While technology is vital to talent acquisition, the process should always be human-centered, a new report by The Josh Bersin Company argues.
‘If you have the right people, everything else gets better’
The discussion ensues every couple of months. Will recruiters end up being replaced by the technology that supposedly makes their jobs easier? The short answer, thus far, has always been no. “At its core, recruitment is a people-to-people business”, the Bersin report states. “Unfortunately, that means we now have a massive shortage of recruiters. And our research shows that training and upskilling recruiters is one of the most critical areas of investment.”
“At its core, recruitment is a people-to-people business.”
Moreover, the Bersin research found that companies with a ‘human-centered’ TA capability generally do much better than others. “They are more adaptable to change, more profitable, more innovative, their customers are more satisfied. And they have higher employee engagement and retention. In short, when you have the right people, everything else gets better.”
‘AI-enabled search is still in its infancy’
Tracking a total of 100 different recruitment tools, the Bersin research warns for the sheer volume of technologies. They may just create more of a complication, the report says. “We tracked assessment, sourcing, candidate marketing, interviewing, tracking, scheduling, and analytics vendors — and the innovation continues to accelerate. With skills-based talent intelligence systems, recruiting is starting to look more like AI-enabled search every day. But it’s still really in its infancy.”
‘Technology can strengthen the talent pipeline’
Despite emphasising the need for a more human-centered talent acquisition process, the Bersin report sees several advantages for adopting recruitment technology. But at its core, it must be used to be in service of creating greater experiences. “Our research shows that virtual hiring tools, automation, talent intelligence platforms, and even AI and chatbots do drive key metrics like your ability to attract and hire great candidates or maintain a quality talent pipeline.”
Companies that are able to leverage a variety of digital hiring solutions are twice as likely to be able to attract and recruit the right talent.
The report cites companies that employ AI throughout their recruitment processes are four times more likely to boast a strong candidate pipeline. Moreover, companies that are able to leverage a variety of digital hiring solutions, like online assessments or virtual interview platforms, are twice as likely to be able to attract and recruit the right talent, the research found.
Learning from L’Oréal and McDonald’s simplicity
In essence, the technology used in a recruitment process should be simple, easy-to-use and intuitive, the report states. The research cites L’Oréal and McDonald’s as two companies to learn from. “At L’Oréal, the recruiting platform is so easy to use that many recruiters have now become proficient in data analytics. Regularly leveraging diversity metrics to adjust and course-correct hiring approaches proactively.”
“At L’Oréal, the recruiting platform is so easy to use that many recruiters have now become proficient in data analytics.”
At McDonald’s, its high-volume hiring platform was almost tailor-made for those who end up using the service: owner-operators who multitask as recruiters for their own respective restaurants. As those using it provided guidance on the design, it became the first step in ensuring the technology actually met the specific needs. “As a result, they’ve wholeheartedly embraced the solution”, the report concludes.
