78% of HR Leaders Warn AI Could Shrink Future Leadership Pipelines

As AI changes the nature of early-career jobs, 78% of HR and talent leaders surveyed by Talogy are concerned about the long-term loss of critical leadership skills, raising questions about how organisations will develop future leaders.

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Talogy surveyed 207 senior HR leaders, talent acquisition managers and learning and development professionals.

The findings suggest that as AI takes on tasks traditionally handled by entry-level employees, some employees may get fewer opportunities to develop skills through everyday work experience.

AI Changes How Employees Learn at Work

Entry-level roles often help employees build skills such as problem-solving, communication, collaboration and decision-making. These skills are developed not only through formal training but also by handling responsibilities and learning from workplace situations.

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With AI increasingly taking over some routine tasks, organisations may need to create more deliberate opportunities for employees to develop these capabilities.

Talogy’s guide, AI and the Leadership Pipeline: The Rising Need for Intentional Development, identifies four human capabilities under its RISE framework:

• Responsiveness: Being open to learning, adapting and working with new technologies.
• Insight: Using critical thinking, understanding information and developing new ideas.
• Sustainability: Building resilience, adapting to change and maintaining performance.
• Effectiveness: Communicating and collaborating to turn ideas into outcomes.

The framework draws on research involving more than 6,000 employees, managers and talent professionals globally.

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Leadership Development May Need to Start Earlier

The guide also highlights the role of values and emotional intelligence in developing future leaders. It says organisations may need objective, science-based behavioural and psychometric assessments to identify leadership potential early and support employee development.

“Teaching employees how to work alongside AI tools simply isn’t enough,” said Ali Shalfrooshan, Director of Science Strategy at Talogy. He said organisations need to focus on capabilities such as critical thinking, adaptability and collaboration as employees take on more complex responsibilities.

The findings point to a changing role for HR. As AI becomes part of everyday work, organisations may need to rethink how early-career employees gain practical experience and how leadership capabilities are developed over the course of a career.