AI And Automation: Overcoming Today’s Recruitment Challenges

Leverage technology to address your hiring woes

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 7.1 million people are currently out of work, an 11% increase from this time last year. Unemployment applications are also at a record high, an indicator that job seekers are struggling to find work. As a result, companies are slowing, even pausing, recruitment in response to economic uncertainty and shifting labor demands, an occurrence coined “The Big Freeze.”

At the same time, U.S. workers who are currently employed are looking for work at the highest level since 2015, as documented in a recent Gallup poll. The majority of these workers are actively seeking a new job, increasing competition in an already challenging job market. Yet despite this influx of candidates, companies are struggling to find the right talent, leading to prolonged hiring cycles and increased competition. 

To bridge this gap, staffing firms should leverage technology to automate the recruitment process. AI and automation are no longer optional; they are essential for boosting recruiter productivity, improving job matching, and enhancing the overall candidate experience. Firms that adopt AI capabilities amplify the power of their workforce, resulting in an improved candidate experience, more placements, and ultimately, more profit. 

Leveraging AI to Fill Jobs Faster

AI adoption is accelerating at an unprecedented rate in the recruitment industry. According to Bullhorn’s GRID 2025 Recruitment Industry Trend Report, 67% of firms are investing in AI solutions and 45% are leveraging AI to sort resumes. AI is now a core component of modern hiring strategies, with many staffing firms leveraging AI to handle sourcing, matching, personalized messaging, screening, and scheduling and seeing an impact across their entire recruitment workflow. The greatest impact of all – right candidates are finding the right roles, faster.

The benefits of AI are boundless, but are not achievable without the accurate, complete data sets needed to power AI capabilities. Data remains a top challenge, with 36% of firms citing data limitations as a barrier to maximizing the benefits of AI. Firms that prioritize data hygiene and governance to fully realize AI’s effectiveness will achieve results, which may be the push the industry at large needs to lean into AI adoption as part of its digital transformation. 

Improving the Candidate Experience

With many unemployed workers searching for a job for at least six months, the candidate experience is a differentiator for staffing firms. Candidates expect faster, more personalized, hiring experiences that result in placement. Firms that deliver on candidate expectations can readily redeploy top candidates and are nearly twice as likely to boost revenue. 

According to the GRID 2024 Talent Trends Report released last fall, 80% of candidates want to be placed in less than 20 days — a seemingly tough feat in today’s market. GRID 2025 Industry Trends Report, revealed that firms using automated searching for candidates are 50% more likely to meet that 20-day target. Firms infusing AI and automation throughout the entire recruiter workflow were nearly 90% more likely to place candidates before the 20-day mark. 

Data suggests that firms that meet (and perhaps exceed) candidate expectations are more likely to retain those candidates for future job opportunities. AI adoption provides firms with a crucial advantage as industry competition intensifies and candidate expectations for faster, better results continue to rise. 

Balancing Technology and Human Touch 

As candidates demand faster placements, recruiters face a different challenge, managing the sheer volume of applications. Applications skyrocketed by 31% last year, making it nearly impossible for recruiters to review every application and identify the best candidate for the job. Recruiters currently spend 14.6 hours each week just searching for the right candidate to fill a role — a staggering amount of time that does not factor in time spent on interviewing, scheduling, and emailing. 

According to the report, AI and automation tools are poised to give recruiters up to 17 hours back each week, enabling them to focus on building relationships and other revenue-driving activities while spending less time on manual tasks. As the industry focuses on improving the candidate experience, the added benefits for staffing firms using AI and automation include operational efficiency, recruiter productivity, and a boost to the bottom line.

AI Is the Future of Recruitment

Technology has become table stakes for recruitment, and AI-driven automation is a clear competitive necessity. As competition tightens to win business and talent, AI capabilities are transforming candidate expectations and resetting industry standards. AI and automation infused across the entire recruitment workflow allow staffing firms to amplify their workforce, creating a more seamless, engaging, and scalable hiring process for candidates, recruiters, and businesses alike. 

Kelley Morse is the Chief People Officer at Bullhorn, responsible for leading the global human resources organization, including talent acquisition, HR business partners, people operations, compensation, learning and development, analytics, diversity, and inclusion, and ensuring the organization maintains its strong culture as it grows.