Finding time for innovation is key to worker retention, SHRM speaker says

SAN DIEGO — Artificial intelligence may not take a worker’s job, but someone who uses it will, warned Reagan Kelley, a human resources consulting director for Marsh McLennan Agency, during SHRM’s annual conference in San Diego, Calif. 

As the technology evolves, those who are only using ChatGPT or the company’s equivalent, “are not really using AI anymore,” Kelley said.

Workers instead can turn to tools that assist in scheduling, task and project management, transcription and even grammar checking to save time and be more productive, she said.  

Instead of sending a multitude of emails back and forth to coordinate a meeting with clients, a service like Calendly can simplify the process, Kelley said. 

“It puts it right on my calendar. I don’t have to think about it. I’m human, and then I don’t make a mistake,” Kelley said. 

AI integration is one of the top trends in HR, alongside workforce upskilling, employee well-being and flexible work models, according to Kelley and Katie Dykstra, a client engagement director at Marsh McLennan Agency. 

Most employees say they’re more likely to stay at a company that is invested in their education, Kelley said. As needs change and workforces continue to adopt AI and other technology, investing in workers across all six generations in the workforce will pay dividends, Dykstra said. 

That can involve teaching workers transferable skills, allowing them to try out different jobs at the company or finding other ways to create growth paths and fuel curiosity, the speakers said. 

Companies need to be creative in their approaches to not get left behind or lose workers, Dykstra said. 

“I think some of the spark that we’ve lost over the last couple of years has been curiosity and that innovation piece,” Dykstra said. “We’ve been so reactive to some of the scenarios that we’ve been dealing with that the joy of being creative isn’t there.”

The speakers encouraged HR leaders to tap into their creativity in whatever way makes sense, even if it means turning to a coloring book. 

“Find time for innovation and creativity. Get a coloring book. It doesn’t have to be an adult one; those are hard sometimes,” Kelley said.