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Getting Ahead of AI Disruption in the Workforce: The HR Opportunity

It should come as no surprise that AI has already begun reshaping how employees think and act, given how accessible the tool has become in our day-to-day lives. One of the areas where AI exhibits great promise in streamlining functions, optimising decision-making and enhancing employee experiences is HR.¹ According to Gallup’s latest study on AI adoption, 93% of Fortune 500 CHROs say their organisation has been using AI tools and technologies to improve business practices. This momentum is set to accelerate further across the entire organisation, with nearly all CEOs (99%) either making or planning significant investments in GenAI.²

Examination of how AI is being deployed in key HR functions provides guidance on how to successfully integrate AI into people process and get maximum benefits.

Top 3 areas of Recruitment, L&D and Performance Management

Success stories like these are also great learning opportunities to help build buy-in for AI integration. An IBM global study found that 64% of surveyed CEOs believe GenAI’s success will depend more on people’s adoption than the technology itself.³ It’s clear: integrating the technology is only the first step – it’s the people that remain the most important piece of the puzzle.

The bottom line? AI is an enabler — its success depends on how well employees and managers interact with it and HR is no exception. Deploying AI technology in HR processes requires a fundamental change in organisational mindset – a shift towards continuous learning, transparency, adaptability, and innovation, moving away from traditional processes.

What’s needed is a systematic approach to managing change that considers how people experience change and what they need to navigate it successfully. To address the complexities of AI adoption in HR, we have developed ‘The 3 E Framework’ – Educate, Empower and Evolve - designed to foster understanding, build capabilities, and align organisational culture for long-term success.

Educate

A limited understanding of AI’s purpose and potential at the workplace is the most significant barrier to AI adoption, leading to scepticism and resistance. For example, research by the Society for Human Resource Management (“SHRM”) found that while 92% of HR leaders recognise the importance of ethics in AI adoption, far fewer are actively involved in discussions at the highest levels of their organisations.⁴ This gap significantly undermines AI’s effectiveness and the broader transformation effort.

Consider Intel, where their leadership emphasises transparency and employee engagement as critical components for successfully integrating AI into an organisation. According to Christy Pambianchi, Chief People Officer at Intel,

“The first thing is to be transparent with your employees and engage them in the process. It’s important to reach out to your employee base for ideas on how AI can drive greater outcomes in their jobs — and leverage those voices while applying this technology to advance the wider goals of the company.” ⁵ — Christy Pambianchi, Chief People Officer at Intel

Building strong awareness about the rationale and benefits of AI as an enabler will ensure buy-in not only within HR, but across the entire organisation. A successful transformation narrative, with tailored communications for employee groups, explains the strategy and rationale behind the transformation, helps clarify purpose and addresses fear and misconceptions. Empowering early AI adaptors within the workforce is another effective way to disseminate messaging and build trust. In a nutshell, proactively engaging employees through dialogue helps articulate the vision for AI and drive adoption.

“The biggest secret is demystify what this is (“AI”), teach people about it.”⁶ — Josh Bersin, Global industry analyst and influencer

Empower

Empowering the organisation with AI tools is the next step, but many individuals lack the knowledge and capabilities to use them. Indeed, 43% of HR leaders in another SHRM survey admit they have limited or no theoretical knowledge of AI and a further 54% admit to having only an intermediate understanding.⁷

In 2019-20, LEGO’s CPO Loren I. Shuster committed to strengthening human resources business partner (“HRBP”) capabilities in key areas of change management to help the team become more adaptable amidst the ongoing disruption and opportunities presented by AI.

“Every HR team, regardless of their current skill state, can follow LEGO’s lead to evolve into a highly skilled, consultative, value-adding force that will help their company evolve, transform, and grow.”⁸ — Loren I. Shuster, CPO, Lego

Once organisations have built awareness for the rationale behind the transformation, they should turn to enabling their HR teams, employees and leaders with the tools, frameworks, and behaviours to successfully harness the benefits of AI for decision-making. Role-based training programmes focusing on AI literacy, prompt engineering, responsible usage, and ways to leverage insights for strategic HR decisions, are becoming increasingly crucial for organisations to empower their people in adopting AI-driven HR processes.

Evolve

Adopting AI is an evolutionary process. Without continuous feedback that supports the continuous evolution of the technology and a culture of learning, organisations risk under-utilising their investment and missing out on the transformative benefits that AI can bring to HR processes.

Google provides a notable example of this approach, having trialled its workplace AI products among its 100,000 employees to evaluate their real-world performance. Heather Emslie, Google Cloud’s APAC collaboration and productivity lead, emphasises the importance of adaptability and refinement:

“Along the way, we have learned a lot about what does, and what does not work. Any newly introduced technology and processes should be frequently revisited to ensure they are optimised, and best practice agreed upon.” — Emslie, Google Cloud’s APAC Collaboration and Productivity Lead

Organisations should establish agile, iterative processes to continuously learn and improve the AI implementation strategies, learning curriculums and tools for long-term success. This will require feedback from employees and leaders, working in collaboration with HR, to foster open communication about wins and setbacks, while simultaneously creating a safe space for failing-fast and learning. Regular feedback loops with quarterly reviews help measure progress and align with goals, while celebrating achievements, and recognising contributions reinforce engagement.

As organisations prepare to embark on their AI-led transformative journeys, the HR function holds a unique opportunity to shape the workforce of the future by optimising productivity and improving employee experience. HR functions can use AI to increase their own efficiency and play the role of a strategic partner for the business. How can leaders locate themselves and their organisations on their AI journey? They should ask themselves some key questions:

How is AI changing my business model and value chain?

Where is my organisation in its AI adoption journey?

What are the key challenges I am working with as I implement AI?

Click on our AI Workforce Readiness Assessment to evaluate your organisation’s current AI capabilities and identify key areas for improvement in adopting AI-driven transformation.

Footnotes:

1: Society for Human Resources Management, “HR adopts AI” (2024)

2: Gallup, “AI in the Workplace: Answering 3 Big Questions” (2024)

3: Institute for Business Value, “As CEOs Race Towards Gen AI Adoption, Questions Around Workforce and Culture Persist” (2024)

4: Society for Human Resources Management, “Survey Reveals HR’s Role in AI Adoption” (2024)

5: Associated Press, Intel exec on bringing artificial intelligence into the workplace (2024)

6: Josh Bersin, Welcome to HR in 2025: The Five Big Challenges Ahead (2025)

7: Society for Human Resources Management, “New SHRM Research Shows How HR Leaders Really Feel About AI” (2024)

8: Forbes, “How LEGO’s Talent Acquisition Efforts Clicked Into Place” (2024)