How Technology Can Help Recruit The Best Job Candidates

Advancements in recruitment technology have forever changed the relationship between organizations and job candidates.

This article is part of our June series about the future of work. Click here for more.

Advancements in recruitment technology have forever changed the relationship between organizations and job candidates. As Nick Deligiannis, managing director of Hays, pointed out, the historic “advertise-and-apply” model, where job seekers simply apply to advertised vacancies, is now being replaced by a “find-and-engage” approach in which organizations seek out workers.

So how does this approach work?

In 2018, employers are using advanced tactics such as artificial intelligence, mobile apps, and gamification to examine larger candidate pools so they can shortlist the most suitable candidates more rapidly. At the same time, organizations are also putting the relationship with workers back at the heart of the recruitment process, with an increased focus on humanizing their brands and understanding job seekers’ priorities and aspirations. Related, research has shown that younger candidates favor businesses that offer a friendlier company culture.

Here are just a few of the ways companies are using advanced technology to recruit the best and brightest.

AI Enters The Recruitment Process

With the rise of automation across a number of industries, companies are increasingly utilizing AI-enabled tools and chatbots to screen potential candidates and match them with specific job opportunities. In fact, a 2017 Deloitte report found that 33% of survey respondents already use some form of AI in their hiring process.

The benefits of AI recruitment tools extend to job seekers, too, adding more transparency to the recruitment process. According to HRTechnologist, 58% of job seekers said they have a negative impression of a company if they don’t hear back after applying. Alternatively, 67% of job seekers said they have a favorable opinion of a company if they receive updates throughout the application process.

AI-enable recruitment bots are capable of interacting with candidates in real time, providing updates and alerting them about next steps in the hiring process. Companies such as Nike, Unilever, and Intel are some of the first to use intelligent recruitment tools to take any unconscious bias out of their recruitment processes as well. With AI recruitment tools, candidates are given an equal opportunity to apply and be considered for a position regardless of their gender, age, or ethnicity.

In LinkedIn’s Global Recruitment Trends report, 82% of recruiters said diversity is now their primary focus. AI tools that automate the candidate screening process are helping to chip away at unconscious bias and increase diversity across every industry.

Companies Double Down On Mobile And Social

Organizations are turning to social media in droves to recruit new employees, as 79% of job seekers who said they now use social in their job search activities. According to Aberdeen Group, most of the top companies are 32% more likely to engage candidates via social media.

And with nearly 80% of social media usage taking place on mobile devices, mobile is now a must to attract new graduates as well.

Mobile allows organizations to get onto potential candidates’ radars much sooner in their job searches so long as they’ve optimized their websites for mobile devices. According to The Pew Charitable Trusts, the state of Maine has seen the number of applications rise 35% since launching its mobile app to help collect job applications, smoothing the recruitment and onboarding process considerably.

Goldman Sachs’ use of Spotify, plus McDonald’s and Taco Bell’s use of Snapchat, are more examples of how organizations are using mobile to get in front of younger recruits.

Gamification Goes Mainstream

Designed with the next generation in mind, new apps are mixing gaming with video interviews to help companies identify top applicants. Unilever, which receives more than a quarter of a million graduate applications each year, uses a series of online games in order to narrow down its applicant pool.

The games, which take no more than 20 minutes, allow Unilever to gain insights into a candidate’s potential, understand how well-aligned a candidate is with the company’s values and goals, as well as identify other skills which may not appear on a candidate’s resume.

Unilever isn’t the only organization using gamification and interactive experiences in its recruitment strategies. Uber, Marriott, and Deloitte are also using the tactic to increase candidate engagement, shorten screening times, and eliminate any unconscious bias by hiring recruiters or managers.

Technology is helping to resolve some of the most prominent hiring challenges organizations face today. But as technology becomes integrated into every step of the hiring process, it will be important for organizations to maintain a human element, especially if their goal is to attract top talent from the latest generation entering the workforce.

That is why offering an honest look at an organization’s people, culture, and values is more important than ever. Technology can lend a hand and support the ever-evolving relationship between employers and their future employees.