Hogan warns AI use could create 'zombie' workers

Hogan Assessments has warned that heavy reliance on artificial intelligence in the workplace is creating a new category of employee it calls “AI zombies” as AI tools become routine in office work across Ireland.

The warning draws on wider data showing how quickly AI has entered day-to-day work. Microsoft's Work Trend Index found that more than 75% of knowledge workers already use AI tools at work. Hogan argues that while the shift can boost productivity, it also brings risks.

Skills Risk

Hogan's concern centres on what happens when staff hand over routine judgement to software. AI tools can draft emails, solve problems and make basic decisions more quickly, but repeated dependence may reduce the use of analysis, creativity and independent judgement.

The warning comes at a time when employers already report gaps in those areas. Citing World Economic Forum findings, Hogan said 60% of employers globally identify a lack of critical thinking as a major skills gap, suggesting broader AI adoption could deepen an existing problem rather than create a new one.

Ryne Sherman, Chief Science Officer at Hogan Assessments and co-host of The Science of Personality Podcast, said the technology can either support workers or weaken their role in the process.

“At its best, AI enhances human potential. At its worst, it replaces it,” he said.

He added: “The risk isn't just automation-it's abdication.”

Personality Traits

Hogan said not all workers are equally exposed to over-reliance on AI. The firm linked the behaviour to personality traits that may make some employees more likely to default to automated outputs rather than test their own thinking.

These traits include low curiosity, high caution, low confidence in personal judgement and a strong tendency towards conformity. Hogan argues that this combination can encourage employees to accept machine-generated responses without enough challenge or review.

“In isolation, these characteristics aren't problematic. But in combination, and amplified by always-on AI, they can create a workforce that defaults to automation instead of insight,” Sherman said.

The argument reflects a broader debate among employers over whether AI changes only the speed of work or also the quality of judgement behind it. If routine mental tasks are outsourced too often, businesses may end up with staff who appear productive but have fewer opportunities to develop problem-solving habits or confidence in decision-making.

Leadership Response

Hogan said managers have a central role in setting the terms for AI use at work. Leaders can encourage staff to treat AI as a support tool, or allow it to become a substitute for independent thinking.

Some organisations are already trying to limit that dependence by making room for experimentation and accepting mistakes as part of learning. Hogan said companies should reinforce critical thinking and frame AI as an input into decisions rather than the decision-maker.

“AI should be a co-pilot, not an autopilot,” Sherman said.

He continued: “When leaders prioritise speed over thinking, they unintentionally train their teams to disengage. When they encourage curiosity, independent judgment, and even allow for mistakes, they make sure AI improves performance instead of weakening it.”

The warning comes as many employees expect AI to reshape their jobs. Hogan cited Adecco research showing that nearly three-quarters of workers believe AI has already transformed, or will significantly transform, their roles, especially in daily tasks and the skills they need.

Long Pattern

Hogan placed the latest shift in a longer historical pattern in which major technologies changed how people work. It pointed to earlier upheavals linked to the printing press and the internet, both of which altered skill requirements and workplace structures while also creating new forms of work.

For employers, the firm's argument is not that AI should be resisted, but that its use should be managed in ways that protect human judgement. The concern is less about the existence of automation than about a gradual weakening of skills that companies still need people to exercise.

“The future of work isn't about choosing between humans and AI,” Sherman said.

He added: “It's about ensuring humans stay fully present in the process. Because in an AI-powered world, our ability to question, interpret, and decide will matter more, not less.”