One in four senior HR professionals in the UK already use robotics in their HR or talent acquisition function, according to survey data from by global talent acquisition and management firm, Alexander Mann Solutions.

The data from Alexander Mann Solutions also showed that approximately 70% of senior HR professionals believe that robotics will have a positive impact on their organisation over the next three years. Despite this figure, Alexander Mann points to data from LinkedIn’s 2017 Global Recruitment Trends report that shows internal teams are investing 17% of their budget into new technologies. This is compared to investment into job adverts, and recruitment agencies, which combined account for over 50% of their total spend.

“Not only is it encouraging to see that one in four senior HR professionals is already using robotics as part of their Talent strategies but also that over 70% of department leaders understand the benefits of using robotics and automation in their HR functions,” Laurie Padua, Director of Technology and Operations Consulting at Alexander Mann Solutions, said. “Software automation holds significant opportunities for HR professionals, and can augment the repetitive tasks often inherent with talent acquisition, including data migration, sifting and aggregating.”

“These tools are not intended to eliminate the role of HR professionals, they are designed to relieve them from repetitive, often mundane tasks that consume valuable time which would be best spent leveraging their interpersonal skills and engaging with candidates,” Padua said.