HR in Thailand sits in two different worlds, and the gap is obvious

In multinational companies, HR teams in Thailand rarely drive strategy. They receive it.

Regional HQ in Singapore or Shanghai writes the plan. Global HQ in the US or Europe signs it off.

Local HR in Bangkok becomes the translator. You pass down frameworks, policies, toolkits, and AI initiatives that were designed by someone else.

You run workshops. You track compliance. You send reports. You work with recruiters. You are the executor, not the architect.

Many HR leaders feel boxed in. They know the Thai workforce better than anyone, but they have little influence on the decisions that matter.

• This creates a strange situation. Thai HR professionals inside MNCs carry the title of HR Manager or HR Director, but the role is often operational.
• You make things happen, but you rarely shape what should happen.
• When AI hits the workplace, this becomes even clearer.

Strategy comes from elsewhere. Thailand is an implementation site. Not a decision center.

Now compare that to large Thai conglomerates, controlled by Thai ownership and run from Thai head offices.

HR in these companies plays a different game. HR sits next to the CEO.

You help design long term people strategy. You influence culture, workforce planning, leadership development, succession, and now AI readiness.

You own the decisions. You do not wait for someone in another timezone to tell you what the future of work looks like. You define it.

This is why ambitious HR leaders often thrive more inside Thai conglomerates. You get real authority.

• You work with top management that expects you to lead, not translate.
• You shape the talent agenda for tens of thousands of employees.
• You operate as a true executive, not as the local branch of an overseas HR machine.

The question for every HR professional in Thailand is simple. Do you want to implement other people’s decisions, or do you want to craft a strategy that fits the Thai market and the Thai workforce?

HR needs to stop being polite about AI

Everyone talks about AI as if it were rocket science. It is not. It is a workplace reset.

You see it every day. Leaders buy tools. IT runs pilots. Employees feel confused.

And at the same time, your HR team sits in the middle, taking the heat without taking the lead.

Ask yourself this one thing.

• If HR does not own the human side of AI, who will?

AI is moving faster than anything since the internet arrived. Employees see both opportunity and risk. Some are curious. Others are nervous.

Most have no clue what AI means for their job next year.

This is where HR either becomes the stabilizer, or the department that watched everything happen from the sidelines.

Predictive Index (PI) surveyed more than 1,000 people. One message stood out.

HR is supposed to lead the human side of AI, not follow behind the IT department with a mop.

Where HR creates value

When AI rollouts are driven only by the C-suite or IT, people lose trust.

Employees do not like decisions made behind closed doors. They want clarity. They want direction. They want someone to explain why the company is moving so fast.

HR is the only function that can do this. The only unit with the authority and the responsibility to make AI understandable, safe, and useful.

If HR stays silent, someone else will fill the gap with fear, rumours, and AI nonsense.

HR’s five blunt priorities for AI success

1. Give people real upskilling, not recycled workshops.
   Most employees want to build AI skills. Seventy percent told PI they feel positive about it. They want training that is relevant to their job. They want a clear plan. HR needs to build that plan. Not generic videos. Real upskilling that matches behavior data and learning pace.
2. Stop promising job security. Start delivering competence.
   Employees do not trust empty assurance. What they want is better training. They want transparency about what will change. Tell them early. Tell them straight. Even if they dislike the message. Trust grows when you stop sugar-coating.
3. Become the most credible source of AI information.
   Employees trust HR and colleagues first. They do not wait for a CTO memo. HR does not need to be the technical expert. HR needs to set the tone. Create open forums. Permit questions. Let employees debate. Make AI feel safe to learn and safe to question.
4. Slow the rollout to avoid huge mistakes.
   Your employees want a cautious approach. They want rules. They want boundaries. HR and IT need to write those guardrails together. Define purpose. Define use cases. Protect data. Do not let leaders push AI tools into the business without control.
5. Strengthen culture with AI, not divide employees.
   Two out of three workers believe AI can improve culture. They are right. It can reduce boring work. It can improve decision quality. It can speed up collaboration. HR must highlight this. Normalize AI in daily routines. Culture grows stronger when people see AI as a practical tool instead of a threat.

HR’s moment to lead. Can they?

This is a turning point for HR. You either shift from support to strategy, or you stay a service department that reacts to decisions made by others. AI is the test.

You now have a chance to protect people, build capability, shape culture, and give the company a clear plan for a future arriving faster than anyone expected.

If HR wants influence, this is the moment to take it.