Neposredni rukovodilac radi sa službom za ljudske resurse.

It means the direct supervisor or the immediate manager—the person directly above someone in the chain of command.

• neposredni = direct, immediate
• rukovodilac = manager, supervisor, person in charge

So this is more specific than just manager. It points to the boss you report to directly.

Because it is in the nominative case, which is the case normally used for the subject.

In this sentence:

• Neposredni rukovodilac = the subject
• radi = the verb
• sa službom za ljudske resurse = a prepositional phrase meaning with the human resources department/service

So the sentence structure is basically:

[subject] + [verb] + [with whom/what]

Because it agrees with rukovodilac in gender, number, and case.

Here, rukovodilac is:

• masculine
• singular
• nominative

So the adjective also has to be masculine singular nominative:

• neposredni rukovodilac

This kind of agreement is very important in Serbian.

Because the preposition sa meaning with requires the instrumental case.

The noun služba changes like this:

• nominative: služba
• instrumental: službom

So:

• sa službom = with the department/service

This is one of the most common things learners notice in Serbian: nouns change form after prepositions depending on the case required.

s and sa are two forms of the same preposition, both meaning with.

sa is often used for easier pronunciation, especially before:

• words beginning with s, z, š, ž
• some consonant clusters

Since službom begins with sl-, sa službom sounds more natural and is the standard choice here.

Literally, služba can mean service, but in workplace language it often means department, office, or unit.

So služba za ljudske resurse is best understood as:

• human resources department
• HR department
• sometimes HR office/service, depending on context

In English, department is usually the most natural translation in this kind of sentence.

Because za here means for, and it introduces what the department is responsible for.

So:

• služba za ljudske resurse = department for human resources = human resources department

The phrase after za tells you the purpose or area of responsibility of the department.

Because after za in this meaning, Serbian uses the accusative case.

The basic dictionary form is:

• ljudski resursi = human resources

But after za, it becomes:

• za ljudske resurse

Here both words change to match the accusative plural form:

• ljudski → ljudske
• resursi → resurse

So this is a normal case change, not a different expression.

radi is the 3rd person singular present tense of raditi.

• raditi = to work
• radi = he/she/it works, is working

In Serbian, the present tense can describe:

• a general fact or routine: works
• something happening now: is working

So this sentence could mean either:

• The direct supervisor works with HR
• The direct supervisor is working with HR

The exact meaning depends on context.

No—Serbian does not have articles like English the and a/an.

So neposredni rukovodilac can mean:

• the direct supervisor
• a direct supervisor

Context tells you which meaning is intended. In a workplace sentence like this, English often uses the because the person is usually already understood from context.

Yes. Serbian word order is more flexible than English because case endings show the grammatical roles.

The version you have is the most neutral:

• Neposredni rukovodilac radi sa službom za ljudske resurse.

But other orders are possible for emphasis, for example:

• Sa službom za ljudske resurse radi neposredni rukovodilac.

That still means essentially the same thing, but the emphasis shifts. Learners should usually start with the neutral order first.

These are two sounds English speakers often need to practice:

• lj in ljudske is a soft sound, roughly similar to the li sound in million, though not exactly the same.
• ž in službom sounds like the s in measure or the g in genre.

Very rough pronunciation guide:

• Neposredni ≈ neh-poh-SRED-nee
• rukovodilac ≈ roo-koh-VO-dee-lats
• radi ≈ RAH-dee
• sa službom ≈ sa SLOOZH-bom
• ljudske resurse ≈ LYOOD-skeh reh-SOOR-seh

This is only approximate, but it helps with the trickiest sounds.

Yes. If you say just rukovodilac, it means manager/supervisor more generally.

Compare:

• rukovodilac = manager, supervisor
• neposredni rukovodilac = direct/immediate supervisor

So neposredni adds precision. It tells you this is not just any manager, but the specific one directly above someone.