The pandemic has forced businesses to grow in different ways in order to survive. There isn’t one business function that has not been significantly impacted and was demanded to change to stay operational. One function that has seen an especially dramatic shift in purpose and processes is human resources.
The overall role of HR and the daily tasks performed by HR professionals have gone through significant shifts, particularly because of the exponential growth of remote work in response to the COVID pandemic. Not only have human resources professionals had to guide their companies and employees through the transition to a more digital and distributed work environment, but they have also had to learn how to be productive and successful in their own roles when working from home. Both have required HR professionals to learn new skills to complete tasks they weren’t necessarily prepared to confront.
As a result, many companies have adapted AI-based technologies to help out with different tasks, especially those relating to the HR department. The post-pandemic world will witness the evolution of HR with new responsibilities but also with more growth than ever thanks to the assistance of AI.
Firstly, what has been clearer than ever is how HR as a business function has become much more challenging for professionals. HR is playing a more strategic role at companies as they try to deal with human capital challenges and sustainability concerns presented by the pandemic. HR is critical in keeping organizations running smoothly and recovering the workplaces back together with greater resistance. Executives and employees are both turning to them for guidance on how to move forward and overcome the present challenges. Consequently, HR professionals are having to do things that they have never done before in their career and learning about this as they go.
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Secondly, HR professionals have to master the digital workplace so as to manage teams and do virtual recruitments. As work becomes remote for almost everyone, HR has to ensure that all employees have a smooth transition from the office to their home while also maintaining an organized and up-to-standard workflow. HR teams have also adapted to virtual recruitment as they are now conducting the entire recruitment process from planning and talent sourcing to assessing, selecting, hiring, and onboarding online through a screen. Not only that, they also have to make sure that virtual job fairs and hiring events still happen accordingly. Thus, HR professionals have to adopt new technologies to facilitate those events, market them to the right audience, and develop customized content. Remote onboarding is also a key part of virtual recruiting. To establish connections and complete paperwork digitally with new hires, HR teams have had to strengthen their technological, communication, and engagement abilities.
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Thirdly, human resource departments have largely been tasked with selecting, learning, and implementing the new technology systems that businesses have adapted to help improve everyone’s working conditions. As a result, AI-based technology has a significant impact on the processes and capabilities of human resources departments.
- A high rate of employee turnover is a costly problem not only for the organization as a whole, but for HR teams who have to continuously dedicate time and resources to filling job positions. AI enables companies to reduce turnover because it allows them to predict employee success and build employee career paths for growth within the organization. This means HR teams spend less time on recruiting and hiring tasks and more time strategically scaling the company.
- AI technologies can help make sure candidates are a good match over the long term for a position before hiring, there’s an increased likelihood they will stay with the company. It can be used to determine the match between a candidate’s resume and the job requisition, and to make accurate predictions of future performance based on information about the candidate collected in the job application process. Take JobHopin AI Bunny and Machine Learning technology as an example. It guarantees a success rate of a match between the candidate and the employer up to 30%, and there is even a 100% success rate with a manager level position.
- Another way AI can help reduce turnover post-Covid is through automating career mapping. This enables HR teams to provide employees with a picture of their future progression within the company, thus increasing their loyalty. In this dynamic moment of re-opening, this is an opportunity for HR to retain talent. Career mapping with AI-based technology is done more efficiently because the tech analyzes higher volumes of data more quickly to build realistic career paths. By analyzing skills, experiences, and competencies, AI is able to explore different roles for employees that may have escaped the notice of HR when manually mapping. This opens up more possibilities for employees, enticing them to stay with the company
- AI also helps HR with the length talent acquisition process by creating targeted job descriptions that attract high-quality candidates. The tech can also quickly scan through large volumes of resumes and narrow the candidate pool to those most likely to succeed at the company. Chatbots can be used to guide applicants through the application process and answer their answers anytime, day or night. AI can also be used to speed up the onboarding process. Companies can use the technology to automatically develop onboarding materials and compile data. Chatbots are useful for answering queries from new employees. AI can also be utilized to automate benefits enrollment, facilitate networking between new and existing workers, and gather feedback on onboarding experiences. Employees can even use AI during onboarding to see what skills they should focus on learning during their initial months on the job, what short-term projects they should take on, and mentors they should meet.
- Another way AI-based technology helps HR scale strategically is by automating repetitive tasks. Among a host of time-consuming administrative tasks, these include: administering benefits, scheduling interviews, managing employee attendance and leave, payroll administration. Artificial intelligence also enables administrators to make data-driven decisions more quickly which in turn enables HR departments and companies to achieve goals.
Next, it is also one of HR’s responsibilities is serving as public health administrators who ensure employees of their safety as they return to office. To do so, HR departments have had to stay up to date on ever-changing legislation and regulations concerning worker safety. Workplace adjustments included staggered work schedules, repositioning staff work stations, mapping paths through offices, and drafting mask policies. Employees must be informed of the policies, and compliance must be monitored.
Lastly, as employee privacy becomes more prevalent than ever before, it is up to the HR teams to ensure that companies protect the privacy of their employees when gathering information to make business decisions. The key to accomplishing this task for HR professionals has been learning what the privacy regulations are, and then helping leadership create employee data ethics policies.
While it has not been easy for HR professionals to adapt to new changes and responsibilities, this has been an opportunity for the HR departments in businesses all over the world to revolutionize and evolve into a more profound and fundamental function. With the help of more advanced AI-technologies facilitating the workplace, the Human Resource department will become more critical and efficient than ever before.
If you are searching for help for a more effective hiring process, JobHopin is proud to be the first recruitment platform that successfully applies AI/ML (Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning) into the talent recruitment process. Bunny AI from JobHopin can help employers:
- Speed up CV screening (50,000 CV/day)
- Analyze data, connect HR with the most suitable candidates
- Follow up on the application progress
- Chat with candidates through the chat feature
- Set up interviews
Visit JobHopin and get the best recruiting experience that’s tailored for your needs.
“How AI-Based Technology Can Help Human Resources Scale.” Eightfold, 24 May 2021, eightfold.ai/blog/ai-human-resources-scale/.
“How Has The Pandemic Changed The Role of Human Resources?” Eightfold, 15 Mar. 2021, eightfold.ai/blog/pandemic-role-of-human-resources/.