Recruiting With AI: How to Prepare

Every time a tech company introduces something new, people kind of freak out. When Netflix sci-fi anthology Black Mirror came out, many people were shaken by the technological advancements it predicted. The series seemed to portray a fantastical future where crazy new tech brings out the worst in humans, but in fact, some of these technologies are already here. And far from hurting us, many of them are significantly improving everyday lives.  We’re often afraid of new advancements at first—we fear the unfamiliar and that’s natural. The pattern is no different in the recruiting field. Actually, recruiting with AI can, in fact, simplify the process.

But most times, in retrospect, we fear, we adapt, we embrace and we love these new technologies. Before we know it, we can’t imagine our lives without them. 

Soon Enough, It’s the Norm

Back in 2006, fast food chains like Subway, McDonald’s and Arby’s were beginning to experiment with in-restaurant kiosks.  At first, many restaurant runners were worried about changing the dining experience so drastically. Others raised the alarm that automating the customer experience would edge out human workers and shrink the number of available jobs.

However, restaurants and other establishments that took the leap found that customers enjoyed their experience and tended to spend more money than they would with a human taking their order.

Fast forward to today, and customers generally report a better experience when using self-service kiosks compared to placing orders with cashiers. The once-controversial technology is quickly becoming a staple of the fast-food experience. And fast-food workers aren’t losing their jobs because of it—on the contrary, fast food is notoriously understaffed and the kiosks simply help make up for the labor shortage.

But this is an article about recruiting, right? So why do I keep talking about fast food? 

Well, the case of self-serve kiosks are a helpful way to illustrate a change taking place in the recruiting field right now. HR tech is getting more advanced than ever, and sometimes that might seem intimidating. But overall, these changes are positive.

The Future of Recruiting is Already Here

As AI talent sourcing and other recruiting tools gain traction, it might feel like the future is arriving faster than you’re ready for. These tools can seem a little scary, because they fundamentally change the way talent sourcing and engagement has always been done. 

However, much like in the case of fast-food workers, recruiters’ jobs are also more difficult and high-pressure than ever. You’re working with a more competitive talent market that requires a much larger variety of strategies and considerations to navigate.

When one hiring team needs to worry about marketing, company branding, reworking job definitions and more in addition to interviewing, screening and onboarding, allowing a machine to take on some of the workload doesn’t seem so crazy.

Unfortunately, traditional manual searches and manual engagement campaigns can take an unprecedented amount of time and energy. That energy would surely be better used on the parts of recruitment that require real human judgement, like understanding the exact needs of a position, assessing soft skills or whether an individual would fit your team.

When it comes to the search and engagement process, AI that automates the whole affair is ultimately beneficial. And that automation already exists, so why not embrace it?

Staying Up-to-Date Will Keep You Ahead of the Game

Considering that AI and automation in recruiting are quickly becoming an accepted and even expected solution, being one of the first to take advantage of them will keep you a step ahead of your colleagues and competition in the search for talent.

It’s important to educate yourself and to stay up-to-date with current technologies and trends—that way when a solution appears that will save you time or improve your results, you can adopt it right away and get the most out of it possible.

Yes, things are changing in the recruitment industry, but really, things are changing everywhere as new technologies change how we order food, commute, share experiences and connect with clients.

In your life, you’ve probably embraced lots of new stuff from smartphones to GPS. Now it’s time to embrace talent sourcing automation.

Authors

Sun Dahan

Sun Dahan is the VP Of Marketing at Talenya, a world leader in talent sourcing solutions. Before joining Talenya, Sun served in a variety of marketing positions. He is a recovering attorney (LL.B, LL.M) and holds an MBA from Babson College (Boston, US). Sun’s passion is at the intersection of business, marketing, and technology.