A recent study conducted by SHRM India found that 31% of companies in the country are currently implementing artificial intelligence (AI) in human resources functions. The findings reveal that 57% of HR leaders in India believe that AI in HR will reduce workloads, enabling them to focus more on strategic tasks.
The study, titled HR Priorities and AI in the Workplace, was launched at the SHRM India Annual Conference by the industry body. The report also found that 70.5% of respondents believe HR teams will remain the same size but will require new skills as emerging technologies become mainstream.
According to the study, 80% of current jobs will be impacted by AI, with 19% expected to be affected by up to 50%.
Interestingly, smaller organisations, with fewer than 500 employees, are more inclined to adopt AI across HR functions compared to larger companies. Commenting on this, Nishith Upadhyaya, Executive Director, Knowledge and Advisory Services at SHRM India, APAC, MENA, told Business Today, “Smaller companies have to compete with larger organisations in the market and establish themselves. Therefore, instead of investing in recruitment, they prefer these tech options to grow faster. They focus more on innovation and products. In contrast, larger organisations are adopting AI at a slower pace since they already have more employees. To stay competitive, they will need to upskill their HR teams in AI. The key term here is responsible AI.”
The study supports this view, with 87% of respondents highlighting the need for upskilling and reskilling employees.
On AI implementation in the workplace, Rohan Sylvester, Talent Strategy Advisor, Employer Branding Specialist, and Product Evangelist at Indeed India, said, “AI is great, but how we use it is crucial. When we spoke with several companies, 77% of respondents said that AI has increased both their work and creative challenges. However, they remain uncertain about its output.”
Echoing this, the SHRM study found that 87% of respondents expressed the need for businesses to focus on training and developing their workforce to equip them with AI skills.
