Is HR Truly Ready for AI?

The answer depends on what it means to be ready. If you are looking for close to 100% assurance that you know what an AI-enabled HR organization looks like or know all there is to know about AI in HR before you get started. Then, no, given the pace of AI technology development, you will likely never be ready.

However, if you consider being ready for AI as knowing the basics, knowing the right questions to ask, knowing what’s core to your organization even amid the AI evolution, and having a learning and growth mindset, then yes, my opinion is that you are absolutely ready for AI.

Over the last six months, I have learned that being ready for AI is less about knowing the technology and the technical stuff; and more about having clarity in your organizational objectives and adaptability in your execution. In a world filled with ambiguity and about to get much more ambiguous, having clarity in the end goal is the key to thriving.

This is much easier said than done.

When you think about how HR has bought and implemented technology for the past 20 years, we have placed so much emphasis on certainty (When is the go-live date? When and what are we migrating? How many lines of data are being moved? What does the new process map look like? Etc.) that I think we have forgotten what it’s like to experiment on a smaller scale instead of doing a big launch, and explore possibilities instead of looking for definitive answers.

So, how can HR get ready for AI? Here are a few thoughts and mindset changes we can adopt today:

1. Expert knowledge is now a commodity.

I spent eight months studying for my SHRM SCP certification in 2018. That same knowledge can be rendered from ChatGPT in under 10 minutes with a series of prompts. So, instead of trading on what you know (which AI can pick up and learn very quickly), focus on why the knowledge is essential, how that knowledge can bring value to your organization, and reflect on what else you might want to know to expand your expertise. Machines can repeat, but only humans can create. So, think about what creation means to you and your field.

2. Everyone is figuring it out.

Here is a little not-so-secret secret: AI is moving so fast that no one can claim to be an AI expert in HR. Even for those working on AI solutions for HR, we’re experienced learners with more time to dedicate to this topic. So, don’t feel like AI is the world of “those who have done it and have money for it” and “those who haven’t done it and cannot afford it.” In reality, there are so many solutions that 1) everyone is figuring it out with you, and 2) you don’t need funding to experiment with AI—there are plenty of free solutions to get you started.

3. It’s an exercise of ongoing intellectual curiosity.

When I first started consulting, I would hear passing conversations like, “We did a similar project three years ago; let’s see what we can use from that project.” I’m pretty sure project outputs will not survive a few months in today’s environment, let alone a few years. The age of AI is the age of the growth mindset. AI is expediting knowledge dispersion and innovation cycles. With that in mind, HR professionals must consider how/when to obtain new knowledge to stay relevant. The easiest way to do that without it being contrived is by staying curious constantly.

4. Change management is not an event.

I’m really hoping this is a moot point to emphasize, but just in case someone needs to hear this: we are in the 2020s, change is a constant, and there should be no more “start change management” and “completely change management” milestones on your project plans. If you view changes as events in the age of AI, you will constantly feel like you are falling behind, and just as soon as you finish one change event, another one is already late. Instead of fighting it and harnessing absolute order from chaos, determine how to create change agility and build change perseverance in yourself and your organization.

5. Technology and data literacy are table stakes.

Gone are the days of “we are people-people, so let the techies deal with the systems and data.” In case you haven’t noticed, we can’t run HR today without technology or be relevant in executive discussions without data. Being an HR leader or practitioner today without some technical and data knowledge is like owning a house and having no idea where your fuse box or master shutoff valve is. So, in whatever way is meaningful to you, think about how you might expand your technical knowledge and data literacy.

If there is only one thing you take away from this entire article, let it be this: the age of AI demands a growth mindset and intellectual curiosity from HR. The mindset and skills that have gotten the HR industry to where it is today will not carry us forward into the future.