HR is a key core function of every business. They manage both the wellbeing and life cycle of employees to maximise the most of the workforce in order to protect and grow the business. HR isn’t a flashy job and a lot of groundwork that keeps businesses compliant with employment laws and obligations are met each month, whether it be from payroll, to Employee Relations, to signposting. Organisations today face an increasingly high turnover rate, with the lifespan of an employee averaging two years. Rising costs of living, decline in mental health and the rise of glorified living on social media have all contributed to people asking, is there more? This has contributed to society needing a quick fix, something simple yet effective that can get the job done, allowing them to move onto the next thing. Modern Businesses have evaluated their process and ways of working, streamlining and reducing the burden on laborious administrative tasks so that workforces can concentrate on the core fundamentals of their roles and responsibilities.
This has changed how businesses view the workforce and data management in 2025 is incredibly diverse. Where some companies are fully electronic, others are still predominantly paper-based, using large filing systems and HR People teams to maintain essential business and employee information. The steep rise in technology and this growing need for instant gratification has contributed to the emergence of AI in everything from cars to phones in our everyday lives. In HR alone, 67% of global HR leaders view increasing AI reliance as a common risk for the future and that overreliance on AI could make HR feel less human.
Despite this, AI has been commonplace in HR since the late 1990s, with simple automation tools such as CV screenings being used to identify key candidates. Substantial employee onboarding can improve employee retention by 82% and the inclusion of AI could make this smoother, however employees have noted that a lack of human interaction can make them feel isolated when joining a new company. HR has since developed over the last twenty-five years, with modern businesses innovating how they promote growth in people-led HR roles. Human interaction and emotional intelligence are an essential part of HR’s functionality. As AI has stormed the market, HR has leaned more towards Data Analysis and Machine Learning to aid in analysing and predicting data, however as AI becomes smarter, is there a risk that HR may become redundant?
What is in place now?
Marna Van der Merwe, an AIHR Subject Matter Expert states that “AI has the potential to completely change how HR operates, but it’s not as simple as adding new technology and expecting instant results. AI in HR is most effective when it’s used with a clear purpose—identifying where it can make a real impact, ensuring the organization is ready, and equipping HR teams with the right skills”. What began as basic data analysis tools have now branched out into more advanced AI solutions, providing insight and real-time generative suggestions into various areas of the business, optimising teams and work output. This does however rely on businesses having a stable platform already in place. Human judgement has also been caught in the cross-fire of AI incorporation, with businesses including Predicitve Analytics and Natural Language Processing into their AI programs to mirror a human response to Employee Relations queries, allowing instantaneous answers and providing advice for direction. This has mixed reviews however, as studies shown that employees still desire a human interaction when talking about sensitive topics.
Core process-driven monthly HR functions such as Payroll, training analytics, Holiday, sickness and workforce planning can also be centralised around an AI system. These algorithms can be implemented on multiple levels and can save managers and HR professionals alike, countless hours of trawling through employee data, to identify tangible and employee trends easily. These processes becoming AI dependent can improve employee engagement from a data level, as the availability of an AI Bot removes the risk of Human Error or the frustration in having to wait for a member of HR to respond to a query. These can be a quick way of signposting employees to easily navigate company platforms, without the use of a human. AI is collaborating with many of the systems already in place such as PeopleFirst, PeopleHR or HiBob, aiding HR teams to make more strategic decisions. These AI-driven insights can support large-scale decision making that impacts business strategy, but the reliance on AI generated suggestions poses a greater risk, as companies will need to be flexible in adapting their strategy.
At the team level, the integration of these systems and adoption of AI-driven tools in the workplace across various sectors can help to manage performance tracking and career goals planning if utilised effectively, sectors that previously were overseen by human analysts. This does however reduce the need for a Human in these roles and whilst would save the business an annual salary, when compared to the setup and maintenance costs, this may not show too much of a financial difference. Proactiveness of Human HR teams cannot at present be equalled by an AI system, meaning that the work that HR professionals do to stay ahead of the game in relation to driving change in businesses, culture initiatives and understanding the mood music within a business alongside compliance to government legislation in day-to-day BAU, is money the business saves each year.
Case Study – IBM
In May 2025, IBM confirmed that they replaced approximately 200 HR professionals with AI agents, a major milestone in the AI vs HR debate. Whilst the long-term effects on this are still unclear, the move allowed IBM to reallocate essential resources to different functions of the business such as sales and software engineering. This suggests IBM are replacing tasks, not people. This should be of a concern as the HR headcount is dwindling, whilst other areas of the business remain unaffected, suggesting there is a desire to remove an in-person HR team from the picture entirely.
Can AI have Emotional Intelligence?
One of the major drawbacks to integrating AI into HR is the lack of emotional intelligence. HR operates in a widely grey area and needs an understanding of the way people work and respond to pointers such as voice tone or body language, with many decisions taking into account the empathy and understanding of the needs of a fellow human. AI chatbots, when asked wellbeing or mental health queries, have responded in a cold or formal matter simply lacking the warmth and concern that humans can offer eachother. This is largely due to the fact AI is an algorithm and while can estimate and predict based on data, will never be a functional figure in organisational culture. When decision making for growth, AI would not take into account key recruitment and onboarding elements such as cultural fit, behaviours or growth potential in their assessment. If AI is used in these scenarios, then it’s best practice for a human to analyse the outcomes and use the advice as a baseline rather than a final answer to provide necessary support to employees.
Removing the human element in these scenarios could be interpreted by employees as businesses showing a lack of care for the wellbeing of their workforce, which would have a direct impact on the company’s efficiency in the future. This leads many HR teams to be resistant to AI, however there is a clear learning gap in the HR market to the benefit of AI. Only 16% of HR teams that use BambooHR as their key platform said that they understand the uses of their AI bots within the system, with over 65% stating they don’t advise their business to use the feature at all. As AI grows in other sectors of the business, it’s essential for HR to learn with the company, allowing teams to understand the frustration or restraint of the teams in their company, empathising and providing relevant solutions to their queries, as opposed to standing on the outside looking in. On the contrast, Modern companies that are embracing AI run the risk of an over-reliance on AI systems, as this can result in poor decision making. In a people-based role, the human element is essential for the efficiency of the wider business and the quality of the output.
What does the future look like?
The critical element businesses and HR teams should focus on is what can AI actually improve in businesses? AI should look to support HR, not replace it. Inclusion of relevant staff members are paramount when reviewing AI suggestions or trends and the business should learn to collaborate and educate eachother. Regular data cleanses and top-level signposting for non-sensitive queries, where there is no risk or need of ambiguity or flexibility in the outcomes, are areas which business should look to identify and trial AI bots. In order for this to happen however, there is a responsibility on the business to provide adequate resources to upskill HR teams to properly utilise the insights that AI can provide, reflecting on outdated processes and innovating new paths to effective people management. Investing in staff upskilling now, allows for a smoother transition into the future, which as emerging trends have indicated will be AI driven. HR needs to welcome the presence of AI to operationalise streamlined processes, to reduce the rigours BAU tasks, allowing HR to be more present in Transformation and Culture Initiatives, prompting managers to use the AI features on their HR systems. “Businesses that embrace a balanced approach of AI and Human decision making, may be best to thrive” according to Marna Van der Merwe, an AIHR Subject Matter Expert.
HR professionals must seize the reins, influencing business leaders to integrate AI and HR together, before the profession itself gets left behind. A world where a lack of human connection exists in businesses has potential health and wellbeing risks. Removing this support in HR could be disastrous for the overall health of the business in years to come. Benchmarking progress and strategically planning for the future must incorporate AI into HR, however many businesses must identify first whether they possess the infrastructure to incorporate AI into their HR functions and must be agile to improve this. HR teams must learn to integrate AI into key analytics and Business Partnering, using summarised data to provide real-time solutions and insight, allowing HR objectives to align with strategic business goals and an upskill into further analytical and digital skills for HR professionals is required. HR remains a critical people-centred function of the business, proving employees a safe space to confide and grow themselves in their everyday work. The quiet consistency and steady growth in intelligent AI software has proven to remove the risk of human error, however what humans may lack in attention to detail, they can make up for in emotional intelligence, suggesting that HR might be the perfect place for AI to thrive and support businesses and their growing workforces.
By Jefferson Smith
Jefferson Smith is HR People Consultant at Skewb. To speak with him about this topic in more detail, you can connect with him through email.
