AI for HR means using artificial intelligence inside the people function, with a person still accountable for each decision. It helps recruitment, onboarding, learning and development, employee experience and workforce planning. The useful work is drafting, sorting and checking, and training makes that use consistent across the team. The main route is the Level 4 HR and L&D edition of the AI and Automation Practitioner (ST1512), live online, 15 months in all with 12 months of live training, with cohorts on Tuesday 1 December 2026 and Tuesday 12 January 2027.
Where AI helps HR
Recruitment. Teams use AI to draft job descriptions, check them for bias, and sort applications. The AI for HR workshop treats sifting and drafting as assistant work. The hiring decision stays with a person.
Onboarding. The same workshop covers AI-assisted onboarding journeys, so a new starter can find the next step without waiting on a busy inbox.
Learning and development. Teams build AI-assisted learning pathways. That sits alongside recruitment and employee experience in the workshop.
Employee experience. Teams build internal assistants that answer policy and benefits queries, so HR time goes to the questions that need a person.
Workforce planning. Microsoft Copilot is used to model headcount scenarios from finance data, exit interview themes and skill gap heatmaps.
Generative AI copilots for HR
Much of the day to day help is drafting: a policy, a job description or a development note, then a person checking it. Our guide to generative AI copilots for HR follows Microsoft Copilot in a people team, including the workshop TESS ran with Colart.
Risks and governance
The workshop is built around three risks: HR data, bias and the EU AI Act.
- Data. HR files are personal data. The workshop covers GDPR for HR data, and UK guidance.
- Bias. Job description writing and bias checking are part of the day, so a draft is reviewed before anyone uses it.
- The EU AI Act. There is a line between AI as an assistant, for sifting and drafting, and AI as a decision maker. Using AI as the hiring decision is restricted. The workshop covers that line, including where a UK employer processes data about people in the EU.
Three ways to train an HR team
Level 4 HR and L&D edition
The HR and L&D edition of the AI and Automation Practitioner (ST1512). Live online, 15 months in all, no coding. Cohorts start on Tuesday 1 December 2026 and Tuesday 12 January 2027. The wider standard is the Level 4 AI and Automation Practitioner apprenticeship.
One day workshop
The AI for HR workshop is one day, live online or in person, for HR directors, HR business partners, people operations and learning leads.
Level 5 units for HR directors
AI training for HR directors uses the Level 5 units: strategy, governance and delivery. Each unit is about 30 hours. See the AI leadership apprenticeship units.
72% distinction rate across TESS apprenticeships, from results in 2024 to 2026, against a UK average of about 33%. Ofsted graded TESS Good. ST1512 was approved in December 2025, so no provider has ST1512 results yet.
CIPD and AI
A CIPD qualification and AI training answer different questions. Compare routes on the CIPD levels page, and see the CIPD page for the people apprenticeships TESS runs as a CIPD Approved Centre.
Meet us at Stand E10, CIPD ACE, Manchester Central, 4 to 5 November 2026.
What AI does in HR
AI in HR is the use of artificial intelligence on people work, with a person still accountable for each decision. HR AI of this kind drafts, sorts and checks: a job description, an application sift, an onboarding step, a learning pathway, a policy answer or a workforce plan. Artificial intelligence in HR uses tools the team already has, such as Microsoft Copilot and Power Automate. No coding is required. AI and HR work together when the people team is trained to use those tools on its own processes.
The funded route is the Level 4 HR and L&D edition of the AI and Automation Practitioner. It takes around 15 months, with 12 months of live training. Cohorts start on Tuesday 1 December 2026 and Tuesday 12 January 2027. The apprenticeship is in the £18,000 funding band. Non-levy employers pay 5% (£900) for apprentices aged 25 and over. Government funds training and assessment up to the band for apprentices aged 16 to 24. Level 5 AI units for HR directors are £750 per unit. The shorter option is the one day AI for HR workshop.
Frequently asked questions
What does AI for HR mean?
AI for HR means using artificial intelligence inside the people function, with a person still accountable for each decision. It helps recruitment, onboarding, learning and development, employee experience and workforce planning. The useful work is drafting, sorting and checking, and training makes that use consistent across the team.
Where does AI help an HR team?
It helps with recruitment, including job descriptions, sifting and bias checks, with onboarding journeys, with learning and development, with employee experience, and with workforce planning. Teams use tools such as Microsoft Copilot and Power Automate. No coding is required.
What risks should HR manage when using AI?
HR data, bias, and the EU AI Act. The one day workshop covers the line between AI as an assistant, for sifting and drafting, and AI as a decision maker, which is restricted under the EU AI Act, plus UK guidance and GDPR for HR data.
How can an HR team train in AI with TESS?
Three routes. The Level 4 HR and L&D edition of the AI and Automation Practitioner (ST1512), live online, 15 months in all with 12 months of live training, with cohorts on Tuesday 1 December 2026 and Tuesday 12 January 2027. A one day AI for HR workshop. Level 5 AI units for HR directors, about 30 hours each. Across TESS apprenticeships, 72% of apprentices achieve a distinction.
Do HR teams need to code?
No. The Level 4 programmes are designed for non-technical learners. Apprentices use tools such as Microsoft Copilot and Power Automate.
What is AI in HR?
AI in HR, also called HR AI, is the use of artificial intelligence on people work, with a person still accountable for each decision. It drafts, sorts and checks work in recruitment, onboarding, learning and development, employee experience and workforce planning. At TESS that means tools such as Microsoft Copilot and Power Automate, used on the team's own processes. No coding is required.
What does artificial intelligence in HR cover?
Artificial intelligence in HR covers drafting and checking job descriptions, sorting applications, onboarding steps, learning pathways, policy answers and workforce plans. The hiring decision, and any other people decision, stays with a person.
How do AI and HR work together?
AI and HR work together when the people team is trained to use the tools on its own work. The funded route at TESS is the Level 4 HR and learning and development edition of the AI and Automation Practitioner. It takes around 15 months, with cohorts on Tuesday 1 December 2026 and Tuesday 12 January 2027. It is in the £18,000 funding band. Non-levy employers pay 5% (£900) for apprentices aged 25 and over. Level 5 AI units are £750 per unit.
Book a 30 minute discovery call
Thirty minutes with TESS. We will match the route to the role and the funding position.
Book a 30 minute discovery call