Employers Role-Play Terminations with AI Training Simulators

Termination discussions and other difficult conversations for employers now can be practiced with artificial intelligence training simulators. The use of this technology can help reduce legal risks, if guardrails are in place, and practice with AI training simulators can prevent flubs in real-life talks.

“A manager who has to deliver a layoff notice the next morning can practice the actual sit-down with a simulated employee — including the difficult moments: the silence after ‘we’re letting you go,’ the angry pushback, the tearful reaction, the request for an explanation that wasn’t part of the script,” said Jannik Lindner, co-founder of Careertrainer, based in Vienna. “The manager hears their own wording out loud, gets feedback on whether they were clear without being cold, and can repeat the conversation as many times as needed.”

AI training simulators can pressure test a decision before it’s made, Lindner added. HR can use a simulator to role-play the documentation and performance improvement plan conversations leading up to a termination — the performance feedback meetings, the formal warnings — to assess whether the manager communicated expectations clearly enough that termination is defensible. If a manager can’t articulate the issue cleanly to a simulated employee, that’s a signal the underlying documentation may be weak.

“The value isn’t replacing human judgment or human coaches. It’s giving managers a private place to be bad at a difficult conversation before they have to be good at it in front of a real employee,” Lindner said. “Most managers in the subject-matter-expertise space have never had formal conversation training; they learn by doing, which means the employee on the receiving end of their first termination is effectively the training material. Simulators move that learning curve out of the live conversation.”

AI training simulators can be particularly useful for termination decisions in three situations, Lindner said: 

• When the manager has never delivered a termination before and the organization wants to avoid a clumsy or legally risky first attempt.
• When the termination is high-stakes — such as with a long-tenured employee, an individual who may claim discrimination, or a public-facing role where the conversation will be talked about.
• When the termination follows a contested performance history and HR wants the manager to stay on message under emotional pressure rather than improvise concessions or admissions.

Practical Limits

AI training simulators typically are not meant to make employment decisions, said Britney Torres, an attorney with Littler in San Diego and Sacramento, Calif. “Rather, after a decision has been made, AI training simulators are used to help leaders and HR prepare for difficult conversations, including how to explain the termination decision and how to respond to employee questions during a termination meeting,” she said.

If an AI training simulator was used to make a termination decision, AI-specific requirements — such as the California Fair Employment and Housing Act regulations and California Privacy Protection Agency regulations — and general employment laws such as anti-discrimination and anti-retaliation laws may be implicated, she cautioned. 

“When preparing for a termination meeting, it is most likely not necessary for the simulator to be provided employee-specific information, including names, demographic information, or information about protected activity, such as complaints or leaves,” Torres said. “However, if that information was involved, related legal limitations and compliance obligations could be triggered.”

Other Uses

In addition to termination discussions, AI training simulators might be used for return-from-leave conversations, peer conflict mediation, salary negotiation, investigation interviews, and onboarding conversations, Lindner noted.

Toolkit: Coordinating Leaves of Absence

“HR professionals are well-aware that fact investigation interviews in an employment investigation often take many unexpected turns,” said Alex Karasik, an attorney with Duane Morris in Chicago.

“For instance, an alleged bad actor could disclose in an interview that someone else engaged in unrelated inappropriate misconduct,” he said. “AI training simulators can help prepare the HR professional to become an agile interviewer.”

Legal Risks

AI training simulators provide great opportunities but have legal risks, noted Kenny Pyle, SHRM HR technology lead analyst. For example, a plaintiff may subpoena a manager’s AI chat history to see if a history of bias is present. Some of these risks can be minimized with training, diligent compliance and sound policy, he said.

“The priorities should be 1) ensure the training simulator is set up properly and regularly verify its continuing compliance, and 2) ensure it is not being used in isolation but in addition to human coaching that can catch any issues early before incorrect behavior is reinforced.”

Newsletter: Subscribe to SHRM Workplace Law News

Karasik recommended employers take the following steps:

• Audit AI training simulators, both prior to the first use with employees and after implementation. This practice best ensures that the AI training simulators are functioning effectively from legal and operational perspectives.
• Consider updating their handbooks and policies to be transparent about the use of AI training simulators.
• Obtain written consent from employees prior to using AI training simulators.
• Communicate with AI training simulator vendors about whether and how data is stored and how data is transmitted to third parties. Data retention and disclosure to third parties are heavily litigated in privacy class actions.

For now, there are many beneficial and lawful uses for AI simulators in HR, provided state and local laws regarding notification and similar requirements are met and people remain part of the decision-making process, said Bradford Newman, an attorney with Eversheds Sutherland in Silicon Valley, Calif.

“Overall, AI training simulators offer an amazing new form of training that organizations should take advantage of in areas where risk can be sufficiently mitigated,” Pyle said.