On 24 September 2025, over 2,600 HR professionals from across Europe joined the European Association for People Management (EAPM) webinar From Zero to Hero – How to Use AI in Your HR Work. The session, led by Professor and strategic AI advisor Claus Nygaard, offered practical demonstrations of how artificial intelligence (AI) can support HR professionals in their daily work.

Opening the event, EAPM Vice President David Ducheyne reminded participants that the debate around AI is often framed in extremes.

“We could look at AI as a threat, or as something that is only positive and an opportunity. It’s probably both. But actually, we should be using AI as a way of enhancing, augmenting, and reinforcing the profession.”

EAPM, he explained, aims to help its 35 national member associations thrive by creating content and fostering collaboration. This webinar was part of that mission.

Marie Louise Gaardbo Nielsen introduced the keynote speaker, noting that AI can feel overwhelming but encouraging participants to see the session as “opening the door and getting inspired about the possibilities that lie within AI in HR.”

Four Types of AI in HR

Claus Nygaard structured his presentation around four types of AI solutions, each moving from simple to more complex applications.

1. Chatbots powered by large language models

Chatbots such as ChatGPT, Copilot, and Gemini can draft job postings, competency frameworks, and even candidate interview questions. As Nygaard emphasised:

“Don’t just ask which competencies are relevant for a project manager. Be detailed in your prompting, and you will get results that are far more concrete and useful.”

He also demonstrated how chatbots can score candidates against frameworks, offering HR structured comparisons at the click of a button.

2. AI assistants in workflows

AI assistants automate recruitment workflows. Nygaard showed how an AI recruiter could analyse uploaded CVs, send acceptance or rejection letters, and update databases automatically:

“We no longer need to take applications from the inbox and manually send them on. The AI assistant can do the work.”

3. Autonomous AI agents

Going further, AI agents can operate across IT systems, answering calls, managing calendars, and providing candidate information. Nygaard demonstrated an AI phone agent capable of handling initial queries from applicants.

4. AI avatars for training and onboarding

Avatars, personified with realistic voices and appearances, can onboard new hires or deliver interactive training. Using tools such as Synthesia, organisations can provide multilingual, scalable, and personalised communication.

Security, Ethics, and the Human Touch

Naturally, questions turned to security and bias. Nygaard recommended using GDPR-compliant systems that run via APIs with no data logging.

He also reinforced the importance of maintaining human oversight:

“It’s not about letting AI make the final hiring decision. It should serve the human in the loop, not replace them.”

Beyond Recruitment: Everyday HR Applications

While much focus was on hiring, Nygaard highlighted broader applications. For example, chatbots can field routine questions about policies or salaries, freeing HR staff for more strategic tasks.

He also showcased three personal AI agents he built to:

  • draft polite and accurate email responses,

  • transcribe meetings and create multilingual summaries, and

  • prepare briefing notes and research questions ahead of back-to-back meetings.

Adoption: Who Should Lead?

Asked whether IT or HR should lead AI adoption, Nygaard was clear:

“HR should be the guiding star for what the AI policy should be in our company… It shouldn’t be bits and bytes and cables and passwords that set the limits for the future.”

A Call to Experiment

The session ended with a call to action. Participants were urged to experiment, test practical tools, and start internal conversations about priorities and compliance.

As Ducheyne summed up, the purpose is not to replace the human touch but to “equip professionals with tools to work smarter, faster, and with greater impact.”

You can download Claus Nygaard’s presentation here and watch the webinar recording here.