There's a common assumption floating around HR circles: HR is slow to adopt new technology, especially AI, because the job is about people first. New research from Awardco shows that story doesn't hold up.

We surveyed 390 HR admins and found that more than 8 in 10 are already using AI regularly or occasionally at work. That's not hesitation. That's adoption already in motion.

HR admins are doing more than drafting emails

It's easy to assume AI in HR starts and stops with writing faster emails. The data says otherwise:

• 91.8% of respondents use AI to write and edit communications
• Nearly 66% use it to create or update policies and documents
• Over 60% use it to analyze data and pull insights

Respondents described building custom agents, training AI on company style guides, and using AI to analyze exit interview trends. These are practical, high-value use cases woven into the real work of HR, not surface-level experiments.

The real barrier is support

When asked what's holding them back from using AI more, the largest group (49.5%) said nothing, they're already using it regularly. The next most common answer was accuracy, not resistance.

Confidence in using AI tools day to day sits at 3.49 out of 5. Many respondents feel excited to use AI in their role, and many also feel overwhelmed or unsure where to go next. Together, that points to one thing: HR teams aren't asking to be convinced. They're asking to be better equipped.

HR's real concern isn't job security

Only 8.7% of respondents said they genuinely worry AI could replace their role. Far more said AI will change their role, not eliminate it, or that they simply feel secure.

What they're actually worried about is dehumanization: the risk that organizations use AI to skip empathy, flatten nuance, and optimize away the relationship-building that makes HR effective. As one respondent put it, "AI creates efficiency, but humans create connection."

That's not skepticism. That's governance, and it's a distinction worth paying attention to.

What this means for leaders

Three takeaways stand out:

• Stop waiting. Treating AI in HR as a "we'll get to it eventually" problem is already out of step with what HR teams are doing.
• Support the willingness that's already there. If your HR team is struggling with AI, the gap is likely support, clarity, and training, not motivation.
• Efficiency and humanity aren't in competition. The best HR practitioners are already insisting on both.

Want the full picture?

This is just a glimpse of what the research uncovered. The full white paper digs deeper into the data, the quotes behind it, and what it means for building an AI strategy that respects both efficiency and the human side of HR.

Download the full white paper here