AI in German HR departments: use is slowly growing

Berlin. The use of artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming increasingly important in the human resources departments of companies in Germany, even if the widespread breakthrough is still a long time coming. One in seven companies (14 percent) already uses AI-supported applications to create job references, while more than half (52 percent) indicate interest in doing so in the future. This is the result of a representative survey by the digital association Bitkom among more than 600 companies in Germany.

AI is currently most widespread in the individual further training of employees: 16 percent of companies are already using corresponding tools (2024: 12 percent), and a further 58 percent can imagine this. 14 percent of companies also use AI when training new employees (onboarding), compared to eleven percent two years ago. Another 36 percent are planning or considering taking appropriate steps.

"Anyone who is new to the job has a lot of questions. A well-trained AI can provide answers, help with orientation and is always available," said Bitkom CEO Bernhard Rohleder. This leaves the employees in the human resources department more time for individual attention to personal concerns.

A clear dynamic can be seen when analyzing the workload. Here, the proportion of AI users doubled from six percent in 2024 to currently 13 percent; another 28 percent are open to it. Twelve percent currently use AI to formally evaluate employees’ work performance. Another 27 percent can imagine it. 13 percent of the companies surveyed use automated chat and service systems to process internal inquiries, while 53 percent are considering this in the future.

Despite increasing acceptance, adaptation in human resources departments is more cautious compared to other areas of the company. The main braking factors are strict requirements for the protection of sensitive employee data as well as legal uncertainties surrounding the European AI Act, which classifies a number of AI applications in the human resources sector as high-risk systems. “Especially in the human resources sector, the inhibition threshold for using AI is higher than in many other areas of the company,” explained Rohleder.