Recruiting is constantly evolving and companies need to re-evaluate the value they put on talent and technology.
Recruiters spend an average of 23 hours a week screening CVs. With up to 80% of applicants usually unqualified for a role, that’s almost half a week of a recruiter’s work wasted on irrelevant talent. As our industry is overwhelmed by countless repetitive administrative tasks that make up the recruitment process, in the end it’s the candidate experience that suffers most.
With great advances in technology and #AI and with an abundance of candidate data available at our fingertips, it’s high time we moved recruitment out of “the dark ages” and pushed it towards more innovation.
At a recent Meet up with our Clients, Digger looked at how implementing technology in areas with little impact on candidate experience (from attracting, screening, matching to sourcing and interview planning) can help free up more time for recruiters to spend interacting with talent where it’s needed most.
But before deciding to jump into new technology, be sure to involve key stakeholders in the decision-making and ensure it will address real business needs.
It’s no secret that the industry is severely struggling to get out of the “dark ages” of reactive recruitment and repetitive, manual processes. While the ATS was a welcome innovation when it was first introduced on the market 20 years ago, candidates and Hiring Manager expectations have evolved over time, but recruiters’ capabilities and budgets remained the same.
Today’s competitive landscape has made candidate experience the differentiating factor. But attraction and engagement require more than what the traditional ATS can offer. And yet, recruiters are still spending the larger part of their time on administrative work, with little value add for the candidate journey.
Tasks such as attracting, screening, matching, sourcing and interview planning and even telephone interviews not only bog down recruitment, but can also create challenges in objectivity, consistency and reliability of decisions. Cognitive bias is an unavoidable risk recruiters face when going through high volumes of applicants with limited resources.
“Recruitment is about effectiveness, not just about filling a job,” says Lindi Engelbrecht, CEO of Digger. It may be easy to go out and find talent, but effective matching & engagement is about evaluating if they are also a right fit and if they would commit for the long term.
A 2019 analysis of 17 hiring and selection studies found that algorithms outperformed recruitment experts by at least 25%, regardless of job type. Machine learning technology is already making its way into the recruitment sphere, using data and algorithms to mimic human decision-making and problem-solving. Some of the areas where such Technology is already adding value include:
Candidate engagement: Custom-designed chatbots can automate frequently asked questions and engage with candidates at any time of the day, facilitating self-selection and freeing up recruiter time.
Data collection and analysis: Modern ATS/CMS technology has started supporting recruiters in surfacing best candidates in their database and automatically matching them to new jobs, before putting them out to the wider public. (See Digger)
Prediction: Machine learning can help recruiters get better at predicting outcomes, giving them a good suggestion for the best course of action.
When you have key stakeholders involved in the recruitment function, it's a lot easier to get their buy-in for new technology. Launch small-scale pilot programmes for every new software, then have your tech team take it apart to understand it best, Lindi advises. Pushing change without their collaboration won’t work as easily.
Technology is still a Human Journey.
“When implementing new technology, don’t be afraid to fail. Fail fast and then move to the right solution,” “This will allow you to scale.”
But your technology is only as good as the data you feed into it, Lindi adds. So when choosing which new tools to implement, look at the data sets and data sources you would use and how well they integrate with your existing systems. Also note that as per current GDPR/POPPI requirements, your data subjects need to be informed on how their data is used so look for technology that is compliant and uses minimal data to help you make hiring decisions.
AI and automation are becoming staple pieces in the recruitment sphere, using data and algorithms to mimic human decision-making and problem-solving. But such technology is not the solution to gaps in your processes, it’s only a catalyst for improvement.
When choosing which technology to implement, look at areas in your recruitment process that have the least impact on candidate experience: attracting, screening, matching, sourcing, scheduling, data visualisation and integration. But before deciding to jump into something new, ask your whole team if it’s going to be right for their needs. Pushing it without their initial feedback will slow down their buy-in.
Consider a cross-functional approach to your recruitment, as often times talent challenges are not solved by just one function. Involve line managers in the prospect of finding talent as they will best understand the context of the new role and know what to look for in your candidates. Choose technology that will assist your company uncover and communicate an authentic and relevant employer brand to bring it to life through shareable and informative content. To Engage the right Talent first and ensure better informed candidates & thus will increase your Acceptance to Offer Ratio.