As we inch closer to 2025, business experts make predictions for the coming year. Among the forecasts so far are the death of return-to-work policies, AI will replace full-time careers for some employees and certain trends will redefine the workplace in 2025. I spoke with numerous business leaders who are making some eye-popping HR predictions for 2025 about the death of old policies.
A recent Betterworks survey found that nearly seven in 10 organizations use performance evaluations for measuring skills and competencies. But over half are doing those assessments only one-to-two times per year. According to Jamie Aitken, vice president of HR transformation at Betterworks, annual reviews and review-based compensation decisions will fall out of style in 2025.
Doug Dennerline, CEO of Betterworks agrees that the practice of performance management will be turned on its head in 2025. “Forward-looking performance management is the new gold standard,” Dennerline insists. “The shift will expose the outdated belief that performance reviews are merely a compliance exercise. Instead, HR leaders will increasingly recognize them as tools to drive future outcomes—serving as strategic levers for skill development, talent retention and organizational agility.”
According to Aitken, enhanced data literacy will be key for effective HR decision-making in 2025. “Annual reviews are increasingly viewed as inadequate for providing timely feedback and fail to support the agile development and continuous improvement that employees seek,” she argues. “Continuous performance enablement—characterized by ongoing feedback, flexible goal-setting and regular check-ins—is becoming the norm, and organizations that stick to annual reviews risk disengaging employees and missing valuable development opportunities.”
Dennerline says that as employees demand more meaningful experiences at work, the narrative will evolve. “By adopting continuous, lightweight performance management systems that adapt to real-time data and employee feedback, companies will have a competitive edge,” he says. “Those clinging to ‘business-as-usual’ methods will find themselves outpaced by organizations that view performance as a catalyst for innovation, not a checkbox for HR compliance.”
In the past, HR has been underfunded and undervalued, resulting in overwork, burnout and delays in essential processes. But with the advent of AI agents, things are changing, according to Jennifer Dulski, CEO of Rising Team. And by 2025, she believes AI assistants may become mainstream in HR., and 2025 will be the year that AI starts to make a significant impact on people's jobs.
“Any job can easily be automated or replaced when an AI agent is at risk,” Dulski suggests. “This includes roles like customer service, sales development reps, paralegals, production designers, junior engineers, copywriters and more. The best way people can protect their jobs or qualify for new ones is to learn how to use AI. There will be many jobs available for people who are good at leveraging AI to do these jobs faster/better and for people who are in roles that require a true human touch. People who can both use AI and combine that with EQ and soft skills, will be in high demand. The good news is that access to AI learning is widespread and affordable.”
For Janghoon Lee, CTO of Redrob, the use of AI will propel HR to new heights and allow for better hiring practices. Lee says AI will empower HR to boost team productivity and efficiency. He also predicts that the 2025 workplace will be shaped by a new breed of AI assistants that are genuinely transforming how companies approach hiring. “Picture an AI agent that digs through your company's data and tells you ‘Hey, based on your upcoming product launches and typical attrition patterns, you'll need three senior developers by August—and here's why.’”
Lee explains that these AI tools can spot patterns humans could miss, like noticing that your customer support team is stretched thin during certain seasons or that your data science projects keep stalling due to missing specialized skills.
“They'll also get smarter about finding the right talent, learning from past hiring successes and failures to pinpoint where to find great candidates and what makes them stick around,” he states. “Beyond just screening resumes, they'll help companies make smarter decisions about when to hire, who to look for and how much to pay—all while keeping an eye on budgets and business goals. While this tech is exciting, companies will need to navigate new regulations to ensure their AI hiring tools are fair and transparent.”
Tom Keuten, senior vice president and Global Microsoft Alliance lead at Rightpoint suggests that HR technology will focus on driving human engagement. “As technological opportunities increase, human connection through mentors and leaders will be critical for technical success,” he explains. “Positive employee experience will focus on aligning technology, human resources and organizational goals. Great HR technology has the opportunity to make an employee feel like the whole work experience has been created for them to contribute, learn and grow.”
“AI will help HR teams create curated and flexible employee benefit experiences informed by data (as 81% of HR teams report using AI in their daily tasks) to provide a more cost effective and flexible benefit experience,” forecasts Amy Mosher, chief people officer at isolved.
Amberly Dressler, vice president of corporate marketing at isolved, cites that “72% of employees find the benefit selection process stressful, so HR teams will amplify communications around benefits and provide real-time, personalized support through AI-driven tools and human guidance.”
Donna Bormann, HR business partner at isolved, expects that, “HR teams will implement more flexibility to elect insurance coverage in the employer’s plan or will provide a subsidy payout for the employee to cover other insurance or even childcare costs—the leading most desired benefit from Millennials and Gen Z is child care reimbursement, at 33% and 36% respectively.”
Rick Hammell, founder and CEO of Helios, believes that the post-2024 election landscape will have significant implications for global human resources in 2025. “With potential shifts in policies and regulations, HR leaders must prepare for an evolving labor market, particularly in areas such as immigration and workforce mobility,” Hammell predicts. “The continued rise of remote and hybrid work models will be essential, as organizations worldwide adapt to new norms that prioritize flexibility and work-life balance.”
Hammell adds that the integration of artificial intelligence and data analytics will transform recruitment and talent management, enabling companies to navigate diverse labor pools across borders while minimizing biases. He expects that commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion will intensify, compelling global companies to adopt more inclusive practices that resonate with the diverse workforces.
Hammel is optimistic about his HR predictions for 2025. “Overall, HR will be pivotal in adapting strategies to thrive in this new era shaped by political, social and economic factors,” he concludes.
