The good, the bad and the ugly of AI for HR

The good - utilising AI such as Chat GPT could support automating and streamlining routine HR processes, especially in organisations with a large workforce where they are spending a lot of time on recruitment admin with similar basic queries. This means there will be more time for HR professionals to focus on strategic HR to add value to organisations such as creating employee engagement programmes, supporting senior leaders to attract and retain talent and analysing workforce data to identify trends and areas for improvement.

The bad – not everything generated via AI is accurate or correct. You can generate a policy or a letter but how do you know what you have written is legally sound, has the right tone and is going to achieve the desired effect? Understanding your culture, team and any sensitivities should not be underestimated – if ignored it could create a bigger problem than the one you were trying to solve!

The ugly – The minute you put anything into an AI tool that has any kind of confidential or personal information in it – that tool keeps it – this is a huge privacy problem that’s only going to get bigger. Employees are becoming increasingly aware of their rights as data subjects and privacy is incredibly important. Getting this wrong could cause significant trust issues in an organisation and far-reaching reputational damage.

So, whilst we embrace this amazing advance in technology and continue to explore its uses – let’s not forget the human in HR and the value provided by real people with practical experience in supporting managers and company owners to manage their people effectively.