Editorial
It’s probably no surprise that players throughout the HR technology sector believe generative AI is here to stay. After all, many are already at work knitting these capabilities into their HR and talent acquisition processes, along with the software that supports them.
For instance, SAP and Microsoft have teamed up to develop AI tools for enterprise talent acquisition teams. Paycor just released a tool that uses AI to generate job descriptions. Last month, Ceridian launched AI-powered features designed to help employees manage their careers. All of those — and many more — are contributing to an expanding market, one that’s growing at a CAGR of 15.4%
“Without a doubt, generative AI will both disrupt and change business at every layer,” said SAP SuccessFactors President Meg Bear. “The key for HR systems and HR providers is to make sure they leverage the strengths of AI for real value creation.”
Bear doesn’t believe technology’s rush into generative AI is a flash in the pan. “This is not really about fads but about learning and discovery,” she said. “Remember, we are in the early stages of capability, but it’s clear to everyone that this is pretty exciting.”
Training Wheels
One important caveat with generative AI developments is that many people seem to have forgotten that “early stages” means “early stages.”
Not too long ago, a New York attorney used ChatGPT to research cases he included in a legal brief. It turned out none of those cases actually exist, and the court wasn’t happy. Nor is it just ChatGPT: Google’s competing product, Bard, was also called out on Twitter after making a notable error during its first demo (no, the James Webb Space Telescope did not take “the very first image of a planet outside our solar system.”). As tech and science website BGR noted, “Bard and ChatGPT can speak with incredible confidence…while being incredibly wrong.”
As far as users go, most Americans are aware of ChatGPT and the growing development of generative AI. Cloud-focused website Cloudwards reports 100 million people used ChatGPT as by February 2023, just three months after its November 2022 launch. Since then, the tool has become the fastest growing app in history.
According to the Pew Research Center, while 58% of Americans have heard of ChatGPT, only 14% have tried it. While they’re open to allowing the technology to handle specific tasks for them, some are reluctant to trust AI with decisions that could significantly impact their lives.
This delta means the app has a lot of opportunity for growth, as more people begin to experiment with it. ChatGPT itself says it can impact HCM technology in a number of ways: improving the employee experience, enhancing recruitment and onboarding, supporting training and development, analyzing large volumes of HR-related data and streamlining HR processes. However, it cautions, “while ChatGPT can bring numerous benefits to HR technology, human oversight and expertise remain crucial.”
That echoes the thinking of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. “ChatGPT is incredibly limited, but good enough at some things to create a misleading impression of greatness,” he tweeted. “It's a mistake to be relying on it for anything important right now.”
Related Article: AI Is Here to Help. Recruiters Aren't So Sure
Content Is King
When you get right down to it, ChatGPT is about content. Despite all the talk about artificial intelligence and natural language processing, neural network architecture and large language models, the app basically facilitates communications between people and technology in order to generate desired information. (In a similar vein, ChatGPT’s sibling DALL-E uses natural language prompts to create images and art.)
“We’re talking about a hyper-personalized experience that can be delivered to anybody, whether a leader, employee or a customer of HR,” said Cliff Jurkiewicz, Phenom’s vice president of global strategy. “That relationship is going to entirely transform the HR business model and the services they offer.”
Already, ChatGPT is dominating the conversation about how businesses and consumers will take advantage of artificial intelligence. Technology businesses, publishers, communications firms, soft drink makers and dozens of other types of companies are running the app through its paces. A survey by ResumeBuilder found that 49% now use ChatGPT, and 30% plan to.
This is a hot streak, and all manner of HR technology providers are looking to ride it. In March, Hireology incorporated ChatGPT into its platform, allowing users to generate job descriptions “in seconds.” SeekOut launched SeekOut Assist, which helps recruiting teams move from creating job descriptions to initial contact with candidates. And in May, Dice released AutoPen, which uses ChatGPT to auto-generate cover letters for technology professionals.
Some of these efforts are based on a fear of missing out, said Ellen Loeshelle, the director of product management at Qualtrics. “You don’t want to be the one player who’s not saying something about it,” she said. “Some of our customers, all they want to hear is that we’re thinking about AI. I could say [we are] in one sentence and get off the phone and they’d be happy.”
Bear said the enthusiasm and desire to lean in on the innovation is not unexpected. “While there will be a lot of ephemeral ‘offerings’ as a result, I think that it’s generally a good thing to experiment and try new things.”
Related Article: Introducing Generative AI at Work? 5 Tips to Help Get It Right
Where to Next?
Of course, since ChatGPT represents a new path into the world of AI, analysts, business leaders, journalists and venture capitalists are all intensely speculating about what it’s good at, what it’s bad at and what jobs it will replace.
Conference
Sep
16
HR Tech Conference Las Vegas 2025
Register
Conference
Oct
27
Gartner HR Symposium/Xpo Orlando 2025
Register
Copywriters, support agents and software developers are all on the danger list, according to Miroslav Dimitrov, president and chief operating officer of New York-based NWO.ai. Bloomberg says salespeople and risk managers should be looking over their shoulders. The Daily Mail is watching retail staff, graphic designers and cybersecurity experts.
“When people hear the combination of HR and AI, I think the first reaction we get a lot is, ‘oh my god, scary,’” said Wojtek Kubik, Qualtrics’ head of product management for employee experience.
“There’s good reason for that. We’re talking about people’s work, we’re talking about people's lives, and I think we’re going to have to be very thoughtful in how we apply AI both on the generative side as well as some of the…models where we’re trying to categorize things.”
Learn how you can join our contributor community.
