Dr. Sunil Singh
Mr. Sinha, you’ve suggested a fascinating topic about the impact of AI on HR. Could you start by sharing your initial thoughts on how AI is currently influencing HR practices?
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is significantly influencing HR practices by automating structured and repetitive tasks, aiding in talent acquisition, and enhancing data-driven decision-making. AI capabilities are expected to automate all structured tasks and assist with memorization & analysis of matrix data. Thus, potentially leading to a decline in repetitive job profiles gradually. AI is supporting tactical HR roles like talent acquisition, employee engagement, and performance management, as well as fostering a culture of application-based learning .
If we talk about talent acquisition, AI powered tools are streamlining the recruitment process by automating resume screening, conducting interviews and assessing candidate fit based on various parameters. HR Chatbots are 24*7 assistance with information on Policies and responses to employees’ queries round the clock resulting into better employees’ engagement as well as customized support. AI algorithms can analyze vast amounts of data and provide insights that help organizations make informed decisions. This will also eliminate bias in decision making.
AI integration can sometimes face resistance, but successful change management can be achieved through leadership and fostering an environment that embraces technological advancements. The adoption of AI in HR also emphasizes the importance of protecting people rather than jobs, nurturing adaptability, and re-skilling to prepare the workforce for future challenges. It’s crucial for HR professionals to own the automation debate and build a clear narrative to address the anxiety around automation and its impact on jobs. Overall, AI is enhancing efficiency and effectiveness in HR Operations, allowing HR professionals to focus more on strategic and impactful tasks.
Vijay Sinha
Personal Insights
Dr. Sunil Singh
With your extensive experience in HR across various industries, how have you seen the approach to technological change in HR evolve over the years?
Due to fear of Job displacement and concerns about data privacy & security ; adoption of technology was very low in the beginning. However, as technology has become more integrated into everyday HR practices; there has been a noticeable shift towards embracing technology.
While technology greatly enhances HR’s capabilities, it’s important to use it in a way that it should be a tool to help HR serve employees better, not replace the human touch that is so essential in this field.
Here’s a brief journey overview:
- Manual to Automated Processes: In the past, most HR tasks were performed manually, which was time-consuming and prone to errors. With the advent of HR software, many of these tasks have been automated, leading to increased efficiency and accuracy.
- Data-Driven Decisions: HR has traditionally been seen as a ‘soft’ field, but with the rise of HR analytics, decisions are increasingly being made based on hard data. This allows for more objective decision-making and better alignment with business goals. This is visible during hiring and talent mobility process.
- Employee Self-Service: Technology is enabling employees to handle many aspects of their employment themselves, such as updating personal information, requesting time off, Address proof, answer leave-related queries etc. This not only empowers employees but also frees up HR to focus on strategic tasks.
- Remote Work and Flexibility: With the rise of digital communication tools, remote work has become more feasible and common. In many industries, this has required HR to draft new age policies and practices to manage a diverse workforce.
- Focus on Employee Experience: There’s a growing recognition that creating a positive employee experience is crucial for attracting and retaining talent. Technology plays a key role in this, through employee recognition platforms or personalized learning tools. In fact, there has been a shift towards leveraging technology to make HR more efficient, strategic, and people focused. AI is supporting tactical HR roles like talent acquisition, employee engagement, and performance management, as well as fostering a culture of application-based learning .
Vijay Sinha
Deep Dive into AI and HR
Dr. Sunil Singh
How do you envision AI reshaping strategic HR functions like talent acquisition, employee engagement, and performance management ?
AI is poised to significantly reshape strategic HR functions in every organization, enhancing talent acquisition, employee engagement, and performance management. Here’s how: a. Talent Acquisition: AI can streamline the recruitment process by automating tasks such as resume screening and initial interviews. It can also help in identifying the best-fit candidates for a role based on their skills, experience, and other relevant factors. AI-powered platforms can even predict candidate success, helping to improve the quality of hires. b. Employee Engagement: AI can provide personalized experiences to employees, enhancing their engagement levels. For instance, AI chatbots can answer employee queries in real-time, reducing wait times and improving satisfaction.
AI can also analyze employee feedback and sentiment to identify areas of improvement. c. Performance Management: AI can provide objective, data-driven insights into employee performance, eliminating biases that may exist in traditional performance evaluations. It can track and analyze various performance metrics, providing managers with a comprehensive view of an employee’s performance. AI can also suggest personalized training and development plans based on an employee’s performance and career goals.
Vijay Sinha
Dr. Sunil Singh
AI integration can sometimes be met with resistance. Can you share an example where you successfully managed change related to new technology adoption?
There has been many instances where all the modules of an ERP have either been not implemented or implemented but adoption is completely missing. This happens mainly because change management efforts are not properly planned and there is lack of focus on adequate training. I was instrumental in implementing shared services and we started integrating bots in different processes. We could manage change and steered it successfully as we did not allow deviations and ensured 100% adherence to the laid down SOPs. Successful implementation and adoption depends on leadership commitment to make change happen and demonstrate their eagerness to embrace technological changes.
Vijay Sinha
Dr. Sunil Singh
How has the adoption of AI enhanced data-driven decision making in HR?
The adoption of AI has enhanced data-driven decision-making in HR by automating structured and repetitive tasks, aiding in talent acquisition, and improving performance management. the adoption of AI has not only automated and streamlined various HR processes but also enabled more accurate and efficient decision-making, thereby enhancing the overall HR function. Here are some ways how:
- Streamlining Processes: AI in HR isn’t just about streamlining processes; it’s about empowering HR to unlock their true potential. This intelligent technology tackles repetitive tasks like scheduling, data entry, and initial candidate screening. By automating these processes, AI frees up HR professionals to focus on what they do best: fostering a positive work environment, developing talent, and strategically managing the human side of the business.
- Assessing People: There’s immense potential in leveraging creative AI to craft job descriptions and facilitate job matching. This simplifies life for HR practitioners by automating many process-oriented tasks, thus allowing them to focus on more value-added work.
- Enhancing Hiring Experience: Enhancing the overall employee experience is crucial, making life simpler for everyone involved, including candidates, hired employees, and hiring managers. One clear area of improvement is streamlining the hiring process to ensure efficiency and satisfaction for all parties. Additionally, leveraging technology can improve the accuracy of hiring decisions and enhance the quality of hires.
- Automating Repetitive Tasks: There’s significant potential in automating repetitive process-oriented tasks to expedite workflows and allow for more concurrent activities.
- Learning and Development: Organizations are now using e-learning platform to support and reinforce learning within diverse businesses and locations of the Group. These platforms ensure that learning is not bound by time or place, and it becomes a convenient and effective learning experience.
Vijay Sinha
Leadership and Change Management
Dr. Sunil Singh
Leadership Role in AI Integration: As a leader, what role do you play in fostering an environment that embraces AI and other technological advancements?
As a leader, fostering an environment that embraces AI and other technological advancements involves several key roles:
1. Exercising Careful Judgment: It’s important to understand the inner workings of AI tools and ensure they are producing accurate and fair outputs.
2. Encouraging Innovation and Agility: I work towards creating a culture where enthusiastic employees are aided by technology, sparking bubbles of innovation. We also launched Reward & Recognition schemes for the employees to encourage learnings and take up digital projects in their respective departments. Infact, some learnings were made mandatory across the rank and file of the organization. We also started differentiated appraisal on the basis of digital learning & adoption.
3. Change Management: Managing change related to new technology adoption is crucial. This includes fostering a culture that supports AI integration and emphasizes protecting people rather than jobs, nurturing adaptability, and reskilling to prepare the workforce for future challenges. It is also important to create alignment across different departments and we conducted quite a few workshops along with HODs and other senior leaders of the organization so that a common understanding is created and adoption becomes smooth across the organization.
4. Training and Development: Implementing strategies to ensure that HR personnel and other employees are well-equipped to understand & utilize AI tools effectively.
5. Building a Clear Narrative: It’s important for leaders to build a clear narrative around AI and automation, addressing the workforce’s concerns and preparing them for the impact of AI on their roles.
6. Fostering a Transformational Mindset: Encouraging employees to think differently, challenge the status quo, and embrace change is part of fostering a transformational mindset. This mindset is key to developing a culture of continuous improvement and innovation.
Vijay Sinha
Dr. Sunil Singh
What strategies are you implementing to ensure that HR personnel are well-equipped to utilize AI tools effectively?
To ensure that HR personnel are well-equipped to utilize AI tools effectively, several strategies have been implemented:
- Internal Capability Building: There’s a focus on building Centers of Excellence (CoEs) and preparing for digital readiness. We also hired people with different skills viz. Data Scientist; Data Analyst, Programme Managers and conducted boot camps where used cases from different industries were discussed with all the participants.
- Prototyping: Before rolling out the AI tools to the entire HR team, consider conducting a pilot test with a small group of users. This can help identify any potential issues or areas of improvement.
- Change Management: Implement a robust change management strategy to help HR personnel transition to the new AI tools. This include communication strategies, leadership involvement, and providing clear information about the benefits and impacts of the new tools.
Vijay Sinha
Dr. Sunil Singh
What are some of the ethical considerations you keep in mind when integrating AI into HR practices?
To equip HR for AI, we focus on capability building, cross-skilling, process automation, data-driven decisions, analytics-led performance, and social media for talent branding. Ethically, we ensure AI integration is transparent, fair, respects privacy, is secure, accountable, considers employee well-being, and is continuously monitored.
Vijay Sinha
Future of HR in the AI Era
Dr. Sunil Singh
Looking ahead, what are some of the key changes you predict in HR functions as AI continues to evolve?
We are already experiencing the change with adoption of technology. The transactional HR roles will cease to exist as it gets automated. By 2030, there may be a decline in job profiles characterized by repetitive activities, indicating a shift towards more complex and creative work that leverages AI capabilities leading to Job Profile Transformations.
Vijay Sinha
Dr. Sunil Singh
What advice would you give to HR professionals to help them prepare for the future impact of AI on their roles?
For HR professionals to become future ready, they should focus on continuous learning, tech-savviness, agility, strategic HR roles, soft skills, ethical AI advocacy, participation in HR forums, workforce transformation, and clear communication about AI benefits and changes.
Vijay Sinha
Dr. Sunil Singh
Can you share a key lesson or insight you’ve learned in your career that other HR professionals might benefit from when dealing with technological change?
There are three dimensions which I would like to share :
- Self Learning– One needs to keep abreast of latest technological changes and remain open to the process of unlearning, learning & relearning which is a continuous cycle.
- Influence your team to embrace change and become change agent which will work as a catalyst to change. This will not only establish credibility of the HR function but also help HR transform to a more strategic function creating newer opportunities for HR team in the organization.
- Create buy in among peers and HODs– As a CHRO, I have experienced that change agenda supported by peers & HODs gets implemented successfully as those resisting change begin to change .
- Discuss threadbare with the CEO and monitor adherence to timeline to avoid delay which often is the reason for failure.
Additionally, the power of organizational culture in transforming workplaces and empowerment of people is very important defined by principles such as purpose, positivity, and clarity, along with caring, career growth, and total rewards.
Vijay Sinha
Dr. Sunil Singh
Any final thoughts or key takeaways you would like to share with our audience about the future of HR in the AI-driven world?
In the AI-driven future of HR, the key takeaway is the importance of a human-centric approach. As AI transforms HR functions, professionals should focus on strategic roles that AI cannot replace, such as empathy, creativity, and complex problemsolving. It’s also vital to foster a culture of continuous learning and adaptability to leverage AI effectively while ensuring ethical use. Embracing change, upskilling, and staying informed about AI advancements will be crucial for HR professionals to thrive in this evolving landscape. AI is a tool to enhance human capabilities, not replace.
