Want to use modern chatbot technology in HR? Find out more about chatbots and our newly developed digital HR chatbot here.
«Bots are the new apps,» said Satya Nadella – CEO of Microsoft – on the occasion of «Build», Microsoft’s developer conference, in early 2016. Nowadays, everyone is talking about chatbots and they are already being used successfully in e-commerce and high-tech companies. We are now also expecting ground-breaking changes in the area of human resources – with Sophie, the digital HR assistant.
Chatbots («bots» for short) are dialogue systems with textual or auditory capabilities that make it possible to interact with a technical system in natural language. Technically, bots are more similar to full-text search engines than to artificial or even natural intelligence. However, with increasing computing power, Chatbot systems can access ever-growing volumes of data at ever-increasing speeds, which allows them to provide intelligent dialogue for the user. This is why these systems are referred to as «virtual personal assistants».
As technology advances, the potential of chatbots is growing at a breath-taking pace. These smart helpers can also respond to many of the HR challenges involved in the modern Workplace 4.0. The use of chatbots means HR can be available for your employees 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, flexibly, and via a variety of channels, regardless of location. At the same time, a considerable increase in process efficiency can be achieved by cutting waiting times to the minimum, for example.
Chatbots are interesting tools, and not only from the perspective of the HR department – employees also benefit from their advantages. Chatbots allow them to deal with their daily HR-related tasks and needs in a system-independent, fast and uncomplicated manner, all in an environment where they already spend a lot of time: the messaging service of their choice. There is no need for resource-consuming employee training when systems are launched; also, in many processes, sources of errors can be minimized by the use of standardized inputs and proactive input suggestions. The time savings achieved through increased efficiency and being relieved of repetitive routine work enable HR teams to focus on the really important aspects of their job: the people.
At HR Campus, we believe that chatbots provide the greatest added value in HR when they are set up as digital assistants for employees. Throughout the entire employee life cycle, they provide employees with carefully evaluated functions and processes in the messaging services of their choice, and proactively contact their colleagues as needed. This is why we developed Sophie – a digital assistant that can be implemented on any messaging service or back-end system with a lean launch project. More information will be available at hr-campus.ch from early December.
The rate at which chatbots will spread across Swiss HR departments will depend, among other things, on how chatbots are used and accepted in other areas of employees’ lives. Chatbots are already appealing to and accepted by younger users, and even old timers are increasingly getting to grips with the new technology. As a company, it is important to be open to this new trend. The HR department can actively influence the success of chatbots by the purposeful use of this innovative technology. Another decisive factor for Chatbots in HR is whether and when Switzerland’s most popular messaging service – WhatsApp – will open its platform to chatbots.
Published: 13. November 2018
