HR tech is advancing so swiftly and having such an impact that it can be overwhelming for Human Resources professionals. In the recent HR Tech North America event, HR and workplace thought leaders helped put everything in perspective and provided a road map for addressing the challenges that come with these rapid changes. Discover the most important takeaways:
WATCH: HR Tech North America
HR Must Take Charge of the Future
In a conversation between Tom Bigda-Peyton, Chief Learning Officer and Vice President, Organizational Development at Catholic Health, and Christopher Lind, Chief Learning Officer at ChenMed, audience members gained insight into the future of technology and how that will influence the way people work. The two feel strongly that Human Resources is the department to lead people into the brave new world by embracing artificial intelligence, making rules about it, and teaching people how to use it to its full potential and with reasonable controls.
Transparency Is Key to Employee Monitoring
Employee monitoring is a hot topic in HR these days. As some companies seek to provide flexibility by permitting remote work, they are also deploying technology that aims to monitor employee productivity inside their homes. Some have questioned whether this is necessary or damages trust. Others are angry because some of it seems like an invasion of privacy.
The consensus in the panel discussion with Cole Napper, Co-Host of the Directionally Correct podcast, Amy Stevenson, Director of People Insights at HP, and Jaya Prasad, Director of Global Workplace Experience at Poshmark, was that treating each other with respect is vital. To avoid breaking the bonds of trust that employers try to develop with the workforce, they should be honest about why monitoring is happening.
For instance, Napper suggested that investment banks saw a correlation between the number of bathroom breaks people took and non-compliance. People found it invasive that they were being checked for bathroom breaks, but if their managers explained the reasoning behind it, employees may have understood.
"Don't Be Scared" of AI
Prerna Ajmera, GM, HR Digital Strategy & Innovation at Microsoft, told people not to be scared and explained that people should embrace artificial intelligence, rather than fear it during her session with Learning and AI Thought Leader Markus Bernhardt on the technology's impact on HR. Their position was aligned and clear: People will still have jobs, but their roles may be different.
"AI is a tool, and the tool needs someone to use it. And we've made this mistake over and over again in the history of humanity that when a new tool came along we started fear mongering that everything will change. That's happened with technology. And that's happened in learning," said Bernhardt. "Socrates was against writing and people learning to write, because, he said, 'If we all write down lists, we will stop using our brains and rely on what we've written down, so we will all become dumb.' How often have we that heard that, as well, when it comes to technologies? So, number one, it's a tool, and it needs someone to use it. And number two, it's not a solution. No technology on its own has ever been a solution. It's an accelerator."
WATCH: HR Exchange Talks - Reimagining Work in the Age of AI
Experiment and Test the Metaverse
While the Facebook-led Metaverse might be on life support, the general metaverse is alive and well. Paul McDonagh-Smith, Senior Lecturer in IT and Executive Education at MIT Sloan School of Management.
"Just experience it because you can read as much as [you] wish, or you can listen to people like me. But but the reality is that you need to experience it for yourself and build your own intuition. Then, kind of experiment, build on hypothesis of a particular use case, run a small, cheap experiment," said McDonagh-Smith. "Don't kind of break the bank. Don't spend more than 5 or 6 or $7,000. Don't engage with any external partner for longer than 6 to 12 months, and and just run a couple of experiments, collect some data, and then just determine your next path, or next step forward."
Personalization Is the Future
Technology, particularly AI, affords HR professionals the opportunity to personalize experiences throughout the employment life cycle. To start, many are using AI to customize the application process. Aryeh Lehrer, Vice President, Talent Attraction and Acquisition at Comcast, shared his visions of the future, one in which applicants get interviewed initially by bots. Of course, this could happen already, but it will become more advanced and enhanced in years to come.
"The possibilities become endless of what we can do as far as customization and who we can allow to customize for during the the process," said Lehrer. "So, I think, we, by default, think about customizing it on our side and saying, 'Well, we can customize the process'...and put them in the driver's seat a bit. You know, it's just a a complete mind shift that I think can really be beneficial to the overall candidate experience."
Ultimately, HR will lead the next generation into a more evolved workplace that relies on tools like artificial intelligence and the metaverse to enhance the employee experience while also delivering to external customers. The future has arrived, and HR must get on board or be left behind. This is HR's chance to lead organizations, help humans remain relevant in the workforce, and contribute to society by enabling more fulfilling professional lives for all.
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