4 reasons to avoid using AI for HR advice

Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to help you run a streamlined and efficient small business. AI can answer your customer phone calls, automate a number of basic operational processes and provide detailed analysis of your business data.

Generative AI (GenAI) is even becoming a staple of human resources (HR), with some companies using tools like ChatGPT to assist with the HR workload.

But when nuanced and tailored answers are needed, AI is not the ideal solution.

Use of GenAI is on the rise in HR

In a recent survey by Gartner, the share of HR leaders who are actively planning or already deploying GenAI has jumped from 19% in June 2023 to 61% by January 2025. HR professionals can see the automation and efficiency benefits of GenAI in some processes.

But what GenAI tools don’t account for is the personalised nature of HR advice. Answers are not always black and white, and the implications of getting it wrong can be significant.

Four key reasons to be wary of using GenAI for HR advice

1. HR advice should be nuanced and personalised:

HR issues are highly personal. GenAI struggles to provide nuanced and empathetic advice that’s tailored to a specific employee's unique emotional or complex work situation. This can lead to generic, unhelpful and sometimes insensitive recommendations.

2. HR rules can vary across locations and businesses

HR laws and policies vary wildly by country and even company policy. GenAI often lacks the up-to-date, local data necessary to provide accurate, legally compliant advice, which could lead to significant legal breaches.

3. GenAI is prone to AI hallucinations and factual inaccuracy:

GenAI can generate entirely false, yet highly confident, responses, known as ‘AI hallucinations’. It gives you the answers it believes you want. Relying on these untrue facts for HR decisions could result in serious employee disputes or expensive regulatory violations.

4. HR professionals have empathy and human judgement:

A human HR professional combines technical knowledge with the essential empathy and judgement that’s needed to navigate complex, sensitive situations. GenAI can’t replicate this human touch, potentially escalating conflicts or causing employees to feel alienated.

There are plenty of areas where the efficiency benefits of AI can be a huge boost to your business. But where real, empathetic HR advice is needed, GenAI still falls short in many important respects. The human touch is still the best option for many HR processes.