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HR Party of One is brought to you by BerniePortal.

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Remember the bygone era of 2022, when everything we read was nearly

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guaranteed to be written by a real person? Now, we wonder if news articles, books, music,

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emails, and everything we interact with daily are penned by human hand or machine. The truth is,

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it’s hard to tell these days. And it’s only going to get harder. Generative AI

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scrapes every corner of the internet to produce detailed, contextual results. It

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can produce incredible work in no time at all, and most programs are free to use.

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Imagine if we had all had something like ChatGPT in school. I can think

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of quite a few papers I could have used AI to write for me! But would high school-aged

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me have done my due diligence in using AI properly, maintaining ethical standards,

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and fact-checking thoroughly? Or would I have just reviewed the paper quickly,

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submitted it, and moved on with my day? What would your employees do… ?

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As a human resources professional, you know when something might be too good to be true.

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So, in this episode, let’s look deeper, so you can make the best

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decisions for your organization. We’ll cover: The Pros and Cons of Using Generative AI, and,

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3 Defining Questions to Ask Before Writing a Generative AI Policy.

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Let’s get started!

Cons of Generative AI in the Workplace

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The Pros and Cons of Generative AI in the Workplace.

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AI presents an obvious opportunity in your business—but is it safe to use?

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As an employer, you’re thinking about long-term success and viability. So,

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let’s cover the most impactful cons, and then I’ll share the

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pros that keep your organization’s future growth and stability in mind.

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Using generative AI invites increased legal compliance risks.

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You may have seen our episode on using AI during recruitment, so you know some of

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the risks inherent to artificial intelligence in your own role. However, AI is advancing rapidly,

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and regulations require updates as soon as they hit your radar. How someone uses

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it today may be illegal in a week, so companies must remain vigilant.

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It can produce content that may be biased, offensive, or otherwise inappropriate.

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If people use it carelessly, your organization’s reputation could take a hit when AI-generated

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tools say something bad. This does not just affect companies that lean into AI to produce

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blogs or content. It’s easier these days for organizations of any size to deploy chatbots

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to reduce the strain on service teams. If your organization uses one to interface

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with clients or customers, ensure it is carefully monitored.

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In 2024, delivery firm DPD’s chatbot insulted and swore at a customer seeking help. Then,

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the AI-powered bot produced poetry on how bad the company is. Pretty crazy,

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but I guess that’s how you lose customers in the 21st century—villainous chatbots.

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Protecting sensitive data is more challenging.

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Employees using generative AI tools might inadvertently share sensitive information.

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Not much is yet known concerning generative AI and cybersecurity efforts. Imagine how a

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HIPAA compliance officer would react if a nurse recklessly installed and used AI to

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summarize patient charts, exposing hundreds of people’s private medical information.

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Questions of ownership may arise. AI-generated content can raise questions

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about ownership, particularly surrounding complex intellectual property (IP) laws.

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AIs train themselves by pulling data from every corner of the internet. AI business

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experts Scott Snyder, adjunct at Penn Engineering, and Mark Pecen, Wharton alumnus, consider AI and

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patents the new battleground for business leaders. If AI provides code to a small software company,

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who’s to say it does not accidentally infringe on patented technology from a much larger company?

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While such a case may be ultimately unfounded, a small business cannot compete with multinational

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firms in court—they’ll just wear you out with legal fees. This scenario, and many

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others, provide ample opportunity for a potentially fatal misstep. Tread carefully!

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Ensuring quality and consistency may be trickier. AI-generated content might not always meet your

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company's quality standards. Look, if you have a marketing team, they are probably

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on top of this already. But if your org is smaller, think about how much inconsistent

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content and branding can hurt in the long run before using generative AI left and right.

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Training is likely going to be necessary. Prompting AI isn’t difficult, but there

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are tricks to it that users should learn ahead of time. Additionally,

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think about how AI isn’t always correct. You’ll need to be absolutely positive people using AI

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can also comprehend the content and confirm its accuracy. I like to reference the time when one

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lawyer used ChatGPT to prepare legal filings for a client, and the AI invented realistic-sounding

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court cases to establish precedents supporting the case. The judge was not happy, to say the least,

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and neither was the client! While all of this is compelling

Pros of Generative AI in the Workplace

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evidence against using generative AI EVER, much less where you work, the pros can’t be ignored.

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Generative AI can optimize efficiency and productivity.

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You just can’t get around the fact that it takes AI only seconds to do work that

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takes a real person hours. Increased time savings enable workers to focus on more

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high-value projects. It can also automate processes prone to error, reducing risks

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and streamlining workflows. And, for your people who are just plain awful at writing,

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AI is an obvious solution. No more client complaints about poor email etiquette!

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It can result in organizational cost-savings. AI can automate expensive workflows in your

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business. For example, you can use AI to evaluate benefits plan options before renewal, comparing

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brokerage agencies and costs to help you save. Some AI programs may provide a cost-effective

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solution if you need to hire a translator to format documentation in another language.

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AI doesn’t require a lengthy interview process. If you’re struggling to hire for certain roles,

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generative AI may present a solution to at least solve the issue temporarily. A small law

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firm struggling to hire and retain a receptionist may be able to lean on a program using generative

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AI to direct phone calls, take notes, etc. It could sharpen your business’s competitive edge.

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If your competitors use AI—and I promise they do—then their output,

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efficiency, and budget are all on the rise. But yours could be, too. For SMB,

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especially, AI levels the playing field. It sparks innovation and enhances efficiency,

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enabling smaller companies to gain entry to new markets or broaden their audiences much

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more easily. On a sneakier note, you could use this uncertainty in the labor market

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to scoop the excellent talent getting let go prematurely due to the sudden infatuation with AI.

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So, the pros are indeed more compelling than the cons. And let’s be realistic here for a second:

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your employees already use generative AI. Have you noticed lately that anyone is

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producing higher quality work in a fraction of the time…? Writing a policy to ensure the

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proper use of AI isn’t just a future project; it’s one you should think about doing NOW.

3 Questions to Ask Before Writing a Generative AI Policy

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-3 Defining Questions to Ask Before Writing a Generative AI Policy.

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When you’re creating this policy, it’s important to be vague. Being vague has

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its strengths in your line of work—it allows you to decide things on a case-by-case basis. Plus,

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with how quickly AI is advancing, it’s honestly just better not to get too

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specific. You’ll probably need to reevaluate this policy more often than others. So,

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let’s instead set parameters around AI use to create personal accountability.

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Here are some questions to help you get started:

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Are there times when you would consider using AI to be inappropriate?

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For example, it makes me feel uncomfortable to read a news article about a child losing

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their life that a real, empathetic person didn’t write. If your org handles private information,

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then it’s not only inappropriate to install an unsafe AI helper; it’s illegal and risks

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your business. Consider how people can use AI in your organization and set firm boundaries.

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Is there such a thing as relying too much on AI?

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People must exercise their best judgment when using AI. My teams know using it to

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brainstorm and help with tricky projects is fine, but anything more is disingenuous to our

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mission to provide the best HR resources and first-class, personalized service.

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Is AI-produced work being thoroughly fact-checked? Since AI-powered writing tools hit the web,

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people have been using them to quickly and cheaply write books to sell online. In one such case,

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someone was using it to write guides for people learning how to forage wild mushrooms

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in the forest. However, the book was wrong. It mislabeled fatal fungi as perfectly safe

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for consumption. The seller wasn’t a biologist, did not have the expertise to identify mistakes,

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and the dangerous claim was published online. Don’t you think any half-competent

Final Thoughts

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lawyer could claim the e-book seller was responsible for manslaughter, if not worse,

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if someone followed the fatal guide’s words?

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As you create this policy, remember to ensure everyone reads it and signs their agreement to

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follow it. Collect and store those signatures safely—they prove your organization has done

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its due diligence to prevent employees from misusing AI. With BerniePortal,

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you can upload the policy as an update to your Culture Guide or Employee Handbook and send

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notices to your entire workforce requesting their review and e-signature. Make sure everyone knows

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that if they use AI and it makes a mistake or goes poorly, it isn’t the computer program that is on

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the hook—it’s the human. Remember—your role is as strategic as you make it!