By Guest commentary Friday, July 28th, 2023

Second of two articles

By Vlad Vaiman

We previously discussed the role of AI in attracting, recruiting and hiring talent. The second component of talent management focuses on training and development.

Here, too, AI-enabled tools can similarly play an important role.

For instance, artificial intelligence can be utilized to create individualized training programs for workers. AI may analyze an employee’s skill set and work history to determine where they may be lacking and then suggest training programs to fill those gaps; artificial intelligence can also be utilized to help train employees.

AI may also analyze performance data to pinpoint weak spots in an employee’s work and offer targeted coaching on how to fix them.  In addition, AI can be used to pair up employees with mentors, usually experts in the same field.

AI can determine which workers would gain the most from a mentoring program and pair them with more seasoned colleagues who can offer advice and counsel. More importantly perhaps, AI can be used to evaluate workers’ key knowledge, skills, and abilities.

With this data at hand, managers will be able to craft training programs specifically for each employee. Finally, AI may be used to give employees feedback on their job performance, which can be utilized to help them identify areas where they need improvement and to track their progress over time.

A third component of talent management is retention, and here are a few possible applications of AI in organizational efforts to keep the best and brightest with the company. 

It may start with a relatively simple new employee orientation and training scheduling, which are just two of the multitude of tasks that can be automated with the help of AI.

This can certainly make a positive impact on the first days on the job and speed up the time it takes for new hires to start contributing to their full potential.

AI can also assess employee sentiment, a key factor in determining which workers are most likely to quit a company.

It is important to mention here that it is the company’s top talent that usually leaves first if things are not going right.

With this knowledge in hand, employers can help employees or take action to fix the problems at hand. 

Another area where AI can be utilized to benefit top employees is career development planning.

AI may analyze an employee’s skill set and work history to determine whether (and when) they could benefit from more training or education.

Armed with this data, managers will be able to craft training and development programs specifically for each talented employee, thereby working towards ensuring their retention with the company. 

Lastly, AI can help organizations predict which employees are most likely to depart and strategically deploy retention bonuses, effectively discouraging them from jumping ship.

These are just a few examples of how AI is being (and can be) used in talent management. As AI technology continues to develop, we can expect to see even more innovative and effective ways of using AI to help companies attract/hire, develop, and retain the best talent. 

At this point, it would be important to briefly discuss the potential benefits and challenges of using AI in managing organizational talent.

AI can help to improve decision-making in talent management, which can lead to improved business performance of the entire organization.

Among possible challenges, we would underscore the fact that AI systems can be biased, which may inadvertently lead to discrimination against certain groups of employees. There is also a serious privacy concern and AI can furthermore create a skills gap in the workforce.

And finally, AI systems could ultimately displace some jobs, which could lead to unemployment in the long run.

AI has already started to transform talent management in various ways, and the trend is expected to continue. 

AI will continue to play an increasingly important role in talent management, but it is up to organizations to ensure that they use these tools in an ethical and responsible manner.

The role of artificial intelligence in organizational talent management is the topic of the upcoming 8^th annual Executive Talent Management Forum, to be held at Cal Lutheran on September 21 (see www.executivetalent.net) for more information.

Dr. Vlad Vaiman is a Professor and Associate Dean at the Cal Lutheran School of Management. He can be reached at vvaiman@callutheran.edu.