Nearly one in four Chief Human Resources Officers now say at least one business leader in their organisation has stopped hiring for entry-level positions, according to a new Gartner survey, as AI automates the routine tasks that once defined junior roles. The shift, HR experts warn, threatens to create serious long-term skills shortages and inflate recruitment costs - a short-term efficiency gain that could hollow out the talent pipeline.
The Q4 2025 survey of 110 HR leaders found that 22% of CHROs reported at least one business leader had already eliminated entry-level hiring because work previously performed by junior employees is now handled by AI. As AI reshapes hiring, Chief Human Resources Officers can explore an AI Learning Path for CHROs to build strategies for workforce planning.
AI adoption surges, but business impact lags
Ninety-five percent of organisations introduced AI capabilities over the past year, yet widespread implementation has not translated into widespread value. Only about one in five organisations report significant or transformational results from their AI investments. Most of the technology's current application targets repetitive, lower-complexity work - the same tasks that have traditionally given early-career employees a foundation for building skills and experience.
As these responsibilities disappear, organisations are redefining entry-level roles, often expecting new hires to contribute to more complex work from day one. HR teams navigating these changes can find resources on AI for Human Resources.
Short-term savings, long-term talent gaps
Eliminating junior hiring may solve an immediate efficiency challenge, but Gartner's research warns it risks creating a much larger talent problem. "Organisations that respond by cutting their early career talent pipelines altogether risk creating significant workforce challenges down the road," said Kaelyn Lowmaster, Director Analyst in Gartner's HR practice. "Instead of eliminating these early career roles, organisations should redefine them to enable earlier contributions to higher-value work and build the talent they will need in the future."
The report also cautions that reducing entry-level recruitment could drive up hiring costs as companies become more dependent on experienced external talent, weaken internal succession pipelines, and leave new hires under greater pressure to perform complex work before they are fully prepared.
Redesigning, not removing, early-career roles
Gartner argues that rather than cutting junior positions, organisations should redesign them around how AI is changing work. The first priority is identifying tasks that AI has augmented or automated and reallocating higher-value responsibilities to early-career employees. Annika Jessen, Director Analyst in Gartner's HR practice, said organisations should assess how AI is reshaping capabilities across critical business functions and identify where junior talent can make meaningful contributions earlier in their careers.
As traditional on-the-job training opportunities diminish, learning through collaboration becomes more important. A separate Gartner survey of 3,086 employees found that workers who developed adaptable skills were 3.8 times more likely to report feeling well prepared for future work than those focused solely on role-specific expertise. Meaghan Kelly, Director Analyst in Gartner's HR practice, said employers can no longer rely on conventional career development models built around repetitive work. Instead, organisations should expand team-based learning.
Why this matters for HR professionals
The data signals a structural shift that demands immediate attention from HR leaders. Entry-level hiring freezes may solve a budget-year problem, but they create a multi-year talent deficit. HR teams must now lead the redesign of early-career roles - mapping how AI alters task loads, rewriting job descriptions around higher-value contributions, and building team-based learning models that replace the repetitive work that once trained new hires. The organisations that treat this as a workforce design challenge, not a cost-cutting exercise, will be the ones with the talent pipelines to compete in the next decade.
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