AI is great, but only if you do this first

Be human.

Artificial Intelligence technology is used in recruiting to accomplish tasks that until recently recruiters usually carried out themselves. The ultimate goal of the tech is to help recruiters sort through a seemingly unending stack of resumes and get to the shortlist quickly. It isn’t quite at the industry-wide adoption level, but that appears to be only a matter of time. Until total adoption happens, and really even when it happens, there’s something recruiters still need to do that AI simply can’t—be human.

Keep Humanity in Hiring

Before you can use AI, you need to build actual human relationships with hiring managers. This means giving them a call or having a meeting with them and writing down what they want a successful hire to look like. Then follow up. And when you have a stellar candidate you don’t want to lose to your competition, the same interaction can set you apart from other recruiters. It’s not sexy tech, but it’s necessary if you want to be successful.

Consider situations where desirable candidates are in high demand and can pick and choose the companies they want to work for. Machines can’t sell a position. That’s a job for the recruiter.

The human element isn’t just about locking down clients and candidates by using a personal touch, although that should be an obvious motivator for you. It’s about keeping real life flesh and blood in recruitment, so that AI is used to aid, not replace…well…you.

AI to Automate Processes

Once you’ve established relationships, you can use AI to make your life not only easier but more effective. AI software can speed up interview booking and other coordination throughout the hiring process. Plus, scheduling is prone to human error. Automating it with a virtual assistant means less mistakes on your end.

Chatbots

AI chatbots can be used to improve the candidate experience by offering candidates personalized responses to things like submitted job applications. And chatbots can fire off those responses faster than a single recruiter probably could. Receiving slow, or worse yet, no response to an application is one of the biggest candidate complaints.

So sure, it’s great that AI can sift out candidates and automate processes, but it won’t solve everything. The goal of AI should be to free you up to have more of those human-to-human interactions, because AI can’t replace empathy or contextual understanding. The overall experience candidates and clients have with your organization always come down to you.