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AN HR CHATBOT:

THE KEY TO YOUR DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION?

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Your digital transformation will either be “chatbotized” or it won’t!

How a Chatbot Can Improve the Quality of Life in the Workplace

How a Chatbot Can Make Training More Personalized and Effective

How a Chatbot Can Humanize Recruitment and Attract New Talent

Enter the Chatbot Manager

SUMMARYCHAPTER 1 p.4 CHAPTER 2 p.7

CHAPTER 3 p.10 CHAPTER 4 p.13

INTRODUCTION p.3

CONCLUSION p.15

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New ways of working call for new tools and new investments. The needs of employees have transformed the working environment into a digital workplace, where everything is computerized. In turn, these innovations have led to changes in the way we work. The biggest challenge in the digital transformation of HR services is the ability to respond to this two-way movement.

The workers of the twenty-first century have new expectations, and Human Resource Departments have to adapt accordingly. Today’s employees expect immediacy (in responses), availability (even when they aren’t on-site) and efficiency (to avoid wasting precious time). A genuine internal client relationship has gradually evolved, relying on increasingly fluid and flexible communications between personnel and the company they work for. This has resulted in increased job satisfaction, enhanced productivity, and companies that are more attractive in the eyes of the new generation of talent.

YOUR DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION WILL EITHER BE “CHATBOTIZED” OR IT WON’T!

1. Christine Regnier, Bonheur au travail, une politique d’entreprise qui a le vent en poupe (Workplace happiness, a company policy with the wind in its sails), Capital, September 12, 2017.2. Xavier Biseul, Chatbots set to become key HR assistants?, L’atelier BNP Paribas, July 12, 2017.

Did you know that employees who are happy at work are not only absent less often, but also more creative, more committed and up to 15 percent more productive than their less-satisfied colleagues?¹ HR services can be fertile ground for cultivating this satisfaction. This is where the digital transformation of any company begins, establishing a new pathway between the employees and the Human Resource Department. The objective is simple: to more effectively respond to the employees needs through an HR service that’s available, efficient and instantaneous. Not only will the staff become more satisfied, but the company will also become more cost-effective.

Chatbots are one of the roads to fulfilling this objective. A chatbot not only handles most of the inquiries (since 80 percent of the questions addressed to HR are recurring),² but also helps improve ROI.

In other words: chatbots are one of the dri-ving forces behind the digital transforma-tion of your HR Department.

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HOW A CHATBOT CAN IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN THE WORKPLACE

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These days, more and more workers belong to the ultra-connected, ultra-demanding millennial generation. These digital natives have modified their expectations with regard to the companies they work for. Human Resource Departments progressively adapt by offering connected service and support that can respond openly and instantaneously to the employees’ recurring questions. The solution to guiding and supporting this change? The integration of a chatbot!

A CHATBOT THAT CAN ASSIST YOUR PERSONNEL AT ANY TIMEWith the aid of a virtual assistant, your HR Department can provide a service in the true sense of the word—one that employees can use freely and independently whenever and wherever they want.Your HR chatbot presents three major advantages.

First, it adapts to the expectations of today’s em-

ployees by making com-munication more fluid. Its responses are relevant and immediate (unlike the time-consuming forms and emails of the past). In some companies, push notifica-tions are even sent direc-tly to the work stations to share important news ins-tantaneously.

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Second, your conversational agent assumes the role of an HR concierge.

It’s available 24/7. At any time, an employee can get information without the frustration of having to wait for a response. Especially when it comes to basic, recurring questions like: “How many vacation days do I have left?” or “How do I fill out an expense report?”

Third, your bot is more than simply an automated response machine.

It collects data on your employees’ needs in order to respond to them with increasing relevance. The employees participate in the

WHO ARE THESE MILLENNIALS?

Born between 1980 and 2000, millennials (formerly known as “Generation Y”) comprise the majority of what we refer to as “digital natives.” The oldest of them grew up with the internet, while the youngest of them were born with a smartphone in their hands. Ultra-connected, they’re awash in a culture of information and immediacy: they want it all and they want it now! They’re also very active in the social media and favor the use of mobile devices, to which they devote a whopping 77 percent of their time.¹

continuous improvement of the tool through satisfaction questionnaires. As a result, they feel like their opinion matters, they’re better-informed and they’re more satisfied!

A CHATBOT THAT CAN BOOST PRODUCTIVITYThe implementation of a conversational robot provides relief for your HR Department at those times when it’s difficult to respond to the needs of all the employees at once. By automating HR communications—especially responses to frequently asked questions—through your chatbot, you simply the life of your HR personnel.

No more employees knocking on the door fifteen times a day to pick up a certificate, submit a request for time off, or ask a question about their pay stub. Gone are the days of pointless, repetitive interactions, completely devoid of any value added. Your bot is undeniably efficient at playing the role of a sort of airlock between the employees and Human Resources.

The net gains are measured in terms of time: with fewer inquiries and requests to fulfil, HR managers are free to focus on their core profession. They have more latitude to reflect on the best means of improving processes and guaranteeing the well-being of the employees.

1. Claire Do, Pourquoi les Millennials revisient la relation client (Why millennials are revising customer relations), Smart Tribune, October 12, 2017.

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They can concentrate on more gratifying tasks with strong value added. In the end, this makes them more productive, and without constant interruptions, they take more pleasure in their work.

But beware: chatbots are not a miracle tool! Launching a chatbot without the proper care and expecting it to be effective would be like planting seeds in your garden and expecting them to grow without water or fertilizer. In order to reveal its full potential, your virtual assistant has to be connected to the HR Department, from which it will draw the indispensable information it needs in order to respond to the employees’ inquiries.

A CHATBOT THAT FILLS OUT REQUESTS FOR TIME OFFThe HR chatbot implemented by Sopra HR Software, based on Living Actor technology, is an amazing conversational agent. It isn’t content merely to provide scripted responses: it can also advise employees by taking their habits into consideration. For example, if an employee takes a vacation at the same time each year, the bot can fill out the request for time off on the employee’s behalf!

Because it interacts with them on a daily basis, your bot has real-time access to information on your employees’ needs. In addition to the time it saves by automating scripted responses, it can also help the HR Department get a better grasp of the steps that are necessary to help your employees grow—especially when it comes to offering them personalized training.

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HOW A CHATBOT CAN MAKE TRAINING MORE PERSONALIZED AND EFFECTIVE

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Digitalization of your training processes is one of the essential steps to the overall digital transformation of your company. Ninety-five percent of employees request mixed training¹ in the form of blended learning. Your chatbot holds a privileged place among the tools that can make this type of composite learning possible: while complementing classic training, it offers learning that more closely responds to the employees’ actual needs. Your bot is both the force that brings about the need and the channel that delivers the necessary training!

AUTOMATED TRAINING EQUALS LIBERATED TRAINING!In a strict sense, your virtual assistant doesn’t replace the trainer. What it does do is extend and complement the existing opportunities for learning (whether virtual or in a traditional classroom setting). As such, it falls within the scope of your company’s educational process.

Admittedly, employees require an ever-increasing amount of training. But with the advances in tools and features, they are no longer satisfied with the classic “classroom + teacher” formula. They expect training that’s efficient but different, simple but customized,

1. Réforme, pratiques, modalités – Les chiffres clés de la formation (Reform, practices, methods – the KPIs of training), Baromètre Cegos 2017, November 2017.

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TRAINING-ON-DEMAND TO ENHANCE EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCEThe primary advantage of training-on-demand is the freedom it offers. No more need to answer “here” at a given time or to spend an entire day in a stuffy classroom with no windows, sitting in front of a hopelessly sad whiteboard. Your employees choose the training they want, at a time that’s convenient for them and at the moment they believe that they truly need it.

Training-on-demand also means a more independent learner. It puts an end to “everything all at once,” the 70-page booklet that has to be assimilated within a few hours and endless slides full of insufferable diagrams.

When your chatbot takes the reins of internal training, it grants the employees more freedom of movement. They can put their training on hold and resume it when they want to and they can ask all the questions that come to mind without disrupting the class. Broken down into bite-sized pieces, the pedagogical content can be adapted to the desired pace, making it easier to comprehend and easier to integrate into a hectic schedule.

innovative but practical: they prefer to access the information at the pace and place of their choosing.

That’s where your chatbot comes into play. On the one hand, it provides learning that’s fun: we’re referring to the phenomenon known as “gamification,” in which the elements of gaming are applied to other areas of activity. On the other hand: it offers an experience that’s differentiated on several levels: through its appearance, its personality, its tone of voice, its vocabulary and possibly even its sense of humor. As a result of this increased engagement, employees are more likely to retain what they’ve learned!

For example, your bot can act as a sort of mini-coach, offering quizzes in the form of skills assessments. The employees play along voluntarily without constraints. Based on the

results, your virtual assistant can then offer them custo-mized training, ai-med at furthering their development.

AUTOMATED TRAINING EQUALS LIBERATED TRAINING!

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The business school of the Crédit Agricole Group (IFCAM) is a good example of the use of a trainer-chatbot. The group offers remote training to its consultants on various subjects with the support of communities of experts. The consultants can access chatbot-led training directly from their work station in order to enrich their knowledge and enhance their professional performance. They can also begin whenever they feel ready. For the employees, it represents welcome flexibility, allowing them to receive their training in a less stressful manner. For the company, it’s a driver of operational excellence: employees who are more effective at all times and in all the essential areas.

The world of training is in the process of evolving, and chatbots are one of the main drivers of this evolution. When properly configured, your virtual assistant becomes a genuine digital coach, accessible at any time and place, adapting perfectly to the pace and learning style of each individual employee. But this doesn’t mean that it replaces the trainer! In training, just as in anything else, you have to find the right balance: your bot relies on the support of solid human skills at every step of the HR process—from image to recruitment.

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HOW A CHATBOT CAN HUMANIZE RECRUITMENT AND ATTRACT NEW TALENT

3Sending a résumé and writing a cover letter are (almost) anachronisms. Job applications are increasingly submitted through social media like LinkedIn, using innovative forms like video. By having your chatbot participate in the recruitment process, you respond to three of today’s major challenges: offering a differentiated hiring experience, humanizing the relationship between recruiter and recruit, and enhancing the company image in the eyes of potential new employees.

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1. Applicants receive more support and guidance from the moment they reach your website.

When they’re assisted by your bot, they feel more confident and submit their application more efficiently, supported by the infor-mation provided by their virtual guide. Any job applicant who has spent 20 or 30 minutes looking for the “Apply” button on a website can appreciate the benefits of this advance.

2. The “chatbotized” chain of recruitment frees up the HR team’s time.

Your bot plays the role of a preliminary filter: the only candidates who can pass through it are those who meet certain basic criteria, for example, the mastery of specific skills, or personal values that are compatible with those of your company. The conversational robot is even capable of conducting a preliminary interview. As a result, only qualified applications are forwarded to your flesh-and-blood recruiters.

3. The intervention of your bot improves the quality of the applicants, thereby boosting the overall productivity of the recruitment process.

Your HR personnel have more time to personalize their relationship with the applicants, giving the process a more human approach.

Before anything else, you must ask yourself which link in your HR value chain is worth automating.

RECRUITMENT THAT’S MORE HUMAN… THANKS TO A BOT!Humanizing recruitment with the help of a virtual conversational agent? The paradox is blatantly obvious. But by entrusting part of the hiring process to your chatbot, you help everyone— job candidates and HR personnel, alike—save time. This happens at three stages of the game.

AN HR CHATBOT THAT SERVES AS A RECRUITMENT OFFICERThe virtual recruiter for the French Army has a name and rank: Master Corporal Dupont. Present on the website to guide and support applicants, he responds 24/7 to questions regarding the employment, training, evaluation and day-to-day life of a soldier. And whenever a question is too specific, he redirects the user to a consultant who’s better-equipped to answer it than he is!

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A CHATBOT THAT CAN ENHANCE YOUR EMPLOYER BRANDYour virtual assistant is far more than just a tool: it fully embodies your company and your company values. As long as it’s well-managed and plays its role effectively, it gives your organization an extremely positive image that’s both fun and friendly.

The goal is to emphasize the innovative aspect of your brand not only in the eyes of your current employees, but more importantly, in the eyes of young talent that might be inclined to join your ranks.

Therefore, your bot must be more than just a simple interaction tool that tries to pass off automated scripts as genuine responses. It has to truly embody your company, giving it a voice and a tone. It has to be endowed with its own unique personality—one that corresponds to the expectations of your employees or the job candidates you hope to attract. It’s up to you to define what avatar will be most suited to speak in your place, just as Master Corporal Dupont personifies a typical recruiter on the French Army website.

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A CHATBOT THAT CAN ENHANCE YOUR EMPLOYER BRANDThe aim is to hold a mirror up to the users’ expectations, giving them the impression that they’re having a conversation with the brand, itself, and not just a machine. For example, if your chatbot’s mission is to recruit millennials, a touch of humor in the interactions will be welcome.

As such, your conversational robot should do more than simply spew your brand rhetoric. Don’t forget that it isn’t just another member of your team, but rather a digital ambassador, responsible for conveying a positive image that sets your company apart.

There’s no reason to panic: your chatbot isn’t going to replace your HR team. Not today and not tomorrow. It isn’t there to take the place of anyone (whether a recruiter or a manager), but instead to offer a relevant instantaneous response, saving everyone a considerable amount of time. However, to achieve this goal, your bot will need continuous configuration, and this can only be achieved by a human!

This is the proportion of employees who see a chatbot as a tool for highlighting the innovative image of a company or institution. This positive image reinforces employee satisfaction and enhances the attractiveness of the organization in the eyes of young talent.¹

74%

131. Perception des (chatbots) agents conversationnels (Perception of (chatbots) conversational agents), Services Mobiles, Le Magazine de l’écosystème mobile, September 27, 2016. www.livingactor.com

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ENTER THE CHATBOT MANAGER4

Between now and 2019, one-fifth of all our mobile interactions will be carried out through a chatbot.¹ However, these chatbots will never be fully autonomous: they’ll need to be configured, trained and continuously improved by humans. As of now, this role is delegated to the Chatbot Manager (or Bot Master). And it’s a job that’s quickly becoming indispensable!

WHO IS A CHATBOT MANAGER?A project manager, professional expert, analyst, creative writer… The Chatbot Manager is all of these things and more. The res-ponsibilities are three-fold: supervising the implementation of the company’s chatbot project, ensuring that the technology is accep-ted and utilized by the personnel, and guiding the evolution of the conversational agent over time.

However, it’s an indispensable prerequisite that the Chatbot Ma-nager demonstrate good knowledge of the subject he or she will teach this virtual protégé. To respond to users’ inquiries and pro-vide training, your bot must assimilate the necessary skills before-hand. This phase is essential: without this pre-existing knowledge, your chatbot is nothing more than an empty digital shell, incapable of fulfilling its mission.

1. Assistants virtuels : 20 % des interactions avec le smartphone en 2019 (Virtual assistants: 20 percent of interactions by smartphone in 2019), Les Numériques, December 22, 2016.

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is essentially a high-tech project. Consequently, it must be supported by a set of indispensable technical skills: configuration, API connections, integration with existing systems, etc. These areas simply aren’t within the jurisdiction of an HR Department.

As we’ve already seen, the challenge is to make your bot available and efficient. If you want your staff to take advantage of it, your conversational agent must be accessible from the work stations and configured in such a way so as to respond relevantly to recurring inquiries.

At the same time, it’s imperative that managers get their teams on board with the project. This requires strong interaction between the HR and IT Departments… as well as a Chatbot Manager who can span the challenges of both!

You’re free to choose someone whose expertise lies more in the area of project management or more along the lines of graphic design, for example. The most important thing is that this person has (at the very least) a certain talent for finding the necessary in-formation on the subject matter and conveying its subtleties.

Furthermore, the analytical dimension shouldn’t be neglected. A good Chatbot Manager knows how to interpret the KPIs related to the use of your chatbot and to mine that data in order to further develop the bot’s scope of intervention.

The life cycle of the bot is potentially infinite. Beyond the purely conversational aspect, your virtual assistant will have a constant need to learn and adapt to ever-changing expectations (of em-ployees and applicants), internal processes and regulations. As a consequence, you will have a constant need for a Bot Master on your team!

CHATBOTS AT THE CROSSROADS OF HR AND ITIn order to spearhead the digital transformation of your company’s Human Resource Department, your chatbot must sit at the intersection of several different departments. Its internal configuration, as well its deployment and its acceptance on the part of end users, will require the combined efforts of the HR and IT Departments.

In order to be what it is—an effective HR chatbot—your virtual assistant needs this link with your technological experts. The fact is that the implementation of a tool like this

Your chatbot is much more than just an innovative tool. It’s the driving force behind the digital transformation of your company! Its implementation entails a profound revision of the classic organizational structures in which each department functions in isolation. It’s by toppling the historic models of silo management and injecting more flexibility into your organization that you will give your bot the necessary means to succeed at its mission. As a result, you will discover that you’ve fully entered the world of digital companies!

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The world is evolving, and business, along with it. The expectations of your personnel differ from those of workers twenty years ago. Today, the interactions between employers and employees must be more effective, more relevant, more satisfying and more economical (not only in terms of budget, but also in terms of words and time).

Behind these challenges lies a determining question: specifically, what is your digital transformation plan? How are you going to navigate the course of integrating the tools and methods born of the Information Age? What image do you want to convey tomorrow to your current and prospective employees?

While chatbots certainly aren’t the only possible response, they remain the most effective one because of their interdisciplinary nature. Integrated in your day-to-day operations, your HR bot will improve the quality of life in the workplace, making your employees happier and increasing their productivity. It will offer training that’s personalized, effective, available on-

CONCLUSION

demand, and differentiated. It will help humanize the recruitment process, while reinforcing your image as an employer. And it will open the doors to new professions, like that of the Chatbot Manager.

In doing so, it will influence your entire organiza-tion and set you squarely on the path to a full-fledged digital transformation.

A bona fide company mission, your chatbot will nevertheless need fertile soil. This will be provided through effective change management, which is one of the main keys to your success. In other words, it will rely on your capacity to communicate with every department and every employee regarding the project, in order to raise awareness and create the necessary environment in which your virtual assistant can grow and thrive along with your company.

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