AI and machine learning have empowered recruiting and talent acquisition professionals, as they continue to transform a wide range of industries. However, some recruiters are beginning to fear that robots are coming for their jobs. Although AI technology may replace transactional and repetitive recruiting tasks, it’s not here to make the role of the recruiter obsolete.

Instead, AI technology will serve to augment recruiters and help them evolve and improve efficiencies. Because in the end, there’s truly no replacement for what makes recruiters so valuable: the human element. Below, we take a look at how AI and Recruiting are colliding and how, by leveraging new cutting-edge tools, recruiters will be able to do their jobs more effectively.

The Intersection of AI and Recruiting

Since the 90’s, technology has revolutionized the way recruiting is done, with much of the process now being documented via ATS or other talent management software.  I can still remember back when I started in search, when research consisted of going through file drawers and pulling out resumes of people to call the next day.   However that is no more. Newer AI technologies use techniques such as machine learning, natural language processing, and sentiment analysis to learn, troubleshoot and problem solve this deep research that once done manually according to an article published by HR media company People Matters.

AI tools allow recruiting firms to automate many of the low-value, high-volume recruiting tasks that take up a lot of time and energy. With AI, recruiters have numerous advantages throughout the search process, including more effective research, screening and candidate communication, better timing when reaching out to candidates, the ability to predict if candidate will be engaged in their roles over the long-term and the ability to replicate situations to evaluate a candidate’s real world learning abilities.

Moreover, with more time to focus on the task of recruiting itself, HR managers may be able to reduce or eliminate the need for third party talent sources such as employment bureaus and traditional recruiting agencies.

Will AI Actually Replace Recruiters?

Similar to the fears surrounding AI today, many speculated around the time that LinkedIn emerged that the social network would make recruiters obsolete. While LinkedIn has become a critical tool that the majority of recruiters use on a daily basis, it is now clear that it can’t imitate the impact that recruiters have on the recruitment process, and the same is true for AI and machine learning.

While AI may have the potential to fully automate some recruiting functions that are currently executed manually, other functions simply can’t be replaced by technology. As I mentioned above, AI is not advanced enough to replace the “human element” that is critical to the recruiting process.

Instead of replacing recruiters, AI is more likely to augment recruiters to help them do their jobs more effectively or allow them to shift the focus of their role to become more of a strategic partner.

There’s No Replacement for the Recruiter’s “Human Touch”

AI holds a lot of promise for recruiters and they should look forward to personally utilizing some of the related tools, but there are some aspects of recruiting that can never be automated, according to HR Buddy, an HR Blog.

Personal Interaction: AI makes recruiting more efficient and data driven, but there’s still a deep need for the recruiter to humanize the process and build a great relationship with both clients and candidates, something that can’t be done with AI. Client and candidate relationships, built on complex personal interactions that take dedication and time to nurture, are critical to a successful recruiting process.

Emotional Connection: Recruiters have to be able to access the soft skills, hard skills and emotional intelligence of each candidate. This is something that can’t be accomplished overnight or through random messages exchanged with a chatbot. To understand both candidates and the pulse of our world-class clients’ organizations, a real human connection is required.

Strategic Advice: It’s important that recruiters get to know the culture and team dynamic of an organization, the personality/priorities of the hiring manager, and what type of candidate would be the right fit. Recruiters must counsel and prep candidates before they meet with hiring managers or interview panels. Additionally, the recruiter acts as a business partner who provides consultative hiring advice throughout the search process.

Customization and Personalization: Every candidate unique and every client faces different challenges, therefore, a one-size-all approach to recruiting isn’t effective. Recruiters need to adapt, personalize and tailor their process to strike the right chord when delivering their messaging. Enticing candidates, conveying the company culture, negotiating compensation and making the ultimate hiring decisions can’t be done by AI.

Finding a Recruiter with the Human Touch

If you’re organization is in need of a new hire, we encourage you to partner with a recruiter or recruiting firm that understands the importance of personalization, customization and “the human touch” throughout the recruiting and hiring process. This means being highly involved from initial consultation, search strategy and assessment and selection through updates, interviews and debriefing.

About the Author:

Matthew J. Schwartz is the Founder, President and CEO of MJS Executive Search with nearly two decades of experience in retained executive search. Matt’s expertise lies in bringing together key executives that exhibit passion and creativity with leading organizations in a wide range of functional areas such as Marketing, Sales, Digital, Interactive and more. From Digital and Social media to Machine Learning and AI, Matt is passionate about cutting edge technologies and is dedicated using his knowledge to help his clients remain or become leaders in their realm.

Founded in 2003, MJS Executive Search has established itself as a top retained executive search firm that identifies and places unique, hard to find executives in highly specialized roles.

If you are interested in learning more about our Transformational Talent™ solutions, contact MJS Executive Search today to learn more about how we can help your organization. www.mjsearch.com