Last year, we called generative AI the “eager intern”—clever, but unpolished. Fast forward to today, and that intern has quietly settled into a permanent role—working behind the scenes on résumé screening, policy updates, DEI tracking, and pay equity analysis.
The demos are no longer the main event. We’re in the long game now: building a working relationship with AI. This is the shift from hype to habit.
Here are six shifts shaping that transition—what they mean for HR, and snapshots from the field.
1. Generative AI Is Just… Part of the Job Now
What’s changing: Tools like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and Anthropic Claude can now write, summarize, and answer with near-human fluency.
Snapshot: A recruiter at a growing biotech company starts her week with an AI-generated set of job descriptions, tailored to regulatory language and market data. What once took three hours now takes fifteen minutes—freeing her up for conversations with hiring managers.
👉 The new bottleneck isn’t the writing—it’s ensuring the output matches your culture and quality bar.
2. From Text to Full Sensory Experiences
What’s changing: Multimodal AI blends text, images, audio, and video in real time—even picking up on non-verbal cues.
Snapshot: A tech firm uses AI to power an AR onboarding experience. New hires scan equipment with their phones and hear step-by-step setup instructions in their preferred language—cutting onboarding time by half.
👉 We’re no longer designing documents. We’re designing experiences.
3. AI That Remembers (and Nudges)
What’s changing: Some AI tools remember user preferences, offering proactive nudges—like surfacing leadership-track opportunities or recalling feedback styles.
Snapshot: An HR chatbot remembers that an employee is on a leadership track and automatically suggests mentorship opportunities when they log into the LMS.
👉 The promise is huge—but so are the trust questions: How much should AI remember, and for how long?
4. Skills, Not Just Job Titles
What’s changing: AI identifies skills across résumés, learning history, and even collaboration tools—then connects them to opportunities.
Snapshot: Unilever’s FLEX program used AI to connect employees to stretch projects, unlocking 300,000 hours of productivity while helping employees grow skills without changing jobs.
👉 It’s a move from static org charts to living “opportunity networks.” HR becomes curator and connector—not just requisition manager.
5. The Rulebook Catches Up
What’s changing: The EU AI Act (and others to follow) requires documentation for “high-risk” AI in hiring, performance, or workforce planning. In practice, that means documenting three things: the tool’s function, its training process, and the safeguards built around it.
Snapshot:
A global retailer created an internal AI register for every HR tool touching hiring and pay. What began as compliance quickly became a trust-builder with employees.
👉 Regulations are expanding across Canada, Singapore, and U.S. states. HR leaders will be signing off on these systems—not just IT or Legal.
6. Your Own AI, Your Own Rules
What’s changing: Open-source AI models (like Llama 3 and Mistral) can now run privately—even on local machines. With fine-tuning techniques, companies can customize models without sending data to the cloud.
Snapshot:
A financial services firm built its own AI résumé screener using internal hiring data—keeping everything behind the firewall. The privacy advantage won over skeptical employee reps.
👉 Future AI strategies will blend vendor tools with in-house experiments.
Where to Start (Even If You’re Not a Techie)
Not a tech expert? You can still start strong. Begin by spotting where AI already touches hiring, pay, and promotion. Gather HR, Legal, IT, and employee voices into an AI Council to set the right boundaries. And don’t forget your people—equip them to prompt, interpret, and test responsibly, even if they’ll never build AI themselves.
HAVEN is not an AI consultancy but we do know what ignites performance in people. Whether you’re just starting the change journey or knee-deep in it, let’s talk. We’re here to help.
