AI in talent management – hype or hope?

The concept of Artificial intelligence actually debuted at a conference at Dartmouth University in 1956. At the time, there was a lot of optimism. Some people at the conference believed robots and AI machines would be doing the work of humans by the mid-1970s. That did not happen. What happened instead was that funding dried up and a period called “The AI Winter” began. “AI Winter” was a complete technological and financial flop for the idea of artificial intelligence. It had so much promise and then it fizzled.

The AI Winter ostensibly lasted into the 2000s, when IBM’s Watson peaked a lot of interest in artificial intelligence again. Now we’re at an interesting place. AI is on the scene, yes, but its use has taken many forms.  The adoption of AI technologies has also not been without its critics. Prominent Silicon Valley executives, like Sam Altman of Y Combinator and Elon Musk of Tesla/RocketX, while promoting the benefits of AI – also give caution of its potential ramifications if ungoverned. Regardless of those debates, some are now calling AI “the new electricity” as it is something everyone wants to understand and is   seemingly on every 2018 trends in technology list.

Why should we care about AI in Talent Management?

Marvin Minsky , one of the bigger names in the AI field (he co-founded MIT’s AI lab), has called “intelligence” a “suitcase word,” meaning you can stuff anything in there. In other words, it’s too broad and it doesn’t lend itself to precise definition. That’s fueling the hype but also the confusion.

Demystifying AI is the first step to understanding how it can benefit your current and future workforce decisions.  

Of course, you can take the safe road and ‘wait and see’ if the entire idea of AI collapses as a scalable concept, and we end up seeing perhaps some incremental changes but not the transformational shift promised by AI proponents.

However, today in your own organization, there is probably some key business area that has already implemented some form of AI, such as operations, marketing, customer support, sales, manufacturing, or distribution, Once your organizational leaders see the benefits of intelligent technologies, the expectation will be that talent practices and decisions also take advantage of those same benefits.   Being knowledgable about what advanced, intelligent technologies are already available to you today is the first step towards knowing how to prepare for the demands and expectations of the workforce of the future.

Let’s start with recruiting….

Cornerstone is hosting a webinar on 11/1 with IBM to discuss

  • What exactly is AI, machine learning and process automation,
  • How AI is currently being used to attract, select and on-board talent, and
  • What the future state in recruiting may look like for organizations, recruiters, and candidates. —

Register to get answers to these questions and more!


Authors
Jennifer Burnett

Jennifer Burnett is passionate about the opportunity leaders have to genuinely elevate and nurture the potential of people at work. Dr. Burnett draws on her experience of over 25 years as a business leader, talent leader, researcher, and consultant to create talent solutions that positively impact both individuals and the future of the business. She currently provides guidance to organizational leaders who are seeking to advance their organizations’ talent strategy and people practices using a data-driven approach, in order to impact business success.