When I recently came across the question, “Does HR still need humans?” it struck a chord. After all, we live in a world where chatbots can resolve up to 80% of employee queries, algorithms can scan thousands of CVs in seconds, and generative AI can draft policies at the click of a button.
It is tempting—almost convenient—to conclude that human resource professionals are heading for redundancy.
But such a view is shortsighted. It mistakes efficiency for strategy, assumes that automation inevitably leads to job loss, and overlooks history’s consistent lesson: new technologies rarely erase human work. Instead, they transform and expand it.
Beyond automation: HR’s true value
Reducing HR to routine tasks like payroll, leave processing, or query handling is to miss its essence. While AI will indeed take over much administrative work, the heart of HR lies in building trust, shaping culture, and navigating the complex dynamics between employer and employee.
No algorithm can comfort an employee facing harassment, mediate workplace conflicts, or weigh the ethical dimensions of a redundancy decision. These are profoundly human responsibilities.
This is why job redesign matters. At IHRP’s Job Redesign Centre of Excellence, our REVAMP framework helps organisations rethink roles—not to remove humans, but to elevate them.
In aviation, for example, redesign has enabled ground staff to move from repetitive gate duties to roles centred on passenger experience, supported by AI rostering. In logistics, employees have shifted from manual paperwork to exception management and customer engagement, aided by digital platforms. In both cases, technology amplifies—not replaces—the human contribution.
Why the “fewer humans” myth persists
The fear that AI will shrink HR rests on two flawed assumptions.
First, tasks are not jobs. Automating interview scheduling or leave requests frees HR to focus on higher-order responsibilities requiring empathy and judgment.
Second, history shows that disruption has expanded—not diminished—work. Consider:
Factory mechanisation created demand for supervisors and personnel managers.ATMs were supposed to replace bank tellers but instead enabled banks to redeploy them into advisory roles, even as branch numbers grew.ERP systems and outsourcing birthed HR business partners and centres of expertise.Cloud platforms and the gig economy expanded workforce participation while spawning new HR disciplines such as people analytics, diversity, and employee experience.
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It is tempting—almost convenient—to conclude that human resource professionals are heading for redundancy.