The World Economic Forum ‘Davos’ annual meeting that took place at the end of January 2023 was aptly titled ‘Cooperation in a Fragmented World’ and its conclusions should make us all sit up and listen.

Participants reflected on the consequences of today’s ‘polycrisis’ ie. the concurrent catastrophes of the cost of living crisis, climate change and conflict in Ukraine, amongst others.

This is having a huge effect on mental health and wellbeing and skilled HR professionals are needed more than ever.

Enter AI

Against the backdrop of the polycrisis, many are seeing the rise of, for example, AI-powered chatbots as another worry.

Others feel that AI could provide precisely the support that is needed right now.

If truth be told, the once illusory ‘technological singularity’ has burst its way out of the realms of sci-fi and into our world.

If we can glean something positive from the use of AI, then why not put it to use in three of the most tricky fields of human resources:

• Employee retention
• Employee engagement
• Employee recruitment

Perhaps now is the time to augment.

Skilled HR professionals are needed more than ever

Retention

Employee retention matters. According to Gallup, the cost of replacing an employee is one and a half to two times the cost of an employee’s annual salary.

There have been a variety of studies that point out the possible positive benefits of using AI in supporting improved employee retention but the most eye-opening statistic is the news that an IBM AI technology is capable of predicting with 95% accuracy which workers are planning to quit their jobs.

With HR professionals constantly fighting the ‘Great Resignation’, could this be a game-changer?

Engagement

If we can use AI to help retain the best people through informed statistical ‘nudges’, then the next step should be to improve employee engagement.

Big data and analytics, which are already being used in HR, can be used to help AI analyse employee data to identify patterns and predict which employees are at risk of leaving, allowing HR to intervene proactively.

Who wouldn’t make use of such informed nudges?

Big data and analytics … can be used to help AI analyse employee data to identify patterns and predict which employees are at risk of leaving

Recruitment

If we can stem the ‘Big Quit’ tide and improve employee engagement, our next priority should naturally be the refinement of recruitment.

AI-powered recruitment tools can help HR professionals find and screen candidates more efficiently. According to a survey conducted by Tidio, around 79% of recruiters believe people won’t have to be involved in the recruitment process in the near future, while 68% of recruiters say it removes human bias in the recruitment process.

Would tools which streamline and speed up recruitment procedures be helpful to recruiters who are constantly overworked and under massive time pressures?

AI-powered recruitment tools can help HR professionals find and screen candidates more efficiently

The statistics speak for themselves

Let us conclude with some standout statistics.

A report by IBM found that 66% of CEOs believe AI technologies will have a profound impact on the work of HR, while an Oracle study found that 93% of people would trust orders coming from a robot, however, although 70% of people are using some form of AI in their personal life, only 6% of HR professionals are actively deploying AI.

Time to strike back?

If you enjoyed this, read: AI-powered chatbots like ChatGPT are set to revolutionise HR

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