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Tips for federal human resources professionals to capitalize on artificial intelligence

The Partnership for Public Service, in collaboration with Deloitte, convened a roundtable of federal human resources leaders to discuss best practices and shared challenges related to the responsible adoption of generative artificial intelligence, or GenAI, tools to support federal HR mission delivery.  

The roundtable underscored what agency leaders need to do to adopt GenAI at their agency, including:  

• Creating standards for personnel and digital safety  

• Maintaining clear communication with stakeholders 

• Balancing the resources needed to deploy new tools against the resources needed to maintain or update existing HR systems  

Discussions also touched on how federal HR organizations can support each other and partner with other offices in government to shape and drive AI implementation. 

Here are specific examples of opportunities, challenges and current use cases that the participants shared. 

Creating standards for hiring, digital safety and data 

Participants stated that a lack of parity and standards between agencies makes it harder to integrate GenAI into their work. Improving this situation would help avoid conflict and confusion. 

• For GenAI tools to reach their full potential, human resources offices need to modernize and improve standardization within existing HR management systems. This standardization also could improve the data quality of records and the ability to transfer those records as employees move between federal agencies.  

• Many common GenAI resources are not certified by the various federal security certification mechanisms. There is also confusion among federal HR and IT leaders about which certifications to use or prioritize. Improved clarity in this area would help agencies promote digital safety and help related offices fulfill fundamental responsibilities under the Office of Management and Budget’s new Trust Regulation. 

• Resource inequities make it difficult for agencies to offer comparable salaries and benefits to prospective AI talent. Discussions need to be held on how to make competitive compensation fairer between different agencies, new talent and federal IT employees who wish to reskill.  

Balancing AI deployment with other needs 

Human resources is a field that needs constant upkeep to efficiently provide benefits and services to the federal workforce. Participants identified several strategies to balance these demands with those needed to responsibly integrate a new tool like GenAI. 

• Many HR offices have staffing and resource shortages that hamper efforts to maintain or modernize current HR solutions. This complicates the offices’ ability to move forward swiftly and confidently to implement programs around GenAI. HR offices and teams will need increased support from both their organizations and their wider group of stakeholders to meet and exceed agency AI goals while maintaining service levels. 

• To minimize risk and avoid overextending resources, participants suggested prioritizing GenAI applications that augment existing processes rather than aiming for wholesale automation. Several agencies have used or intend to use GenAI tools to find common errors to improve forms, perform quality checks, and help employees identify or find critical information that improves their workflows. 

Demystifying AI through communication 

Participants recognized that increasing or improving stakeholder communication about AI-related topics would drive efforts to responsibly implement AI. 

• Communicating how agencies can integrate AI into their operations enables HR offices to remain active partners in conversations with leadership and external stakeholders— both about applying AI to their immediate work and determining what will be needed to hire, develop and retain future talent. 

• To compete for the talent needed to employ GenAI tools, and to maintain and improve existing IT resources, agencies need to clearly communicate with potential job applicants and differentiate between AI roles. Recent successes include improving the language used in job postings and notifying applicants about the roles and expected work through informational websites in addition to USAJOBS. 

• Clearly communicating with staff and unions about the expectations agencies have regarding AI tools would reduce anxiety about GenAI’s impact on current staff and work processes. Knowing these expectations would reduce the risk of staff using AI tools in unsafe or inappropriate ways, and help staff and leaders make informed decisions on training, upskilling and on-the-job learning opportunities to prepare for the future. 

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