Agentic AI is not simply a kind of artificial intelligence; it is the advancement of AI to its greatest potential to date. Agentic AI can act on its own, make complicated decisions, and learn autonomously from the environment that has been created for it by human developers. Traditional rule-based AI doesn’t possess goal-oriented behavior, which is where agentic AI takes things to a greater level. It can adapt and operate with minimal human supervision. And it has the potential to transform HR as we know it.
The use of artificial intelligence in Human Resources continues to grow. HR pros are deploying AI in multiple ways and will only increase their usage. Predictions say the AI HR market will grow to almost $18 billion by 2027.
Leaders in Human Resources must immediately begin preparing to educate themselves on the best use of agentic AI for the benefit of the department and the company. Most of you reading this already use AI in one or more ways. The most common ways are using a GPT like ChatGPT to create job postings, write job descriptions, or help you summarize text for quarterly reports or reviews. This is common across industries in HR where nearly 25% of employers use AI in Human Resources.
An HR Future with Agentic AI
More than two-thirds of businesses are planning to increase their investment in AI, a sign that the future is rooted in new technology. Embrace the reality of this future and begin working toward it in earnest. Think not of how this technology will change the department but how it will improve and futurize it.
The fastest way to leverage the power of agentic AI is in your sourcing of candidates. Before hiring the perfect person for your open roles, you have to find them among the stacks of resumes and applications in your inbox. Agentic AI can be programmed to find the exact keywords, skills, experiences, or backgrounds you want for any role at any time. It can scour every job board, every resume you have in your entire history of recruitment, and sort them based on who would most likely be the best candidate for your company. It also can do this immediately. This will free up hours of your time for actual in-depth interviews where you get to know the person and not simply ask them about the resume they sent or the pre-screening questions you asked.
What Department Pays for Agentic AI?
Whenever deploying new technology at a company, inevitably, the talk of budget and budget lines will begin. As each department fights for its piece of the pie, you will have to decide where the money to pay for agentic AI comes from. My recommendation is to spread the investment evenly across all departments that interact with the tech and assign each department a cost based on their level of use. Yes, this could be tricky at first, but it will be fair and all departments will be able to use the tech to their benefit and increase efficiency.
Then, based on your budgetary allocation percentages, you can see the true return on investment in agentic AI per department. This level of granularity is key to maximizing your benefits.
Begin Your Preparations Now
The use of agentic AI in HR is inevitable. The sooner you embrace this and begin to strategize ways to better the department, the sooner you will be ahead of the competition. That said, you must not rush into this. There are some considerations and steps you need to take to ensure your use of agentic AI is moral, ethical, and to the benefit of everyone in the company, present and future.
Diverse AI Advisory Board
The people making the final decision on how your company will use AI must be advised by several people. This advisory board must comprise members from all levels of the business, including different departments and individuals from diverse social and economic backgrounds. Like any new technology, AI has no memory or moral compass. By taking counsel from a diverse team, you can do everything in your power to ensure it is free of bias and is working for the benefit of all.
Deployment Is Not the End
Agentic AI is not a magic elixir that solves every problem and takes HR to maximum efficiency. Like your printer or stapler, it is a tool, albeit a revolutionary one. Its impact will only be as powerful and positive as you make it. There will be times when you need to evaluate and adjust parameters. To do this, you have to maintain dialogue and regularly solicit feedback from all users and stakeholders in agentic AI. One, this will help you continue to get the best return on your tech investment. Second, when people on your team feel heard, they feel trusted, and they know that what they think of this technology matters.
Train and Upskill Continuously
As AI evolves, so must your knowledge and skills when using it. Collaborate with leadership to develop and implement plans for continuing education and upskilling programs. This is yet another way to maximize return on the investment in the technology. Also, this allows all employees to understand better the technology, your company’s use of it, and the benefits to them. The better the understanding, the less fear associated with agentic AI.
Your People Are the Soul of Your Company
Agentic AI has the power to transform your department and what it provides for the company and its employees, but you have to remember that those people are the center of everything your department and company does. The needs of your employees must remain the top priority when using agentic AI, or the use of it is for nothing. In HR and cross-functional leadership, you must embrace this revolutionary technology while simultaneously supporting your employees. Keeping them first will ensure you remain ahead of your competition and maximize ROI on your use of agentic AI.
