Like a computer-generated knight in shining armor, the omniscient power of AI has again shown its proficiency with a post-pandemic problem companies have had—screening and recruiting talent. Researchers from The Harvard Business Review, in partnership with conversational recruiting software firm Paradox, studied the impact AI is having in talent-acquisition effectiveness and overall business success, and found that, like everything else put before it, AI has brought a stabilizing efficiency to the process.
Data from the survey reveals that automation is driving positive outcomes, with virtually all survey respondents (97 percent) whose organizations have adopted automated technologies in their hiring process saying that it has helped hire people more effectively, led to quicker interview scheduling and reduced candidate drop-off.
The report, Transforming Talent Acquisition Through the Power of Automation and Artificial Intelligence, which surveyed 326 senior business and HR leaders, found that an overwhelming portion (91 percent) of key decision makers believe optimizing hiring processes with automation and AI is necessary for long-term business success.
“Leaders have recognized the competitive nature of attracting and hiring the best talent,” said Brian Delle Donne, president of Talent Tech Labs, a New York City-based independent research and advisory firm focused on talent technology, in a news release. “By taking a closer look at their priorities, their processes, and their technologies, this focused attention is making a difference in their hiring outcomes. For some companies, getting this properly balanced has been a challenge, but it’s far from impossible—it is, in fact, a necessity.”
Trucking and transportation company U.S. Xpress is cited in the report as an early adopter of AI and automation within its hiring processes. By leveraging an intelligent AI assistant that can engage candidates, help them apply, schedule interviews, and communicate with applicants 24/7 via text message, the company was able to dramatically increase candidate conversion and reduce time-to-schedule interviews to just a few minutes.
“Businesses that struggle to find and hire job candidates with the right skills, especially when hiring in large volume, are going to immediately see the value of integrating assistive intelligence and automation into their hiring processes,” said Jacob Kramer, senior vice president of talent acquisition at U.S. Xpress, in the release.
While the primary focus of the report was on the adoption, use, and impact of automation and AI solutions as part of the hiring process to drive business outcomes, the survey results revealed other key insights into the use of intelligence-driven technology:
- 92 percent of respondents said their organization needs to invest more into talent acquisition to remain competitive.
- 46 percent of respondents cited screening and assessments as the capability they most want to improve in the hiring process, followed by applicant communications at 39 percent.
- Just 4 percent of respondents said that their organization is currently “very effective” at hiring the talent it needs.
“We’ve always believed people should spend more time with people, not software—and that, as paradoxical as it sounds, automation and AI are key to unlocking that,” said Aaron Matos, Paradox founder and CEO, in the release. “We’ve been fortunate to partner with some of the world’s largest companies to revolutionize how they hire with conversational AI to help their teams get more done, in less time—with better experiences and outcomes for everyone. We see a future where technology does the boring, repetitive stuff, so we can all get back to the human-led work that shouldn’t be automated.”
