While some experts predict that AI may cause job displacement, others believe it can enhance talent management. Regardless, the long-term impact of AI on the job market concerns HR, and we need to find smarter ways to best utilize this technology.
The Future of Life Institute issued a call for a six-month pause on large AI experiments. The organization argued that AI research has advanced at an unprecedented pace, but ethical and safety concerns have not kept pace with this development.
With the emergence of Generative AI, there is a need to revisit the soft skills library. Conscientiousness is becoming the most crucial skill in the age of Responsible AI frameworks. This skill helps ensure that AI systems are developed and deployed with care by considering the potential ethical implications.
AI is likely to miss certain aspects of cognition and specificity, but this weakness does not mean that AI is entirely negative. Instead, by combining the cognitive abilities of humans with the analytical prowess of AI, a true partnership can be achieved.
Impact on the Job Market:
Before exploring the emerging trends of AI in talent management, let’s briefly analyze its current and future global impact on the job market.
AI and Automation
Recent reports suggest that up to 800 million jobs globally could be lost to automation by 2030. However, jobs that require human creativity, critical thinking, emotional intelligence, and social skills are less likely to be automated, including teaching, healthcare, law, and creative industries.
AI and Augmentation
AI’s impact on jobs will be twofold: automating some while creating others. AI will enhance human productivity by assisting talent with tasks such as chatbots, digital assistants, and predictive analytics, improving speed and accuracy. It can also help employees learn new skills, increasing their value in the job market for employers.
AI and Reskilling
New skills such as creativity, emotional intelligence, critical thinking, and problem-solving are turning essential as they cannot be easily automated. Employers and employees have to identify the skills needed for powering technological transformations and developing better processes. Employers must invest in training and development programs to help employees acquire these skills.
AI and Job Creation
AI is not just a threat to jobs but also a potential source of new job opportunities. Demand for employees with skills in designing, developing, implementing, and maintaining AI systems will grow, requiring knowledge of data analysis, machine learning, and programming. Additionally, AI could create entirely new industries and business models that require specialized skills in natural language processing, computer vision, and robotics.
Trends:
It is not enough for companies to simply adopt AI – it must also be done responsibly and ethically. This has led to a growing emphasis on soft skills, such as critical thinking, communication, and empathy, as essential components of successful AI implementation. All of this is leading to the emergence of a few significant trends in talent management, such as:
1. Rapid Migration to Skills Architecture
This is a shift towards an organizational structure that is focused on skills rather than traditional job titles and hierarchies. For example, the use of contract workers is becoming more common in industries for specialized skills and knowledge. With the development of the right AI frameworks, companies can bring in skilled specialists as contract workers to address specific needs and projects.
2. Maturity in dealing with SaaS applications
As organizations continue to adopt multiple Software as a Service (SaaS) applications, the challenge lies in integrating all these disparate applications and workflows to work seamlessly together.
With Specific AI, this could change. The ability to analyze, process, and integrate data from various sources will become a key competitive advantage for businesses.
AI-powered systems could be developed to identify patterns and correlations between the datasets generated by different applications and automate the process of integrating them into cohesive workflows.
3. Cross Collaboration across Job families
Generative AI offers significant benefits to organizations by breaking down silos and promoting a more integrated approach to technology. Inputs and efforts from various job families can be leveraged to transform the entire enterprise.
By using generative AI, organizations can create a cohesive technology ecosystem that enables seamless collaboration and communication between different departments and teams.
4. AI Enablement roles
As organizations continue to incorporate artificial intelligence (AI) into their operations, it is becoming increasingly important to create new roles that are focused on managing and leveraging AI technology. These roles are essential for building a true AI organization, one that can effectively harness the power of AI to drive innovation and growth. Some of the roles are:
- AI Ethics Officer
- AI Lawyer
- AI Bias Analyst
- AI Fairness and Inclusion Specialist
- Public Policy Analysts
- Innovation Researcher
- Innovation Designer
5. Disruption
As an AI language model, ChatGPT has the potential to disrupt various industries and job roles by accelerating technological advancements and creating hyper-specific automation.
While this does not necessarily mean job elimination, it does mean that certain roles may need to adapt to the new technologies, or new roles will be created to manage them.
6. Jobs with Skills Creation
Each sub-function of an organization will require new skills and jobs to accommodate technological advancements. In the design function, for example, sustainable design has become a significant pain point. As a result, new skills have emerged within the design function.
As our interfaces transition to AI-based systems, skillsets will need to evolve. The design process will require people with social and public research skills to effectively incorporate the needs of end-users.
What Can HR Do
As AI continues to advance, HR leaders are investigating its impact on the job market, including how it will affect their workforce and how they can best prepare for the changes ahead. Here are some ways that HR leaders can enhance their workforce and fine-tune it to AI:
1. Analyzing job roles
HR leaders have to analyze job roles within their organizations to determine which tasks are likely to be automated and which will remain unchanged. This analysis will help us understand the skills that will be in high demand in the future and which skills will become less relevant. With this data, it will become easier to plan your workforce for the long run.
2. Identifying skill gaps
Based on their analysis of job roles, HR leaders can then identify skill gaps within their workforce. Once the skill gaps have been identified, the next step would be creating training and development programs to help employees acquire the skills they need. This will essentially future-proof your workforce for the disruptions on the way.
3. Examining recruitment processes
HR leaders will need to examine their recruitment processes to ensure that they are equipped to identify candidates with the skills and qualities that will be in high demand. This may involve changing job descriptions, screening processes, and even interview questions.
4. Evaluating employee engagement
HR leaders will also need to investigate how automation may affect job satisfaction, motivation, and productivity and develop strategies to boost employee engagement. Higher employee engagement would translate to higher productivity and retention.
5. Building AI-focused strategies
Finally, HR leaders have to craft AI-based talent strategies to ensure that they are prepared for the future of work. This may involve investing in AI tools to enhance productivity and efficiency, partnering with AI vendors, and developing policies and procedures to ensure the use of ethical AI.
Draup’s data-driven talent intelligence platform provides organizations with real-time insights to help them make informed talent management decisions and improve their overall success. With Draup, businesses can access detailed talent profiles, including skills, experience, and job performance data. This information can be used to identify skill gaps, develop customized training programs, and make informed hiring decisions.
