Future-Proofing Your HR Career: 55 HR Jobs With Highest, Lowest Risk Due to AI

If you’ve been wondering how the artificial intelligence (AI) boom will impact your HR career, you aren’t alone.  

Practically everyone, from Hollywood A-listers to your peers in HR, has pondered what AI means for their job security.

Study reveals HR jobs prone to automation

Recently, the Academy to Innovative HR (AIHR) took a deep dive into this issue, analyzing more than 50 common roles across the HR profession to determine the level of risk that AI poses.  

Researchers used two criteria – repetitiveness and complexity – to assess the likelihood of automation taking over each role. They defined four levels (highly, relatively, somewhat, not) for both criteria and assigned labels (e.g., highly repetitive, relatively complex) to different HR roles.  

Generally, the higher the repetitiveness, “the more desirable automation,” researchers said. And “the lower the complexity, the more possible automation.”

Based on these assessments and labels, researchers divided the analyzed roles into three groups based on their risk of automation. (Click here to view the full list.)  

Protecting your HR career: Jobs at risk  

High-risk roles  

About one-third (34%) of the analyzed HR roles are at high risk of automation, researchers determined.

The roles are highly repetitive and not complex, according to the data. Generally, these roles are centered around repetitive and process-driven tasks, including recordkeeping, documentation management and workflow management.  

Researchers stressed that the roles in this group may not be fully automated right now, but said they are likely to become so as automation processes and AI models improve.  

Based on the labels (noted in parenthesis) that were assigned by researchers, the study deemed the following HR roles as high risk for automation:  

• Facilitator (somewhat complex; somewhat repetitive)
• Business analyst (somewhat complex; somewhat repetitive)
• Payroll team lead (somewhat complex; somewhat repetitive)
• HR scrum manager (somewhat complex; somewhat repetitive)
• DEIB consultant (relatively complex; somewhat repetitive)
• Compensation and benefits manager (somewhat complex; somewhat repetitive)
• Process Engineer (relatively complex; somewhat repetitive)
• Compensation and benefits specialist (relatively complex; somewhat repetitive)
• HR officer (not complex; relatively repetitive)
• DEIB officer (not complex; relatively repetitive)
• Learning & development/Organizational development/Organizational effectiveness admin (not complex; highly repetitive)

• HR system tester (not complex; highly repetitive)
• Payroll administrator (somewhat complex; highly repetitive)
• HR administrator (somewhat complex; highly repetitive)
• Talent researcher (somewhat complex; highly repetitive)
• Benefits admin (somewhat complex; highly repetitive)
• HR helpdesk (not complex; highly repetitive)
• HR data administrator (not complex; highly repetitive)

“On the surface, the Facilitator or DEIB Consultant roles do not appear to be at risk of automation,” researchers acknowledged.

They noted the roles were placed in the high-risk category because “when further analyzed, various tasks within these roles are at risk of being replaced by e-learning platforms or online learning.”

However, the study did not elaborate or specifically name which “various tasks” were projected to be replaced by any AI models or learning platforms.

Ultimately, researchers concluded that it’s “unlikely that all of these roles will disappear entirely in the future.” But the scope of the jobs listed “will change significantly and may be incorporated into more advanced roles.”

Your game plan: Explore the options for your HR career. As you consider your next moves, remember that HR roles requiring critical thinking and problem-solving skills are less likely to be automated. Find a mentor who can offer career advice.

As you’re making these changes, make sure your efforts get noticed to help advance your HR career.  

Moderate-risk roles  

Just under one-third (27%) of the analyzed HR roles fell into the moderate risk category.

Many of the daily tasks associated with these roles will be automated – but “the complexity of the role will make it impossible to fully remove the human element,” researchers concluded. These roles often require skills like critical thinking, strategic insight and business acumen.  

According to the study, these HR roles are at moderate risk for automation:  

• HR project manager (somewhat complex; somewhat repetitive)
• HR ops manager (somewhat complex; somewhat repetitive)
• Talent manager (somewhat complex; somewhat repetitive)
• Recruitment consultant (somewhat complex; somewhat repetitive)
• Talent acquisition specialist (somewhat complex; somewhat repetitive)
• Benefits manager (somewhat complex; somewhat repetitive)
• Payroll manager (somewhat complex; somewhat repetitive)
• Learning & development/Organizational development/Organizational effectiveness consultant (relatively complex; relatively repetitive)
• HR consultant (relatively complex; relatively repetitive)
• Learning & development/Organizational development/Organizational effectiveness specialist (relatively complex; relatively repetitive)
• HR manager (relatively complex; relatively repetitive)
• HR business partner (relatively complex; relatively repetitive)
• Headhunter (somewhat complex; somewhat repetitive)
• Employee relations specialist (relatively complex; somewhat repetitive)
• HRIS analyst (somewhat complex; somewhat repetitive)

Researchers noted that management roles “are not immune to automation. Tasks performed by managers that involve decision-making accountability can be automated or, at the very least, augmented by technology.”

How so? The study provided this example:

Rather than employing a talent manager, a company could use algorithms to automatically recommend appropriate training and development programs for employees based on their competency and performance scores. Obviously, recommending training programs is not the only thing that talent managers do.

Because of this, the researchers predict that such automation capabilities will allow companies to merge certain managerial roles. For example, the roles of two or perhaps three specialty managers could be merged into a single role, with that individual relying on technology to handle tasks that can be automated.

Your game plan: Broaden your knowledge base. If you don’t have a professional certification, now’s a good time to start that process to help protect your HR career.

Add to your skill set. Take ownership of — and responsibility for — your own professional development. In today’s world, low- and no-cost learning opportunities are everywhere: Tune in to an HR podcast; register for a webinar; or download a report.

Another option: Pivot to more specialized functions within these roles to highlight your value. Develop your knowledge to become an in-house expert in an area. For example, open enrollment is hectic for everyone in HR. Use these tools to efficiently power through the busiest time of the year.  

Low-risk roles  

A little more than one-third (38%) of the analyzed HR roles were found to be at low risk for automation, researchers determined.

So what’s now considered a safe HR career path? After assessing the data, researchers concluded that “leadership and highly specialized roles remain relatively safe from the impacts of automation. Rather, technology will serve as a springboard to enhance the impact of these roles and create new opportunities.”  

Moreover, they pointed out that HR professionals in these roles rely on their HR expertise to make strategic decisions and implement problem-solving solutions.  

Researchers divided these roles into two smaller categories: HR leadership roles and organizational excellence roles.  

The study concluded the following HR roles are “relatively safe” and at low risk for automation: 

• Industrial organizational psychologist (highly complex; not repetitive)
• HR specialist (relatively complex; not repetitive)
• Data scientist (highly complex; not repetitive)
• Employee relations executive (highly complex; not repetitive)
• Head of organizational development/Head of organizational effectiveness (highly complex; not repetitive)
• Rewards executive (highly complex; not repetitive)
• Global services executive (highly complex; not repetitive)
• CHRO, Senior VP of HR, Chief people officer (highly complex; not repetitive)
• Head of talent (relatively complex; not repetitive)
• Chief learning officer (relatively complex; not repetitive)
• Senior HR business partner (relatively complex; not repetitive)
• Global HR business partner (highly complex; not repetitive)
• Divisional/Regional HR manager (relatively complex; not repetitive)
• Talent director (relatively complex; not repetitive)
• Chief diversity officer (relatively complex; not repetitive)
• HR director (highly complex; not repetitive)
• Shared services manager (relatively complex; somewhat repetitive)
• Head of people analytics (relatively complex; somewhat repetitive)
• DEIB specialist (relatively complex; somewhat repetitive)
• Head of DEIB (highly complex; somewhat repetitive)
• HR systems architect (highly complex; somewhat repetitive)

Your game plan: Staying relevant is the name of the game: You want a seat at the table. Hone your critical thinking skills to become a strategic business partner and help lead the company through transitions.

Ready to showcase your leadership skills to protect your HR career? Consider the following real-world challenges and develop strategic plans to handle them:  

• How will your company incorporate AI into the workplace – and eventually monetize it?

• What’s the best way to deal with increasing talent shortages caused by boomers retiring at the same time that other generations are turning to gig work?

• And in that smaller talent pool, how can your company recruit top applicants and manage employee expectations for higher pay, better benefits and increased flexibility?

• What’s the best way to handle layoffs in a way that shows respect and compassion – and helps ward off lawsuits?

Plus, as AI tools improve, they’ll augment more daily tasks — so now’s the time to double down on your commitment to learn how to use new technology. If you missed it, check out 5 AI tools to help make HR’s job easier.

But regardless of how much technology improves, it won’t solve people problems, from poor behavior to unhappy employees. So soft skills will always be a huge benefit for your HR career.