Nine in 10 U.S. hiring managers say AI will never replace the need for actual employees at their company, according to a new Express Employment Professionals-Harris Poll survey. The findings, released July 2, 2026, come as AI adoption in the workplace continues to spread - 79% of hiring managers report their companies use AI, and 43% say it is used regularly.
Among employed job seekers whose companies use AI, 82% said generative AI will never replace the need for actual employees where they work. An even larger share of hiring managers - 92% - said their company is committed to preserving a human element in the workplace.
Where companies still rely on people
Human resources leads the list at 59%, followed by customer service at 57%. This fits with broader conversations in AI for Human Resources about balancing automation with human judgment. Ethics and compliance came in at 47%, IT at 43%, and sales at 39%.
Company size shapes how strongly leaders feel about human involvement. Three-quarters of respondents from companies with two to nine employees said they prioritize human interaction in customer service, compared with 51% of respondents from companies with 500 or more employees.
The tasks that demand human judgment
Both hiring managers and job seekers showed strong agreement on which workplace situations require a human touch. The strongest consensus emerged around crisis management, ethical decision-making, and employee disputes.
- Managing crisis situations or emergencies - Hiring managers: 82%, job seekers: 76%
- Making decisions on ethical practices and compliance - Hiring managers: 82%, job seekers: 73%
- Handling employee disputes or grievances - Hiring managers: 81%, job seekers: 74%
- Negotiating deals or contracts with other businesses - Hiring managers: 80%, job seekers: 70%
- Conducting performance reviews and providing feedback - Hiring managers: 79%, job seekers: 71%
- Determining who gets laid off - Hiring managers: 76%, job seekers: 71%
Large majorities of surveyed hiring managers also prefer keeping humans in the loop for reviewing applications and selecting candidates for interviews (79%), as well as serving as the first point of contact for customer issues or questions (77%). Both numbers reinforce the pattern running through the survey: AI is welcomed for efficiency, but not for decisions that affect people directly.
Why this matters for HR professionals
"AI can improve efficiency, boost productivity and take routine tasks off employees' plates so they can focus on other priorities, but that does not mean it should stand in for people," said Bob Funk Jr., CEO, president and chairman of Express Employment International. "When the situation is sensitive or the outcome affects someone's job, career or future, human involvement still matters. The real value of AI comes from working alongside people, not replacing them."
For HR professionals, the survey confirms what many already practice: AI tools handle screening and scheduling, but humans own the decisions that shape careers. The data provides a benchmark for HR teams building internal policies on AI use - particularly around performance reviews, dispute resolution, and layoff decisions, where both managers and employees show the strongest preference for human control.
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