The Future of HR: What AI Changes, What It Doesn’t

The Roles That Are At Risk 

Let’s start with the uncomfortable part. Some HR roles are genuinely exposed to automation, and pretending otherwise doesn’t serve anyone. 

“The HR advisor level role that supports business partners — the quite transactional work — will probably be replaced with bots.

High volume, process-driven tasks. That’s where technology is already making inroads.” 

— Geraldine Doyle, Director, Next Step 

Talent acquisition is another area where change is coming. Candidate sourcing, screening, scheduling — these are functions that AI tools are becoming increasingly capable of handling. 

“You might get a search function, you can use whatever AI tool to find your people.

But you still need a relationship to influence and engage. That really can’t be replaced.” 

— Geraldine 

The pattern is consistent across the function: wherever the work is primarily administrative or transactional, technology will encroach. Wherever it requires judgment, relationship, and influence — it won’t. 

The Roles That Are Safe 

Business partners, according to those watching the market closely, are not going anywhere. 

“The state of change in businesses is so fast that people will get lost.

We’ve got to manage their psychological safety through that process.

Business partners won’t be going anywhere.” 

— Geraldine 

This tracks with what’s happening in organisations right now. Restructures, operating model changes, cultural transformation, hybrid working tensions — these are human problems that require human navigation. A well-designed algorithm can surface data. It cannot sit across from a leader who is struggling and help them think through what to do. 

Specialist areas will evolve rather than disappear. Learning and development will shift — some facilitation and training delivery may be automated — but the design of capability frameworks and learning strategy remains firmly human work. Rewards and remuneration specialists, industrial relations experts, organisational development practitioners: these roles require a depth of contextual judgment that keeps them well outside the reach of current AI. 

The Complexity Factor 

One of the strongest arguments for the resilience of the HR function in Australia specifically is the regulatory environment. 

“Australian legislation will never get simple. So much so that businesses don’t trust their business partners to do ER work anymore —

they actually want legally trained people in their business because of the complexity of negotiating and running through programmes.” 

— Geraldine 

This is borne out in what the market is asking for. The intersection of industrial relations expertise and psychosocial safety is one of the fastest-growing skills combinations in demand right now. As one senior Next Step consultant notes: “We’ve seen IR and REM coming together in ways we didn’t expect — payroll remediation projects need people who understand both agreements and employee relations. It’s a very niche combo, but demand has grown significantly in the last few years.” 

The psychosocial dimension is particularly significant. Claims related to psychological safety — often arising in performance management contexts — have increased dramatically. Organisations need people who understand both the legal framework and the human reality of those situations. That requires experience, judgment, and empathy. 

What This Means for HR Professionals 

The honest message for people building careers in HR is this: the function is not at risk of disappearing. But it is changing, and the professionals who thrive will be the ones who lean into what technology cannot replicate. 

“HR is probably in a pretty safe space from an AI risk perspective

because it can’t talk to experiences or really influence from emotion — which is what we do.” 

— Geraldine 

That means doubling down on commercial acumen, on the ability to navigate complexity, on genuine relationship skills, and on the kind of strategic thinking that connects people outcomes to business outcomes. The human skills — judgment, influence, empathy, courage — will matter more than ever. 

The function has been on a journey from administrative support to strategic partner for thirty years. The next chapter is about becoming indispensable in a world where the easy stuff gets automated — and the hard stuff is entirely yours. 

Next Step is a specialist HR recruitment firm operating across Australia. For a confidential discussion about your HR career or hiring needs, get in touch with our team.