Arpit has an extensive experience of over 14 years. He has done consulting in diverse fields such as corporate strategy, innovation, R&D and digitalization functions, and corporate IP. He has advised firms on technology-related factors such as technology scouting, technology road mapping, open innovation, start-up acceleration, IP prosecution, and monetization programs. In Aranca, his focus is on the electrical, IT, and medical device industries. Arpit has completed his electrical engineering and has a master’s degree in Biomedical Engineering.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is an emerging technology that is revolutionizing industries and processes. The technology uses pre-programmed algorithms to make real-time decisions and complex computing approaches to simplify data sets. In addition, it automates regular, mundane tasks.
It is gradually finding applications in various HR activities and is used by modern organizations. As per the Wall Street Journal, around 40% of the companies across the globe have automated their HR processes.
AI supports HR in the following ways:
Recruitment
1. Shortlisting candidates – One of the main roles of HR is to identify the right candidate for a job profile. To do this, the recruiter has to wade through the data provided by various job portals and other sources. AI can make this entire process simple and systematic. The right AI algorithm will help eliminate irrelevant candidates and shortlist only those who best fit the job. It can also be programmed to set up interviews or calls as per the recruiter’s schedule and share video applications for approval.
AI-powered recruitment platforms by companies such as Manatal, Platina Software, and Wisestep are active in the market.
However, a point of discussion is that AI may reject deserving candidates at times as it lacks the human intelligence to spot potential in a candidate.
2. Pre-hiring assessment – Before a candidate is hired, HR professionals need to ensure he/she has the correct profile and right aptitude to perform the job. This requires assessment of the candidate’s personality, working style, perseverance, and ability to work with a diverse team. AI-enabled assessment models can give recruiters a 360-degree view of a candidate’s personality, thus ensuring a good performer is chosen.
HireVue, Utah, develops AI-based assessments with models that help conduct such complex analysis.
3. Online assessment – Many organizations now opt for online assessment to select the most ideal candidates for the next level of the hiring process. This is ideal for job profiles requiring a high level of technical proficiency. AI can help design the right set of questions and quickly evaluate responses.
Onboarding and Training
Matching the right candidate with the right job is only the first step. It is also essential to successfully onboard and appropriately train the new employee to help him/her perform to the best of his/her ability in the new role. Today, several new AI-enabled training platforms use technologies such as Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) to help candidates learn and understand the fine nuances of their new roles. This proves especially helpful for hands-on training in engineering jobs. AI is also being widely adopted in the healthcare system to train caregivers.
Some of the well-known players in the market are CGS and Edcast.
Performance Evaluation
AI can also support the performance evaluation of employees. Today, organizations have specifically designed HR platforms to allow employees to record their online attendance, project evaluation by clients, and log in their personal evaluation.
HR platforms allow employees to fill in their personal performance details and rate themselves. The same is reflected in their seniors’ systems with their evaluation. An AI system can use the ratings given to measure the overall performance and develop summaries for appraisals and training requirements.
Some of the platforms available in the market today are Engagedly and Oracle HCM.
Retention
The employee-retention ability of an organization is based on several factors. Hence, it is essential to gauge the overall employee satisfaction at regular time periods. For this, several AI chatbots are available in the market today. The chatbots help one understand if an employee is satisfied in his/her current role and identify any pain points that could result in employee attrition.
Genpact designed an AI-powered chatbot called Amber to connect with employees and ask them relevant questions at crucial milestones to measure their level of happiness.
Benefits
AI immensely helps HR functions in the following ways:
- Mundane tasks such as shortlisting resumes, developing HR reports, and payroll can be automated, allowing HR professionals to concentrate on more complex jobs.
- AI platforms can identify and develop regression and forecasting models around workforce requirement, retention, and possible iterations based on historical data.
- AI algorithms can be designed to understanding employee performance and satisfaction score and suggest motivational engagements or training requirements.
- With data, AI can provide sufficient forecasting suggestions to avoid trade union disputes.
- AI gives unbiased responses.
AI is an interdisciplinary science with a multifaceted approach and many HR platforms have adopted it. Furthermore, advances in machine learning and deep learning help expand its applications. This disruptive technology ensures progressive computing capabilities, handling of massive data diversity, and innovations in deep neural networks. AI will soon completely change the way HR functions, making it more systematic, streamlined, and effective. While AI could help in discrimination-free hiring, improve decision-making steps, and foresee employee satisfaction levels, it cannot replace the “human” in HR. After all, this human element shapes a company’s culture. Hence, it is essential to find a way for humans and machines to work together.