Two-thirds of HR professionals now use AI in their daily tasks, according to research from Brightmine.

However, only a tiny proportion (3.6%) have formally integrated AI into their HR processes, citing time pressures, a lack of skills and policy gaps as a barrier.

Almost four in 10 organisations (38.8%) said they were yet to start their AI journey, according to Brightmine, while 60% said a lack of time was the main obstacle to adoption. The same proportion felt they lacked the necessary knowledge to integrate AI into their daily work.

Only around a third of organisations (32%) said their organisations had formal AI usage guidelines. Brightmine found that this was higher among smaller organisations (under 250 employees), where 60% had no guidelines, policies or principles.

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Employers with more than 1,000 staff were more likely to have experimented with AI, even if they had not formalised its use.

Almost half of these organisations had developed guidelines, principles or policies around using AI, and 67.5% of HR teams in larger employers had experimented. Among these teams, 96.3% felt the biggest advantage to using AI would be saving time.

Brightmine also found there to be significant disparities between sectors. Four in 10 non-profits worry about AI’s impact on job security, and 45% of public sector HR teams had not experimented with AI at all.

“HR professionals are eager to use AI, but without the right skills and clear guidelines, there’s a risk of inconsistent use leading to poor decision-making and missed opportunities,” said Sheila Attwood, senior content manager, HR Data and Insights at Brightmine.

“Organisations that invest now in training, clear policies, and support can turn AI from a personal productivity boost into a strategic organisational advantage.

“While many HR professionals are embracing AI, some organisations still lack a clear adoption strategy. As the technology evolves, removing this divide will be key to boosting efficiency, smarter decisions, and better workforce management.”

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