Josh Bersin Company Research Explains the Multiagent Management Rules to Deliver Safe, Reliable AI

• New HR 2030 multiagent AI research-based guidebook gives non-IT management executives the latest understanding of how AI works—and, crucially, how to manage a multi-agent system, not simply what agents to buy
• Rigorous framework for the six key decisions leaders must make, including data security and where agent responsibility stops and human control begins
• Findings and recommendations built around an integrated 151-agent system spanning agents, superagents, and personal AI agents

OAKLAND, Calif., Oct. 8, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Josh Bersin Company, the world's most trusted human capital advisory firm, today announced evidence-based steps to help organizations navigate emerging AI risks, reduce HR workload by up to 40% through the smart management of families of AI agents, and avoid one of the biggest challenges in AI transformation: agent sprawl, where companies create too many agents and they compete rather than complement one another.

Getting these decisions right is critical to managing the risks of agents going out of bounds, says the study.

The research, the second in the HR 2030™ initiative, The HR Leader's Guide to Multiagent HR Architecture, provides a practical CHRO and CIO guide on how to best orchestrate the ever-growing range of increasingly capable AI agents coming onto the market, prioritize data governance, and understand the critical role of the "superagent" family architecture.

The research shows the complexity of HR and management requires specialized agents, each trained and aligned to a specific role. These trusted agents deliver the most value, the analysis says, when continuously monitored, optimized and coordinated by groups of agents organized as "superagents."

Combined with data, governance and agent-monitoring tools, the company believes this architecture offers the strongest foundation for high-value AI returns in HR. The research identifies at least 151 AI agents currently of active interest to CHROs. Despite this proliferation, it is their coordination, training, and continuous alignment that drive the highest returns.

For example, Josh Bersin Company researchers spoke to an East Coast bank that had built 17 in-house agents to simplify core recruiting tasks, including sourcing, candidate selection, interviewing and interview scheduling. But the agents weren't coordinating with one another or drawing on the same data, the study found, leading to inconsistent and increasingly untrustworthy results.

The study advocates for a more structured approach: rather than continuing to add agents to individual HR workflows, organizations should design how multiple agents operate together at a higher level. The report recommends grouping individual agents into functional HR families, or "superagents", centered on eight core areas. This system of agents helps organizations hire, manage, pay, retain, and mobilize their people, with the potential to eliminate up to 40% of today's task-oriented HR work.

Personal agents, such as Muse, GrokBot, Dots and Autopilot, for example, can then personalize employee experiences, work tools and productivity without disrupting the wider HR operating system.

The study warns managing a multiagent HR architecture should be a business, not purely technology, decision, focused on data governance, design and where humans remain in the loop.

The HR Leader's Guide to Multiagent HR Architecture lays out six key implementation decisions HR leaders must make. It also sets out the core multiagent foundations CHROs need, from the right orchestration and context layers and data fabric to monitoring systems and a shared skills library.

Getting these decisions right is critical to managing the risks of rapidly evolving AI, from agents going out of bounds to the unpredictable outputs of AI agents. The result is a practical, timely, and technically sound guidebook for moving ahead with multiagent HR, not simply what agents to buy, says the analysis.

Josh Bersin Company CEO and global industry analyst Josh Bersin Company, said:

"HR 2030 is a practical, step-by-step blueprint for getting to multiagent AI efficiency in HR. This is a system of agents designed for business growth, precision, and scale, not simply automation.

"Critically, getting these decisions right, given the rapid evolution of AI and agentic solutions, is the only way to avoid the potential risks your organization may face—from the recent, well-publicized problems of agents going rogue to the fact that they do not always produce predictable answers.

"If you're still fearful about what AI is or can do, this report is going to be your best friend for the next few quarters. Get building!"

Notes for Editors

The report is the second release in the ongoing Josh Bersin Company HR 2030™ research initiative.

While the first guide explained the need and overall benefits of an integrated, multiagent HR tech stack that does away with the many limitations of older-style HR applications, this guide provides a highly hands-on framework for exploiting the power of AI and not ending up with unhelpful internal AI sprawl.

The next in the HR 2030 series, on how a multiagent future will directly affect individual HR workflows and the roles of HR professionals, is already in production.

More details on HR 2030™ are available here.

About The Josh Bersin Company

The Josh Bersin Company is the world's most trusted human capital advisors, providing research-based insights on talent, leadership, and organizational performance.

Unlike traditional consultancies, we capture our integrated models, research, and guidance in a structured, scalable knowledge base—Galileo®—making trusted advice and decades of expertise accessible to anyone, anywhere, in real time.

With a dedicated team constantly tracking market change, testing ideas, and applying a unique business lens, we help over a million HR and business leaders address their most pressing people challenges—aligning work, knowledge, and skills for maximum impact. For more information, visit joshbersin.com.

SOURCE The Josh Bersin Company