Layoffs IBM: In the year 2023, IBM took a big step and laid off about 8,000 employees, including those from HR (Human Resources). This decision was taken because the company had decided to automate many routine HR tasks through AI.
IBM has developed an AI system called AskHR, which was capable of handling tasks like leave requests, salary breakup and employee documents. The focus of this tech company based in Armonk, New York was to increase the workforce, cut costs and reshape the productivity of the HR sector through technology.
The company started hiring for this reason
Although IBM had expected that the AskHR system would completely take over the work of HR, the results were not the same. Even though AskHR handled 94% of standard HR tasks like payroll query, leave approval and document management properly, operational gaps were seen in the remaining 6% of the work, which required more understanding. These gaps also affected productivity and service quality. Due to this, IBM started hiring again.
Workforce increased in 2024
Even though there were layoffs earlier, IBM's total workforce increased in 2024. The company reinvested the savings from automation in those areas. The company hired people to meet the need for creativity, emotional intelligence, and strategic thinking in software development, sales, marketing, client relationship roles.
Although IBM adopted automation rapidly, it also had to pay a heavy price. IBM's experience is a lesson for companies that are moving towards adopting AI. Even though productivity can be increased with automation, the workforce cannot be completely removed. Especially in cases that require emotional intelligence.
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