The main narrative around AI has focused on what jobs will be replaced and when. But more data is showing that some of these companies might be running before they can walk. As powerful as this technology has become, AI alone is not enough.
Gartner recently predicted that by 2027, half of the companies that reduce customer service staff because of AI will rehire employees into similar functions under new titles and structures.
For CHROs and HR leaders, this is a seat-at-the-table moment. This presents an opportunity to bring HR to the forefront of this conversation and lead in redesigning roles and promoting mobility. Rather than replacing talent, structured AI learning pathways can build new skill layers into existing roles that promote growth and avoid future re-hiring gaps. L&D bridges the knowledge gap into what skills will be needed in the future, creating internal mobility when opportunities arise.
You can’t just say you’re becoming an AI company. You have to show your workforce where they fit in that future.
Culture Determines Whether AI Builds Fear or Momentum
If a company wants to grow its positioning towards AI, it has to strengthen both talent and mindset. If AI deployment is introduced without context, employees assume the worst. Transparent communication about why AI is being implemented and how it connects to organizational strategy and career growth gains better employee buy-in. When you reiterate that AI is a multiplier, not a replacement, and that you are committed to giving every employee the resources they need to upskill, they can thrive through the transition.
Early conversations about how employees are already using AI in their personal lives can reduce uncertainty and lower resistance. Once interest builds, leaders can begin to articulate how AI will be used operationally and how employees will be supported along that path. When organizations establish a foundation of trust and development, they can speak directly about the future. Building this credibility allows leaders to reiterate a clear commitment: employees will be given the resources to upskill and thrive as roles evolve.
Visible proof reinforces the message. When employees who complete AI-focused learning move into more technical roles with expanded scope and higher wages, the narrative shifts.
Ultimately, AI adoption is less a technology problem than a leadership communication challenge. If employees do not understand how AI benefits them, they will assume it threatens them. For workforce readiness to advance alongside technical readiness, that must begin with transparency, trust, and demonstrated opportunity.
The Pathways Around Role Redesign
Instead of asking, “What jobs will AI eliminate?” leaders should ask, “How do we redesign this process now that the mundane parts can be automated?” That often means rethinking decades of best practices to build something better for customers, employees, and the business. This is a moment for expanded opportunity as AI can add new skill layers to existing roles. It all starts with a clear skills inventory.
As companies move toward AI adoption, they must assess AI literacy and confidence across the workforce. Familiarity can’t be assumed. Leaders should formalize existing strengths as core competencies, then define adjacent future skills that build directly on current experience. In customer service, for example, reviewing AI-driven conversations requires new technical fluency, but relies on the same listening and judgment skills seasoned professionals already have. Mundane tasks are automated; human roles shift to oversight and improvement.
AI training should be connected to expanded responsibilities, evolving roles, and compensation growth. When integrated into formal development paths, AI literacy becomes part of long-term career progression, not a side initiative.
Supporting Development and Mobility
For CHROs, this is a defining moment to lead as workforce architects, reimagining roles, defining new career pathways, and unlocking new value from existing talent.
- Prioritize internal talent first: Employees with deep knowledge already understand your service and customer expectations. With AI upskilling, that expertise can translate into redesigned, higher-impact roles.
- Start with proof: Implement one new business process with AI, redefine one role or improve one department, and demonstrate a positive outcome that clearly benefits employees. Visible success builds credibility.
- Don’t go too big, too fast: Avoid launching something so ambitious that early failure undermines confidence in the strategy.
- Make the “why” unmistakable: Make sure employees understand the why and how AI aligns with company goals that create opportunity for them. If they don’t see the benefit, they will default to fear. Then provide the resources to help people grow into what’s next.
- Create small wins that build ambassadors: Use early successes to empower respected employees to become advocates, especially those who influence more skeptical peers.
If CHROs approach AI with this micro-level of discipline, the benefits compound. L&D plays a critical role because growth and education don’t happen by accident. AI implementation without a talent strategy creates uneasiness. When you implement AI with a learning strategy, it creates resilience.
Responsible Leadership
If you can implement one new business process with AI, redefine one role or improve one department, and demonstrate a positive outcome that benefits employees, you’ll initiate the process. Small, visible wins lay the foundation for broader transformation.
AI is changing work. Will leaders get ahead of the shift or react to this fact? Building the right structure is not just preparing the workforce for AI; it’s increasing their long-term career value. That’s responsible leadership. The leaders who embrace this mentality will not only prevent the AI “rehiring boomerang,” they will build organizations that evolve intentionally, with people at the center of it.
Marlene Cosain is the HR Director at Abby Connect.