5 Ways AI Is Used In Recruitment

With the escalation of technology and the digital transformation witnessed, AI or artificial intelligence is gaining momentum in the recruitment industry. The application of AI refers to where machine learning and predictive algorithms can learn to shortlist your ideal candidate and help automate the manual, time-consuming tasks in the recruitment process. This technology is changing how companies source, hire and retain talent.

The integration of AI and technology significantly streamlines and automates parts of a recruiter’s workflow, especially the tedious and high-volume tasks.

Still reluctant about applying AI to your recruiting process?

Research shows that 96% of HR managers and recruiters believe AI can significantly improve talent acquisition and retention.

As of 2020, 65% of HR organizations are utilizing AI for talent acquisition, and by 2023, it is expected to increase to 77%.

Why AI Is Important For Recruitment

AI can be a powerful tool to drive recruitment efficiency. By reducing the time spent on screening, skill testing and interviewing, recruiters can focus on ways to attract candidates, onboard and retain employees. In the recruiting sector, there are many repetitive and high-volume tasks that recruiters face daily. However, with the application of AI, these tasks can be streamlined, leading to a more efficient and productive workflow.

As AI technology becomes more accessible, many industries—other than the IT sector are using AI to reduce time-consuming activities. The world of recruitment is no different. With so many advancements in the recruiting world, automation has become an indispensable part of the recruitment process, only possible through AI. The automation process becomes possible due to AI’s ability to analyze copious amounts of data and quickly estimate available options. This further accelerates the process of administrative work—providing a helping hand for hiring managers, leaders and recruiters.

In addition to increased workflow and productivity, it has been proven that AI also helps improve the quality of hires!

With that being said, AI is becoming a must-have in the recruiter’s toolbox. The key is to apply AI intelligently into your recruiting process.

Here’s how you can apply AI to change your recruiting game for the better!

  1. AI Through Recruiting Software

There are countless AI automated tools and software available at our fingertips that help us get the work done more effectively. One of the most notable ways involving the usage of AI in recruiting is the usage of Applicant Tracking Systems, Candidate Relationship Software, and Resume Parsers. These recruiting software can help automate workflow by completing tasks within seconds, providing at least 95% accuracy in candidate sourcing, screening and sorting.

An Applicant Tracking System is a highly essential tool for recruiters to streamline the recruiting process by sorting through thousands of documents and shortlisting candidates. Instead of relying on the manual efforts of a robust team of recruiters, an ATS, CRM, or resume parsing takes care of the time-consuming tasks involved in recruiting!

Moreover, keeping track of applicants and maintaining a level of communication becomes a piece of cake with the help of these AI-powered tools and software.

AI in recruiting software can also send personalized messages to candidates in the pipeline to keep them engaged—improving the candidate experience.

  1. Digitization of Candidate Interviews

The usage of AI can also be seen through online interviewing tools to communicate remotely with candidates. With the onset of the pandemic, video conferencing tools have become widely popular. Video conferencing has allowed the digitization of in-person candidate interviews, which have been replaced with online video calls—allowing recruiters to communicate to candidates irrespective of their geographical location. Given its convenience, efficiency, and usefulness in collaborative hiring, video conferencing technology has been widely adopted across almost all services and sectors, including staffing agencies, education and corporate offices.

Besides video conferencing tools, AI has developed to a level where it can read facial expressions, understand natural body language, and process information with human-like efficiency. For example, Unilever reportedly began using AI to detect candidates’ facial expressions during video interviews in 2016. Candidates record their one-way video interview, and AI scans their facial expressions and voice patterns to assess personality traits, the honesty of their answers and even their response speed.

With this intelligent technology, combined with existing video conferencing tools, recruiters can take their job to another level by instantly receiving an in-depth assessment of candidates’ personalities and communication behaviour based on candidates’ pre-recorded video interviews.

  1. Online Skill Assessments

Another way AI can help recruitment processes is by carrying out automated online assessments that do not require manual supervision. Online skill assessment tests help identify the traits or skills that determine whether a candidate would be a good fit for a position. Pre-employment assessments such as cognitive ability tests or psychometric testing are essential predictors of job performance, which can be easily administered through well-designed software and AI.

When done correctly, online assessments can significantly raise the probability of hiring top talent for a job and retaining them. Unlike conventional interviews, online assessment tools provide a more objective selection process, significantly increasing hire quality.

Online testing has become standard practice for many employers. Unsupervised talent assessment is efficient, easy to use and accessible by candidates. With advancements in AI, the methods of digital assessments have greatly improved. Computer Adaptive Testing (CAT) allows a dynamic selection based on a candidate’s initial responses.

  1. Background Checks Powered By AI

Background checks are nothing new to the world of recruitment, but with the latest developments in AI, background checks are also being transformed–making them much more quick, accurate and efficient. AI and machine learning enable higher performance of background checks through deeper analysis and more accurate delivery than ever before. This is because AI enables coverage of more data sources across the web to analyze and match much larger volumes of data. With the availability of so many data points through increased online identity records and criminal records—AI-powered background checks automatically seep through the ocean of data, select relevant data, and deliver meaningful insights! As a result, AI-powered background checks are a great way to retrieve relevant data comprehensively, without any redundancy and unnecessary piles of data.

With the help of AI, the process of background checking is reduced to a matter of minutes!

  1. Mitigation of Bias

As the use of technology advances and becomes more widely adopted across different sectors, including recruitment, organizations are beginning to consider how AI can help reduce the bias and discrimination that often surface during the hiring process.

Machine learning tools like AI can help diminish or limit the effects of unconscious bias that can creep into the hiring process. Human intervention always implies a level of unconscious or even conscious bias. Biased decisions are a common problem for organizations, and AI solutions can minimize this element. This is especially useful in the age of diversity hiring!

The application of AI helps correct any inadvertent bias, which provides a broader scope of the best candidates without the barrier of unconscious bias. In addition, AI’s objectivity helps recruiters eliminate any form of bias. As a result, this also improves the quality of hire.

Furthermore, research by Montage has unveiled that 56% of candidates who have faced bias during hiring believe that AI may be less biased than human recruiters–further pointing to the need for recruiters to re-examine their hiring practices.

In essence, with artificial intelligence emerging as the next potential digital revolution, further streamlining and automating the hiring process, it’s time to start adopting AI across recruitment. With the race for innovation intensifying across a wide range of sectors and the benefits of adopting artificial intelligence programmes becoming increasingly clear, why wait in applying AI to your tasks?