At HR Tech, experts consider future of human judgment
The role of AI versus human judgment is being debated at this week's HR Tech Conference. HR managers see a dividing line, even if they are unsure about where it is.
LAS VEGAS -- Recruiters increasingly rely on generative AI in HR to speed up hiring processes. However, companies like Marriott International see clear limits to AI automation, and believe human judgment is critical in recruitment. The dividing line between AI and humans emerged as a key focus of debate at this week's HR Technology Conference & Exposition.
"We feel like the humans still matter, and so we're not willing to take them completely out of it," said Meghan Rhatigan, vice president of talent acquisition experience at Marriott.
Rhatigan was among the users appearing on the conference panel to discuss their experience with AI in HR. While many seem enthusiastic about its potential, they also see its limitations.
We're not looking at AI to be the decision makers.
Shay Johnson Vice president of strategic HR partnerships, Compass Group
"We're not looking at AI to be the decision makers," echoed Shay Johnson, vice president of strategic HR partnerships at Compass Group, a food and beverage services firm, in an interview with TechTarget Editorial. He appeared on the panel with Rhatigan.
Clarence Lal, global head of talent acquisition at Planet, a satellite imagery company, expressed skepticism about the maturity of AI in HR. He argued that many AI tools are developed by people who need more HR expertise, leading to gaps in functionality, in an interview with TechTarget Editorial after appearing on an HR Tech Conference panel.
"I think it's more immature than it believes it is, which is kind of a harder, harsh thing to say," Lal said of the HR tech market.
The AI pushback
Some things that might make HR cautious about AI is pushback from IT security managers and legal departments, a point cited by both users and vendors at the HR Tech Conference. HR employees, worried about the effects of AI on their jobs, might be another source of resistance.
But HR analyst and educator Josh Bersin, in his keynote at the event Wednesday, went through all the developments of the major HR vendors and made a case that AI will fundamentally affect HR.
AI "may be one of the most important technologies to address the issue of the labor market, the employee experience, employee well-being, reskilling and all the things we see in our businesses," Bersin said.
But he also said AI has limitations, especially concerning recruiting. Bersin said that while AI can shrink recruitment cycle time and automate many processes, he believes the human recruiter "will be one of the most important roles." This is true for Marriott.
The importance of the human touch was illustrated by Marriott's Rhatigan, noting that her company hired recruiters from its workforce -- people from the hotels "who had done the jobs that they were recruiting for."
"We're a hospitality company," Rhatigan said. She said the ability "to have a conversation with that person, to see if they smile -- it's really, really important for us."
Marriott, along with Compass, is using Paradox Inc., which makes conversational AI tools. One of the first things Marriott did in deploying AI was to automate the scheduling of candidate interviews.
Rhatigan told her audience that the scheduling tool became proof of AI's ability to speed up hiring processes.
She said the time to schedule interviews dropped from more than 10 days to just three, with interviews now being completed in around four days. Automating scheduling made a "vast difference," she said.
Patrick Thibodeau is an editor at large for TechTarget Editorial who covers HCM and ERP technologies. He's worked for more than two decades as an enterprise IT reporter.
