"What is fascinating about the reality of HR today is the cumulative impact of change; the ongoing war for talent; the challenge of creating strong people experiences; and the pure speed of technology development. All of these forces are converging and piling the pressure on HR," said David Wilson, CEO of Fosway Group. "There is also no doubt now that AI will be a huge part of whether or not HR is fit for the future. Ninety-five percent of respondents see AI as impacting their strategy, and 45% believe it will be 'truly significant' in less than two years. But as well as offering new answers, the advent of the AI era will further magnify stresses on HR, maybe to breaking point."

He continues, "This year’s data highlights the need for a new and more agile approach. Conservative HR strategies simply aren’t going to cut it going forwards because by the time the ink is dry, things will have moved on. Increasing business agility is now the #2 business driver for 86% of HR professionals, second only to increasing performance and profitability. The days of software deployments taking 18+ months are rapidly becoming a distant memory. Moving at the pace of the business, particularly where HR technology is concerned, is now a must."

Peter Russell, director of UNLEASH comments, "There is a lot of hype about the changing face of HR and the possible impact of AI and automation. But this research gets to the core of why these are important areas for HR professionals to understand. The challenge isn’t that bots and automation are undermining HR jobs; it is actually about the need for HR to evolve, embrace the future of work, and focus on how the tasks HR performs can be re-imagined to fit the future of work. And as always, we are delighted to share this research with our global community of HR leaders: There will be an exclusive launch of the results at our World Conference and Expo in Amsterdam."