25+ Useful Gen AI Prompts for HR Pros

If you’re going to use AI in HR, you want to get the most out of your searches and results. 

Nearly everyone in HR uses AI to do some part of their job, according to Atlas HXM’s report. So it’s important to use it effectively when creating AI prompts.

How We Use AI Now

New research shows us how AI is being used in the workplace. (Plus, the potential harm of relying on it too much. 

According to the annual report, AI in the Wild: The definitive research into how people are using AI, 63 of the top-100 uses of AI in general are work-related. On that last, and to name a few:

• “Work buddy” (#8)
• Enhanced decision-making (#13)
• Career advice (#24)
• Entrepreneurship (#25), and 
• Safe space to ask (#32).  

Avoid Over-Reliance on AI

They’re all good areas for using AI, but the AI in the Wild researcher Marc Zao-Sanders noted: “It is, of course, possible to think hard about our intentions, carefully turn them into a corresponding prompt, and only then pass the baton to AI. But the barrier to getting output is so low, it’s tempting to turn to AI at the start of our brainstorming process.”

Of course, he’s not advocating HR pros – or anyone – avoids using AI. After all, this story is precisely about using AI. Instead, Zao-Sanders says: “AI needn’t become such a crutch; it can also be a challenging, sparring partner. This year’s research also shows that when used as an intellectual foil—to challenge assumptions, broaden horizons, consider counterarguments—AI can sharpen people’s thinking.

To do that, he suggests two best practices:

• Think first. Don’t always start with AI. Give your thought or question a run through your own thinking process first. Come up with a few ideas, then let AI pick up where you leave off. 
• Draw boundaries. Consider which parts of your workflow you want to retain for yourself and which are actually better-suited for AI. Don’t just brush off anything you find difficult to AI. 

And then, when it’s time to turn to AI for many of your HR tasks, here are more than 25 prompts that help you take full advantage of its potential.

Generative AI Basics 

To get the most out of generative AI prompts for HR tasks, you want to add context before diving into the prompts themselves – and that pre-AI thinking can help you form better prompts. For good-quality results, the bot needs to be provided with:

• Context: Providing background information for a chatbot will help it tailor its answers better for your specific needs. For example: “I am an experienced HR professional located in [state] with [amount] of employees. We are in [specific niche or industry].”
• Objective: What do you want the answer to accomplish? What is the end goal? For example: “I am looking for cost-free ways to engage my remote workforce.” 
• Format: What format do you want your results in? For example, if the bot is producing multiple results, you can ask it to put answers in a numbered or bulleted list or write it out another way.

Putting all these things together, you may want to start the conversation with a preface like: “I am an experienced HR generalist for a small business with 25-50 employees. We are in the software industry. I am looking for ideas to improve morale during a busy season. Please put answers in a bulleted format.”

If you want to get even more specific, you can include workforce demographics like age to get even more specific results.

Remember, AI chatbots should be used more as a conversation than a search engine. If you don’t like the answers the bot gives you, you can iterate on your prompts and your preface to get better results.

Generative AI Prompts for HR Pros

Here are effective AI prompts for HR areas that you can easily plug into your favorite (or company-approved) generative AI platform. Add context to AI prompts when necessary, especially regarding company size and industry. 

Note: When inputting data into any AI tool, make sure that the data doesn’t reveal personal information or confidential company information. Data privacy is one of the biggest risks of AI, and keeping employee and company information secure is the priority.

Recruiting Prompts

In the area of recruiting, it’s important to be especially cautious of the results, as AI can be prone to bias just like humans. Always make sure you have a set of eyes on the results before going forward with the bot’s answers.

Here’s a list of some useful AI prompts for HR to help with recruiting and hiring.

• We are hiring for a [job role]. What are the essential job duties we should include in the job description?
• Using the provided job description, generate 10 options for a LinkedIn post directed at candidates most likely to align with our needs.
• We are hiring for [job role]. Where are the best places to post our job ad to find the best candidates? 
• Draft five interview questions for a hiring manager who is recruiting for [job role] using the provided job description. Ensure the questions check for both experience and culture fit.
• Write a job offer email for [job title] with a start date of [date], including a starting salary of [salary]. Include information on what to bring for the first day.
• Suggest improvements to the following job description to make it more inclusive for [target audience].

Onboarding Prompts

In addition to automating tasks like documentation, AI can help your onboarding process in many other ways. 

Here are a few AI prompts for HR to help onboard a new hire: 

• We have a new hire for [job role] starting with us next week. Propose an itinerary for their first day, including time to fill out required paperwork and meet-and-greets with their team.
• We have a new [job title] starting with us in the [company department]. Generate some objectives we can include in their 30-60-90 plan. 
• We have a new [job title] starting at our company with a fully remote team. What are some ways we can help them get to know their team and fit in with the culture as quickly as possible?
• We have a new [job title] starting with us. They have not worked in this industry before. I have attached their previous experience and skills. What resources can I provide that will help get them up to date on the skills they need for this role?
• What should I prepare for a new [job title] to give to them on their first day?

Employee Development Prompts

Here’s a list of generative AI prompts for HR that you can plug in to help employee development: 

• I have provided you with employee feedback from their direct manager, direct reports and clients. Analyze and summarize the data. Then find key areas for the employee to work on, and provide insight to back up why. 
• We are looking at different learning and development platforms to help employees with [specific skills]. We have narrowed it down to [list platforms]. Please compare these platforms by cost, features and our objectives. 
• Generate a training module for [specific skill] for [employee group]. Our objective is to [learning objectives].
• Generate metrics to track for a [job role] in [industry] with industry benchmarks.
• What are some unique, fun ways to get employee feedback without a survey?

AI Prompts for Benefits

Benefits is another area that can be greatly improved by AI. 

Try some of these AI prompts for HR to cut down on tedious benefits tasks:

• Using the provided open enrollment information packet, summarize and rewrite the document to make it easier to read and understand for employees, and highlight key points of the information. Use shorter sentences, bullet points and more conversational language. 
• Generate an email I can send to employees to remind them about open enrollment’s deadline of [date], including reminders about what they need to do.
• We are currently using [benefits platform] but want to switch to one that is cheaper and has a better UX. What are some similar benefits platforms that better fit our needs? 

AI Prompts for Engagement

Employee engagement is a constant work in progress as your workforce needs grow and change, making it a great candidate for AI’s help. 

Here are a few AI prompts to help HR boost employee engagement: 

• Design an employee engagement survey with a focus area on [specific area]. Make sure questions will give us actionable insights.
• Analyze our annual employee engagement data to identify areas where we are doing well, and areas where we need improvement, broken down by department, role, length of service, and demographic data.
• Design an employee recognition program that highlights [specific achievements], suggesting [recognition methods and frequency].
• What are the most popular engagement tools for [company size]? Please create a comparison chart for all tools.

Policy and Procedure Prompts

AI can be one of the most helpful tools for drafting policies and helping map out procedures. Here are a few AI prompts for HR to use: 

• List the most important policies an organization with [amount] of employees in [industry] should have.
• Draft a work-from-home policy for an employee handbook focused on maintaining productivity and collaboration.
• Generate three internal communication templates for the provided policy changes we are making to our handbook, ensuring clarity. Include a sentence about how employees can communicate any concerns about the new policies to HR.

AI Prompts for Offboarding

Just like onboarding, AI can help with many aspects of offboarding, too. 

Here are some AI prompts for HR to help with the offboarding process:

• We have had [total employees at the beginning of the period], [total employees at the end of the period] and [total employees who left during that period]. All were voluntary. Please calculate turnover rate. 
• Generate 10 exit interview questions for [job role] focusing on how the company can improve and what they enjoyed about their time at the company.
• I have provided you with data from previous employees, including exit survey feedback and reason for departure. Identify the most common reasons employees left, and how we can fix it.