Over the last year, Human Resource teams have come under intense pressure to automate and reduce headcount with artificial intelligence (AI). However, as AI use grows, so do the potential risks around issues concern bias, discrimination and transparency.
JR Keller
Assistant Professor of Human Resource studies
JR Keller is a professor of human resource studies at Cornell’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations, where he also serves as director of ILR’s Executive Master’s in Human Resources Management program. He says HR as many people know it is going to experience significant changes.
Keller says:
“I think many of the things that people tend hate about HR are going to be automated. That is what IBM is doing, they're getting rid of the stuff that is super repetitive and very transactional. There will be fewer people who fall under the HR umbrella, but those that do will have much more interesting and impactful jobs.
“There are risks of rushing too quickly to downsize, and companies need to be really thoughtful about how they do it. These are new technologies for one, but there's also the possibility of negative consequences not just for the employees being eliminated, but also the employees that the HR staffers were responsible for. How would downsizing affect their employee experience?“Along with that, many times the biggest customer of HR is actually managers. So, if they don't have the right technology in place, or the right people in place to ask the right questions, then things could very easily go wrong.
“For instance, basic functions like pay raises, and paid time off, and benefits, and things that we don't think of as being very difficult but are still really important to people's everyday experiences. If those things get screwed up, or people have questions about how it’s working, then that can wash through the whole organization.”
You can read more about Keller's thoughts on AI and HR here.
