Some HR functions will still require a human's touch.

Automation might infiltrate your HR department: 72 percent of employers expect that some roles in talent acquisition and human capital management will become completely automated in 10 years. That's according to a CareerBuilder survey of more than 700 HR professionals and recruiters. However, professionals who specialize in L&D might prefer to wait before drafting their trade's eulogy. Of companies that computerize at least one part of their HR function, only 28 percent automate employee L&D.

"There's room for growth here, but it doesn't necessarily mean job loss," says Rosemary Haefner, chief HR officer at CareerBuilder. "It means those professionals can focus on more strategic opportunities."

For example, Haefner explains how organizations that list job skills and definitions in a centralized digital library can ensure that key talent management processes such as grooming employees for advancement and succession "use the same set of competencies and work in concert to cultivate them in your employees."

Although projects such as the ones Haefner describes might not be impossible without automation, the survey's findings suggest self-operating technology can improve quality. In fact, nearly seven in 10 of the survey's respondents agree that automating parts of the HR function could reduce errors.

"Practically every HR function, if you have your needs clearly mapped out, can be automated," says Haefner. She suggests organizations explore a few questions when determining which processes to automate:

• Is the task repeatable?

• Is there a regular process for the task?

• Can information be derived directly from the source?

• Can the process be improved by taking humans out of it?

• Will using automation software improve data security?