Wittenborg Professor Champions Humanising AI Implementation and Adoption Challenges 

The rapid advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the business sector has ushered in a new era of digital transformation. AI is revolutionising processes, functions and practices within organisations by enhancing system efficiencies, conducting advanced data analysis and significantly contributing to value creation. However, the implementation and adoption of AI systems in organisations are not without challenges, ranging from technical issues to barriers rooted in human factors, often resulting in unsuccessful AI initiatives or lower than expected benefits.

In response, Human Resource Management (HRM) emerges as a critical facilitator, ensuring that AI integration aligns with human values and organisational goals.

A paper by Gabor Molnar, Associate Professor of Applied Sciences at Wittenborg, alongside co-authors Ali Fenwick and Piper Frangos, titled ‘The critical role of HRM in AI-driven digital transformation: a paradigm shift to enable firms to move from AI implementation to human-centric adoption’, investigates HRM's pivotal role in harmonising AI's technological capabilities with human-centric needs.  

Published in the Springer journal Discover Artificial Intelligence in May 2024, this paper underscores HRM's potential to drive AI success by enabling digital transformation, humanising AI decision-making, providing strategic foresight on AI, and facilitating adoption while addressing concerns such as ethics and employee well-being.

The paper highlights that AI is poised to revolutionise the global economy, potentially contributing approximately $15.7 trillion by 2030. However, current statistics reveal a significant gap between AI's potential and actual outcomes, with 70–85% of AI initiatives failing due to deployment issues or inadequate business value creation.

As a result, Molnar and his co-authors reviewed the best practices for implementing human-centric AI through culture, leadership, knowledge, policies and tools, emphasising HRM's role in reshaping roles, advancing skill sets and fostering workplace dynamics conducive to AI integration.

"Our research provides a comprehensive framework for HRM to influence internal stakeholders, driving effective AI implementation and adoption while anticipating broader impacts on industry and society," Molnar explains.

Apart from best practices, the paper also introduces an HRM roadmap for human-centric AI implementation, addressing key challenges and tools to augment human capabilities and values. In this roadmap, for example, the authors emphasise HRM's crucial role in shaping a workplace culture that supports AI adoption.

They highlight HRM's ability to foster innovation and build trust in AI systems from the outset. This involves promoting a human-centred approach in all AI decision making across the organisation, creating an environment that welcomes new technologies. The roadmap outlines specific steps for implementation, such as fostering an innovative mindset, encouraging risk-taking with appropriate rewards and promoting a culture of experimentation. For adoption, HRM advocates for transparent AI processes ensuring psychological safety for employees interacting with AI and promoting approaches that prioritise human well-being.

"This paper helps organisations grasp the significance of humanising AI in the workplace and outlines HRM's essential role in achieving this," Molnar concludes. "It not only fills critical gaps in existing research but also offers practical guidance for improving AI outcomes and fostering a human-centric digital transformation."