Featuring insights from Emma Davies (CEO, Thesmia.ai) and Amira Kohler (Founder, People Stuff)
As artificial intelligence becomes embedded in more business functions, one question keeps surfacing in HR circles: Is AI coming for my job? According to Emma Davies and Amira Kohler in their recent LinkedIn Live session, the answer is both yes, and no.
The truth is that AI for HR isn’t about replacing human professionals; it’s about freeing them up. The opportunity? Strip away repetitive admin work and enable HR to focus on the strategic, people-centric work that only humans can do.
Below, we break down key takeaways from the session, with practical steps HR professionals can take today to stay ahead of the AI curve.
Amira offered a clear framework for thinking about this:
Automate the admin: AI can already handle standard queries (e.g. maternity leave policy, holiday entitlement) and streamline form-filling, reminders, or compliance documentation.
Analyse complex data: AI tools are excellent at pulling insights from large datasets – be that engagement surveys, exit interviews, or cross-referencing performance and finance data.
Support internal comms: Tools like Thesmia help HR teams communicate change more effectively, saving time while improving message clarity.
🎯 Action: Start listing the tasks that slow your team down. Ask yourself: Could AI handle this faster, better, or with fewer errors?
While AI can do a lot, there are clear limits — and this is where HR shines.
Reading the room: AI can’t interpret body language, team dynamics, or cultural nuance.
Driving strategic change: AI doesn’t understand organisational context or political complexity.
Human trust and empathy: HR’s role in protecting employee wellbeing, psychological safety, and ethical standards can’t be delegated to code.
As Emma rightly pointed out, “AI should be your assistant, not your replacement.”
🎯 Action: Identify the tasks that require emotional intelligence or cultural sensitivity — those are your human-firststrengths. Double down on them.
Here’s what Emma and Amira recommend HR professionals do now:
Start with low-risk, high-effort tasks. Amira suggests:
Drafting routine internal comms
Analysing exit interview data
Creating first drafts of HR strategies
Tool tip: Tools like Thesmia offer HR-specific prompting to reduce friction for first-time users and accelerate results without needing to be an AI expert.
Amira delivers “Human in the Loop” workshops for HR teams that:
Explain AI basics (bias, hallucinations, ethics)
Identify team-level use cases
Align on guardrails and governance
The insight? The biggest opportunities for AI often correlate with the areas HR already finds most frustrating or time-consuming.
🎯 Action: Even a one-hour team session to explore AI potential can surface big wins.
AI isn’t just a tech issue — it’s a people issue. Whether your organisation is on the AI front foot or lagging behind, HR can and should lead the conversation.
If you're in an environment where HR feels undervalued, owning the AI agenda is your chance to flip the narrative and show strategic leadership.
🎯 Action: Raise the topic at your next leadership meeting. Ask:
Are we aware of how employees are already using AI?
Do we have guidelines or training in place?
Could we be using AI to improve EX, reduce cost, or accelerate strategy?
One of the most practical pieces of advice from the webinar?
Don’t start with the tech. Start with the problem.
It’s easy to get caught up in feature lists and AI hype. But as Emma shared, too many HR teams ask “Does this tool have AI?” instead of “What problem are we trying to solve?”
🎯 Action: For every tool you consider:
Identify the problem it's solving
Define success metrics (time saved, accuracy improved, engagement lifted)
Check for privacy and compliance safeguards
A final — and vital — message: ignoring AI is the real risk.
If you think your people aren’t already using AI, think again. Shadow AI use (via personal devices or unauthorised logins) is growing fast. That means uncontrolled data flows, inconsistent quality, and potential compliance breaches.
🎯 Action: HR must act as the ethical gatekeeper. Set principles, educate employees, and champion transparency.
The future of HR isn’t about humans vs AI — it’s about humans with AI. Or as Amira summed up perfectly:
“Don’t be scared. Just get going.”
Start small. Stay curious. Protect your people. And most importantly, reclaim the time to do the human work that really matters.
👥 Watch the full LinkedIn Live episode here: AI is not coming for your HR job
🧭 Try Thesmia — the AI assistant built for HR.
💬 Connect with Amira Kohler to explore team workshops on AI readiness.