What is an AI Employee?

An AI employee, like many AI tools, is a productivity enhancer with one important distinction: unlike traditional AI bots, AI employees are adaptable and capable of human-like decision-making. They can be trained to understand your business needs and even adapt to changing goals and objectives. Most can manage routine tasks that can make a big impact on productivity – and potentially eliminate the need for an existing employee to complete those routine tasks.

 

What are the benefits of an AI employee?

The AI employee can benefit individuals and teams alike. By tailoring its inputs to your needs – such as sharing your website content, outlining current projects, or connecting your calendar – you equip it to serve your organization more effectively. An AI employee can broadly benefit a company, serving an individual as a personal assistant, or even as a project manager for an entire team. With the right information, the AI employee can streamline and assume routine tasks, enhancing you, and your team’s, ability to focus on the work that matter most.

What are the risks of an AI employee?

Like all generative AI, the risks for employers is focused on a few key areas: education, ethical use of AI, and data security.

Education

Educating your workforce on HOW to use AI is critical, and approaching education equitably is equally important. According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), “Nearly half of U.S. workers (45%) reported using AI at work, but adoption varies significantly across age, gender, and sector. Younger generations and men are more likely to engage with AI, exposing critical gaps that underscore the need for equitable implementation strategies.”  Without proper training, along with a clear understanding of AI’s capabilities, workers may not utilize AI to its fullest potential, or worse – they will misuse it, creating ethical concerns. When it comes to implementing AI employees, educating the workforce on why the AI employee is a necessary tool, how to use it effectively, and the importance of current employee involvement in the success of the AI employee will be instrumental in ensuring its success.

Ethical use of AI

An AI employee relies on data inputs from its users to be effective. To ensure fair and reliable outcomes, organizations must ensure that employees are providing inputs that reflect company policies, processes, and values. Without careful oversight, poor or inconsistent data can introduce bias and lead to inequitable results for the AI employee’s effectiveness in the workplace.

Data Security

One of the most concerning aspects of all artificial intelligence is the privacy and data security of its users. It’s a tricky predicament, as AI relies on large amounts of data to be useful, yet supplying this data can put security of information at risk. To mitigate these risks, limit the number of people who are able to supply the information, and educate those that are on what is and isn’t appropriate. Ensure your IT teams are in lockstep with the implementation of any AI to incorporate all existing data security practices, such as data encryption, and enhance security measures as necessary.

The importance of human involvement in AI

SHRM reports that “The U.S. workforce overwhelmingly supports a future in which AI enhances, rather than replaces, human capabilities. Nearly three-quarters of U.S. workers (74%) agreed that AI should be a complement to human talent, while strong majorities emphasized the need for oversight and collaboration.” Rather than fearing AI as an imminent danger to employee jobs, prioritize the adoption of AI as a complementary tool to your existing workforce. The reality is this: most AI, including AI employees, were not developed to replace humans. Instead, they were developed to work alongside humans.

While AI may assume certain roles and responsibilities traditionally handled by employees, it also creates opportunities to broaden those employees’ professional horizons. Unencumbered by routine tasks, workers can be trained to tackle more advanced responsibilities or even play a key role in guiding, training, and overseeing AI systems themselves.

 

AI and the vast unknown

While AI has evolved rapidly over a short period, there is still so much to be learned and understood about its capabilities, its impact, and its risks. Recently, concerns have been raised about the economic impact on AI, including how the economy will handle AI advancements should it eliminate specific jobs. Certain industries, such as the financial and content creation industries could see significant disruption as AI is able to automate the tasks previously held by employees.

As AI employees gain popularity, there will be more to learn about engaging with, and even managing, those employees. The need to train not only AI employees, but those tasked with managing and partnering with them will be required across the workforce. As a result, the data security and privacy risks for companies will continue to expand, forcing IT teams to keep up.

 

HR’s pivotal role in AI

HR teams will play a formative role in the adoption of the AI employee, ensuring that AI is used responsibly and in accordance with cultural norms. Their commitment to ethics and transparency will extend beyond just their human employees and now to digital tools that will impact the workforce. In order to mitigate risk, one of the most important initiatives HR will undertake is policy making. All employees must understand how AI is being used, and policies should be developed to minimize its risks while maximizing its benefits.

Small business owners have much to evaluate about the capabilities and risks of AI. HR professionals remain committed to human involvement in our workforce and recommend using these strategic tools to augment existing capabilities while thoughtfully considering what that means for their workforce. Ideally, it means AI can free employees to focus on higher-value work, spark new opportunities for growth, and ultimately strengthen both your people and your business, because HR professionals know the reality. Humans are, and will always be, critical to the success of a business. Humans offer the emotional intelligence, potential for growth, and drive for success that cannot be replaced by AI. In businesses of all sizes, the goal isn’t to replace people, but to empower them – and AI, used wisely, can help small businesses achieve exactly that.

It’s an exciting – and perhaps unnerving – future for today’s workforce, requiring the ability to continuously adapt to a changing technical landscape. Having the right teams and expertise in place will position your business to thrive – not just survive – no matter the what the future holds.

Are you ready to learn how AI can enhance your workforce?

Reach out to Flex HR today!