After being thrust into the limelight with the likes of ChatGPT, more businesses are now looking at how they can integrate AI and generative AI into their operations to streamline key internal processes, says Scott Walker.
Leading organisations are using AI to enhance productivity, helping HR professionals and wider employees to complete tasks more efficiently and effectively, from performance evaluation and employee communication to candidate selection and data analysis.
In other cases, AI is being utilised to automate processes such as recruitment, enabling HR to dedicate more time towards higher-worth, employee-facing activities where human input can improve business outcomes and add more value.
Though AI is undoubtedly poised to significantly reshape HR, it also presents a new set of challenges. Ethical conundrums, inherent biases in algorithms, lack of skills and security threats are just some of the obstacles HR teams may face when adopting the technology.
But these potential problems can be avoided if businesses take the right steps to introduce and embed AI technologies within their organisation.
A base of knowledge
Leaders should first ensure their team truly understands what AI is, what it can do, and the complications it can present. HR and IT teams should work together and lead on identifying any concerns or issues and developing suitable strategies to address them, whether it is a policy on the ethical use of AI or identifying skills gaps within the workforce.
In relation to the adoption of AI within HR processes, by building a firm base of knowledge, HR professionals can better identify the tasks where this technology will be useful, allowing them to tailor the types of tools they choose to integrate into or even replace their existing processes. Just some of the use cases for HR include analysing and grading candidate interviews, customising the employee learning experience, reviewing résumés, and providing compensation recommendations and feedback.
AI-powered technology is already being used by Brightmine, for example. AI Assist is an innovative generative-AI powered chat solution that drastically reduces the time taken to answer to some of the most complex HR questions, swiftly delivering personalised and relevant information from our expert-authored resources to HR professionals.
Skill-building
While establishing a firmer understanding of AI and its use cases are important first steps, it is important that teams are trained with the relevant skills to help them make the most of the technology.
There are two critical areas which should be a focus for skill-building to help HR teams properly leverage AI. These are data literacy and critical thinking training.
Data literacy
Data is an essential foundation for AI, and an abundance of it is crucial for the technology to perform as effectively as possible. Where AI solutions lack adequate data, or where the technology has been trained on flawed or biased datasets, this can lead to poor outcomes or even legal and reputational challenges. For example, in 2015, Amazon realised that an algorithm the business had been using to hire employees was found to discriminate against women.
To use AI effectively, HR team members must be trained to be data literate. This involves building a deep understanding among teams as to how AI processes, utilises and learns from data. It is equally important that teams use data ethically, with leading organisations opting to draw up firm guidelines for employees to adhere to.
Critical thinking
Likewise, HR team members must also be able to verify AI outputs, identify errors or biases, evaluate the quality of AI’s work and abide by established safeguards for using AI. While data literacy has a role to play here too, helping teams to recognise potential issues with AI datasets, these tasks also require astute critical thinking skills. Team members must be able to successfully conduct and oversee AI auditing processes, as well as identify potential ethical dilemmas while using the technology.
These skills are also vital in helping HR professionals to understand when and where AI can be used to enhance processes, and where it should not. For example, while AI can be used to automate a whole host of communications, there are often delicate situations which form part of an HR professional’s job description, such as handling staff health issues, where a human touch will clearly be needed.
In a world that is becoming increasingly automated by technology, it is more important than ever that HR professionals take a human-centric approach to utilising technology and continues to leverage their emotional intelligence and conflict management capabilities.
Establishing policies and guidelines
Once teams have developed their understanding of, and the skills needed to use AI, it is important that they create effective AI policies and compliance guidelines to ensure the technology continues to be used ethically and safely.
These measures should clearly demonstrate an organisation’s approach to the use of AI, and the specific cases where it is acceptable to use the technology. Policies should also outline the rules the company has put in place to control legal, commercial, and reputational risks arising from the technology’s use, such as personal data breaches, the exposure of confidential information, and decision-making based on inaccurate data. Moreover, employers should review and refresh existing company policies to ensure they align with the new technology. This is especially relevant for cybersecurity measures, that will likely need to be updated to reflect the new capabilities of AI.
AI has the potential to transform HR by increasing operational efficiencies and freeing up time for people teams to focus on strategic imperatives. But the implementation of this technology brings with it new challenges, from ethical concerns and the potential for algorithmic biases to security threats. By fostering a comprehensive understanding of AI among HR professionals, equipping them with essential skills in data literacy and critical thinking, and establishing clear guidelines and policies, firms can better ensure that this emerging technology truly augments HR’s capabilities and increase business value.
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Scott Walker is CEO at Brightmine.
