TLDR: Global Capability Centers (GCCs) are at the forefront of a significant shift in Human Resources (HR) globally, driven by the adoption of agentic AI. This advanced form of AI is enabling GCCs to evolve from operational support units into strategic, autonomous centers of excellence, enhancing efficiency, agility, and innovation across various HR functions. Companies like UKG are leading this charge, particularly from their Indian GCCs, by integrating agentic AI into workforce management, talent acquisition, and employee experience.
Global Capability Centers (GCCs) are rapidly reshaping the landscape of Human Resources (HR) worldwide through the strategic implementation of agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI). This transformative shift is elevating GCCs from mere operational support units to autonomous, strategic hubs that drive business growth, innovation, and resilience on a global scale. Unlike traditional automation or machine learning, agentic AI embodies goal-driven intelligence, capable of perceiving objectives, making autonomous decisions, and acting independently to achieve desired outcomes, often in real-time and with minimal human intervention.
One prominent example of this trend is UKG, a Massachusetts-headquartered firm that has quietly grown into one of the world’s largest privately held software companies, valued at $30 billion. UKG’s global capability center in India, which began in Noida in 2007, has become a critical innovation hub. With over 3,000 employees across Noida, Bengaluru, Mumbai, and a new facility in Pune, India is effectively a ‘mini UKG,’ providing an unparalleled innovation advantage. Vittal, a representative from UKG, states, ‘We cannot replicate the innovation advantage we get here anywhere else.’ This advantage is further amplified as UKG delves deeper into agentic AI, utilizing software agents that can reason over vast specialist datasets and act autonomously while keeping humans in the loop.
The impact of agentic AI on HR functions is multifaceted. It is revolutionizing talent transformation by creating a demand for new roles such as AI strategists, data scientists, ethics officers, and human-machine collaboration specialists. These roles focus on harnessing AI’s potential while ensuring accountability, compliance, and creativity. For instance, a Silicon Valley company’s GCC in Bengaluru is implementing a hybrid talent model combining data engineers, behavioral scientists, and AI trainers to manage its multi-agent system.
Agentic AI also provides real-time decision-making capabilities to GCCs, enabling them to respond instantly to shifting market trends and operational variables. This includes dynamically adjusting pricing and inventory, as seen in a retail GCC in India that reduced overstocking and markdowns by 35% through agentic AI. Furthermore, it enhances strategic planning by breaking down complex objectives into manageable tasks.
While the adoption of AI in HR has seen mixed reports on ROI, global executives increasingly view AI as a top business priority and the biggest potential value driver in 2025. A Gartner study predicts that by the end of 2025, 50% of large enterprises will adopt agentic AI in at least one core HR function, a significant jump from just 5% in 2022. McKinsey estimates that HR teams utilizing agentic AI could reduce manual workload by up to 45%, freeing up time for higher-value activities like leadership development and culture-building.
However, the integration of agentic AI also presents challenges. An IEEE survey revealed that 68% of HR professionals globally are concerned about the opacity of AI algorithms, particularly in critical functions like recruitment and performance evaluations. To address this, organizations must prioritize building AI literacy within HR teams, establishing robust governance frameworks for ethics, bias, and data privacy, and seamlessly integrating agentic AI into existing HR workflows.
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Nitin Chandel, group vice-president and India country manager for UKG, emphasizes the importance of responsible AI, stating, ‘We’re making frontline workers more effective, not redundant – freeing them from repetitive low-value chores so they can focus on higher-order work.’ UKG’s formidable data advantage, derived from its Great Place to Work surveys capturing the mood of 20 million employees globally each year, allows engineers in India to train narrowly tailored language and decision models, rather than relying on generic public ones. This strategic approach, coupled with the expansion into new facilities specializing in AI and big-data work, underscores India’s leading role in the global HR technology landscape.
