Reinventing The Recruiter With AI And EI

Recruiters can now focus on their emotional intelligence and build the human-centered piece of the job

Yes, you read that right: “reinventing,” not “dismantling,” or “obliterating.” AI is reinventing the field by taking away the HR department’s or recruiters’ most onerous task: sorting through endless piles of resumes looking for the right talent to move forward. With the advent of AI, recruiters are free to focus on their emotional intelligence and build the human-centered piece of the job. 
 

Earlier in my headhunting career, the “six second scan” was a cornerstone of the industry. We knew the norm: a recruiter spends approximately six seconds scanning a resume to determine successful candidacy. This approach involved skill, knowing what will work, the trained patient eye of someone scanning data points tirelessly, grit and let’s face it--a certain amount of wish-and-a-prayer. With huge volumes of resumes to review, recruiters had to trust their instincts, make a judgment call based on compatibility with the brief, and hope for the best.

Yet this instinctive but labour-intensive approach had a dark side. Recruiters are human. Humans are imperfect which means humans hold biases. Unconscious biases came to the fore without the industry acknowledging the issue (the biases are unconscious, after all). At the time, male, Caucasian, Anglo-sounding name, and reputable education combined with a top employer track record would get the role – because everyone unconsiouslly believed that person could bring success to the company.

We all know that story doesn’t typically end well. Furthermore, it doesn’t reflect the global economy and a leaders ambitious appetite to keep their organizations relevant. 
That’s why the advent of artificial intelligence will become an essential part of a growth-minded and competitive organization. 

With AI performing the rote operation of resume scanning and identifying credible talent for consideration, recruiters are theoretically able to focus on the high value, human-to-human relationship development necessary to the candidate experience. What’s more, AI’s algorithms, which are often designed to account for--and disrupt--the pattern of gatekeepers withholding opportunities as a result of unconscious bias, allow for qualified candidates of every background to be evaluated for the role. No longer is it acceptable for a company to keep hiring the same people they always have and wonder why they’re getting the same results. 

Diverse workplaces are the healthiest workplaces--and have the best chance of surviving the fourth industrial revolution. “Diverse” means diversity of background, race, gender--but also of interests, personality type, skillset, etc. Below I’ve highlighted three tools designed to aid your recruitment processes and help you achieve a diverse, thriving workplace.

Pymetrics: A candidate encounters Pymetrics as the first step in the recruitment process. The candidate then takes a 20 minute assessment, during which Pymetrics analyzes memory, planning, attention, risk tolerance, and learning style. 

What makes Pymetrics exciting is that the “assessment” is actually fun--the candidate plays computer games for 20 minutes. All employees of the organization take the assessment, too, so the candidate’s data is then held up against team members’ data to see if he/she is a good fit. If not, Pymetrics directs the candidate to other organizations with which they might better integrate. Pymetrics demonstrates care for the candidate at every step. 

SquarePeg: SquarePeg serves as a matching service between candidate and organization--almost like online dating. Candidates take an assessment which takes into account psychometrics and preferences. Then they receive results which tell them how they “matched” with certain employers, and are given the chance to personally connect with team members at said organizations.

Candidates interact with SquarePeg before they have the first conversation with a recruiter. On the hiring side, recruiters are handed a curated list of individuals who would be a good fit for the company and already have an interest in working there. In a candidate driven market, this is a great way for talent to identify where they are most likely going to be successful.

HiredScore: HiredScore is an HR tool that dramatically improves the candidate experience. The company’s algorithms mitigate for unconscious bias: the goal is a diverse workplace, not one in which the hiring manager hires people with similar backgrounds or proclivities. Candidates are given a score, allowing recruiters to see qualified candidates the moment they apply. Candidates who aren’t a perfect match get the news very soon: often within 24-48 hours. The torturous waiting game doesn’t exist here.

What’s more, HiredScore has a feature which allows hiring managers to find qualified candidates even several years after the interview. Some “dream job” matches have been made this way. For HiredScore, “we’ll keep your resume” isn’t just an empty phrase. The candidate experience is first throughout the entire process; the result is a positive employer brand that candidates are happy to return to, even after an initial “no.”

When AI tools such as these are utilized, recruiters can focus on more than the bottom line. Gone are the days of sifting through endless LinkedIn profiles and resume attachments--flagging anyone who looks promising, then chasing after them like a desperate suitor. These tools allow recruiters to nurture warm leads and identify gaps for sourcers for targeted approaches. Recruiters can then deploy their emotional intelligence skills.

The most important emotional intelligence trait is empathy. Recruiters who can tap into that emotional insight will have time to truly consider the recruiter-candidate dance from the candidate’s point of view. Thus, a recruiter can ask herself: “How is this person being treated? How would I feel if it had been two weeks since the initial interview and I hadn’t heard from anyone? How can I be a courteous, warm presence in this person’s path to his perfect job placement?”

This kind of thinking and action isn’t just “nice”--it’s part of developing a strong employer brand and to attract the right talent, using insights and human connection. So far, this connection still requires humans: kind, polite, emotionally intelligent humans. Are your recruiters EI ready?